The National Secretariat of Science, Technology and Innovation (Senacyt) and the City of Knowledge Foundation (FCDS) have launched the project “Mangrove sentinels of climate change: monitoring, vulnerability and resilience of marine-coastal ecosystems in the Bays of Panama and Chame.”

The main objective of the initiative is to implement a comprehensive program of monitoring mangroves in the aforementioned bays to raise awareness of their importance in the context of climate change. In addition, it seeks to identify factors that affect the resilience of mangroves, both in a limiting and potentiating way.

Under the coordination of the Mgtr. Sandy P. Mosquera and Dr. Luz G. Cruz, from CIDES / FCDS and Senacyt respectively, the project involves 10 professionals and students from various environmental disciplines. The monitoring covers specific areas and time periods (2017-2018/2021-2024) in the Bays of Panama and Chame.

Sandy Mosquera highlighted the relevance of monitoring to evaluate the dynamics of mangroves over time, addressing biotic components, abiotics and associated resources. Dr. Cruz stressed that the research will offer essential data on marine-coastal dynamics, including indicators related to climate change.

This project arises as a continuation of a previous work (2017-2018) and addresses nine lines of research, such as the study of mangrove fungal communities, analysis of the abiotic environment, macrobentos, and quality of marine sediments, among others.