Carlos Lara

Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción | UCSC · Departamento de Ecología

The chain of islands including Desertores, Apiao and Quemchi located in the Inner Sea of Chiloé, in northern Chilean Patagonia (41°- 44°S), acts as a natural barrier for the flux of water in the north-south direction, influencing exc hange and circulation between the northern and southern micro basins. The northern micro basin is mainly characteriz...

Satellite images are powerful tools to describe meso- and large-scale spatial structures, thus helping in the comprehension of the physical-biological processes taking place in the ocean. The objective of this study was to establish spatial (horizontal) and temporal (seasonal) variability of the autotrophic biomass measured as satellite chlorophyll...

The variability of phytoplankton dynamics is a crucial component of coastal biogeochemical cycles at various spatial-temporal scales. A key geophysical parameter that advances our understanding of phytoplankton dynamics in coastal zones is the remote sensing reflectance (Rrs), which can be used as a proxy for the concentrations of colored dissolved...

The Pliocene is considered a natural climatic analog of the future climatic conditions of on planet. Thus, studying the geographical distribution of species during the Pliocene could provide clues about how current species might modify their distribution ranges over the coming decades. One of the most emblematic predators that has been present on o...

Turbidity is associated with the loss of water transparency due to the presence of particles, sediments, suspended solids, and organic or inorganic compounds in the water, of natural or anthropogenic origin. Our study aimed to evaluate the spatio-temporal variability of turbidity from Sentinel-2 (S2) images in the Reloncaví sound and fjord, in Nort...

Colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) is an indicator and optical proxy of terrestrial processes such as land use with allochthonous material fluxes, biogeochemical cycles, and water quality in coastal zones influenced by rivers. However, the role of land use changes on the spatial and temporal availability of CDOM has been poorly explored in Chi...

The coastal ocean off western Patagonia is one of the main coastal regions with high freshwater inputs from rivers, rain, and glaciers in the Southern Hemisphere. This study conducts an analysis of the seasonal and interannual variations in sea surface salinity and meridional geostrophic transports, specifically focusing on the Cape Horn Current, u...

Worldwide climate-driven shifts in the distribution of species is of special concern when it involves habitat-forming species. In the coastal environment, large Laminarian algae—kelps—form key coastal ecosystems that support complex and diverse food webs. Among kelps, Macrocystis pyrifera is the most widely distributed habitat-forming species and p...

Modelación de la distribución geográfica pasada del gran tiburón blanco alerta de un incremento en su riesgo extinción futuro El Plioceno representa una análogo climático natural de las condiciones que podría enfrentar el planeta hacia finales de siglo de acuerdo a escenarios de cambio climático pesimistas. Así, el estudio de la distribución geográ...

Among the water quality parameters, turbidity is one of the most important. For decades it has been a worldwide problem that negatively affects aquatic ecosystems. Turbidity is associated with the loss of water transparency due to the presence of particles, sediments, suspended solids and dissolved particles in the water, of natural or anthropogeni...

Aim: Worldwide climate-driven shifts in the distribution of species is of special concern when it involves habitat-forming species. In the coastal environment, large Laminarian algae – kelps – form key coastal ecosystems that support complex and diverse food webs. Among kelps, Macrocystis pyrifera is the most widely distributed habitat-forming spec...

El gran tiburón blanco (Carcharodon carcharias) es uno de los depredadores tope más emblemáticos que existen en nuestro planeta. Esta especie de tiburón cumple un rol de estructurador de comunidades, ya que puede controlar la abundancia de otras especies que consume como parte de su dieta. Una de las grandes problemáticas que afronta nuestro planet...

Worldwide climate-driven shifts in the distribution of species is of special concern when it involves habitat-forming species. In the coastal environment, large Laminarian algae – kelps – form key coastal ecosystems that support complex and diverse food webs. Among kelps, Macrocystis pyrifera is the most widely distributed habitat-forming species a...

Spatial synchrony occurs when geographically separated time series exhibit correlated temporal variability. Studies of synchrony between different environmental variables within marine ecosystems worldwide have highlighted the extent of system responses to exogenous large-scale forcing. However, these spatial connections remain largely unstudied in...

Ciclo diario de las variables oceanográficas en el Seno Reloncaví para el período estival 2021: una mirada en alta resolución temporal al paso de un frente termohalino Introducción El seno Reloncaví (SR) es un sistema semicerrado rodeado de una línea de costa casi circular que se conecta por el este con el estuario de Reloncaví (ER) y al sur con el...

Urbanization transforms environments in ways that alter biological evolution. We examined whether urban environmental change drives parallel evolution by sampling 110,019 white clover plants from 6169 populations in 160 cities globally. Plants were assayed for a Mendelian antiherbivore defense that also affects tolerance to abiotic stressors. Urban...

Urbanization transforms environments in ways that alter biological evolution. We examined whether urban environmental change drives parallel evolution by sampling 110,019 white clover plants from 6169 populations in 160 cities globally. Plants were assayed for a Mendelian antiherbivore defense that also affects tolerance to abiotic stressors. Urban...

Northern Patagonia is characterized by multiple rivers that discharge considerable amounts of freshwater into the coastal ocean, forming large river plumes that influence hydrographic and ecological processes. In this study, we use satellite ocean color data from MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) to characterize the seasonal and...

Coastal upwelling ecosystems support some of the most productive fisheries of the planet together with a large shellfish aquaculture sector that depends on oceanographic processes to deliver planktonic larvae to replenish and feed the farmed stock. Coastal shellfish aquaculture operations in Chile and Perú have experienced large interannual fluctua...

Human activities have led to an increase in land use change, with effects on the structure and functioning of ecosystems. The impact of contrasting land uses along river basins on the concentration of colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM) reaching the coastal zone, and its relationship with the carbonate system of the adjacent coastal ocean, is p...

The coastal region off Chilean Patagonia has been poorly studied due to the lack of available observations. Here we analyzed, by the very first time, biogeochemical (BGC) data to elucidate the role that biological and physical processes play on nitrate, oxygen, pH and hydrographic variables, along a salinity gradient off central Patagonia. Argo flo...

Using 19 years of remotely sensed Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), we examined the effects of climatic variability on terrestrial vegetation of six protected areas along southwestern South America, from the semiarid edge of the Atacama desert to southern Patagonia (30°S-51°S). The relationship between satellite phenology and climate indices, namely...

This study assessed natural variation in the macroinvertebrate assemblages (MIB) and water quality in one of the main basins with the largest agricultural activities in Chile (Aconcagua River Basin). We sampled throughout the annual cycle; nine sampling sites were established along the basin, classifying according to agricultural area coverage as l...

Surface oceanic fronts are regions characterized by high biological activity. Here, Sea Surface Temperature (SST) fronts are analyzed for the period 2003-2019 using the Multi-scale Ultra-high Resolution (MUR) SST product in northern Patagonia, a coastal region with high environmental variability through river discharges and coastal upwelling events...

Las variaciones climáticas a escala global están afectando a los diferentes ecosistemas, entre ellos los glaciares, principales reservas de agua dulce del planeta. El objetivo de este trabajo fue determinar los cambios superficiales en las coberturas glaciares del Complejo Volcánico Nevados de Chillán y relacionarlos con las variaciones meteorológi...

The variability of thermal fronts in eastern ocean boundaries has received increased attention because of being active regions of vertical fluxes of tracers and biological activity. Sea Surface Temperature (SST) images from three distinct satellite products are used to identify areas with enhanced surface thermal gradients (i.e. thermal fronts) in...

Over the last century climate change has impacted the physiology, distribution and phenology of marine and terrestrial primary producers worldwide. The study of these fluctuations has been hindered due to the complex response of plants to environmental forcing over large spatial and temporal scales. To bridge this gap, we investigated the synchrony...

The central and northern Chilean coasts are part of the Humboldt Current System, which sustains one of the largest fisheries in the world due to upwelling. There are several upwelling focal points along the Chilean coast; however, from a physical standpoint, the region between 39 • and 41 • S has not been studied in detail despite being one of the...

Species of the genus Ulva (Chlorophyta) are regarded as opportunistic organisms, which efficiently adjust their metabolism to the prevailing environmental conditions. In this study changes in chlorophyll‐a fluorescence‐based photoinhibition of photosynthesis, electron transport rates, photosynthetic pigments, lipid peroxidation, total phenolic comp...

Northern Patagonia, on the southeastern Pacific Ocean, is one of the largest fjord systems in the world. Its complex topography harbors an aquaculture industry that is among the top exporters of salmon and mussels worldwide. However, little is known about the scales of environmental variability of this region and how climate-related changes can alt...

Diverse phenotypic characteristics have evolved in seaweeds to cope with environmental stress, but these traits can vary among populations of the same species especially if these are distributed along environmental gradients. In this study, natural populations of the carrageenophyte Chondracanthus chamissoi and the agarophyte Gelidium lingulatum fr...

Aim: We assess the spatial distribution of a suite of coastal biophysical characteristics and how their variability is related to the distribution and geographic range of a diverse assemblage of coastal benthic species with different larval dispersal strategies. Location: South-eastern Pacific (SEP) coast between 18°20’S and 42°35’S. Methods: Bioph...

Western Patagonia harbors unique and sparsely studied terrestrial ecosystems that are threatened by land use changes and exposure to basin-scale climatic variability. We assessed the performance of two satellite vegetation indices derived from MODIS — Terra, EVI (Enhanced Vegetation Index) and NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index), over the...

The use of remote sensing has allowed enormous progress in our understanding of biophysical processes worldwide. Despite their importance, the use of satellite bio-optical products is still limited due to optical complexity. In this study we assess the performance of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer algorithm for chlorophyll-a (MOD...

The use of remote sensing has allowed enormous progress in our understanding of biophysical processes worldwide. Despite their importance, the use of satellite bio-optical products is still limited due to their optical complexity. In this study we assess the performance of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer algorithm for chlorophyll-...

Large-scale regional phenomena and global climate trends may alter the freshwater discharge of large Patagonian rivers and could modify local circulation patterns in ways that influence phytoplankton dynamics. Modifications detected in the streamflow regime of the Puelo River (41.5°S, Patagonia, Chile) in recent decades may affect the regularity of...

Variabilidad temporal y espacial de la concentración de clorofila-a, radiación solar y Temperatura Superficial del Mar en el Sistema Marino de la Patagonia Norte Introducción La Patagonia de Chile (41º-55º Sur), corres-ponde a un ecosistema marino de transición influenciado por aguas profundas del océano con alta salinidad y nutrientes, y una capa...