Domingo Contreras’s research while affiliated with Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and other places

The Valdivia River (Lake Region, Chile) originates in Riñihue Lake and flows into the sea at Corral Bay (39°52′S latitude), changing names several times along its course. The aquatic benthic flora (algae and aquatic plants) of the Valdivia River was characterized, based on 22 sites sampled and 124 plant species collected. Four benthic vegetation zones were established using presence-absence data: a freshwater zone and a marine zone were found at the extremes of the transect; an estuarine zone and a discontinuity zone were detected in the middle of this transect. The freshwater zone was characterized by a relatively diverse assemblage of vascular plants, the marine zone was dominated by algae and was rich in species. By contrast the estuarine zone was inhabited by only a few species but in great abundance, while the discontinuity zone was poor, in species and low in cover vegetation. El río Valdivia (X Región, Chile) nace en el lago Riñihue y desemboca al mar en la Bahía de Corral (39°52′L S), cambiando varias veces de nombre a lo largo de su curso. Se estudió la flora acuática bentónica (algas y plantas acuáticas) de este río, en 22 lugares de muestreo, colectándose 124 especies. Utilizando datos de presencia/ ausencia e establecieron 4 zonas de vegetación bentónica: una zona límnica y otra marina, en ambos extremos del transecto, y en el medio de él, una zona estuarina y otra de discontinuidad. La zona de agua dulce se caracterizó por poseer una mayor diversidad de especies de plantas vasculares, en la zona marina dominaban las algas. Por el contrario, la zona estuarina presentó pocas especies pero abundantes, mientras que la zona de discontinuidad presentó muy pocas especies y con baja cobertura.

The flora of forest, scrub, and grass communities was studied in Rucamanque, located near the city of Temuco, Cautín Chile, in the central valley of south central Chile. Forty-six vegetation samples were made, and plants were collected intensively outside the sample areas. A catalog was written for 203 plants species, which were analyzed for systematics, phytogeographics, life forms, the biological spectrum that they compose, the frequency and relative importance of each in the different vegetational communities, and their uses in industry, crafts, and medicine.