Integration of Mosses (Funaria hygrometrica) and Lichens (Xanthoria parietina) as Native Bioindicators of Atmospheric Pollution by Trace Metal Elements in Mediterranean Forest Plantations

Atmospheric emissions of industrial-origin trace metals are a major environmental problem that negatively affects air quality and the functioning of forest ecosystems. Traditional air quality monitoring methods require investments in equipment and infrastructure. Indeed, it is difficult to measure most of these pollutants because their concentrations usually occur at very low levels. However, this study explores an ecological approach for low-cost air quality biomonitoring that is based on native biological indicators in the context of the Mediterranean basin. This study aims (i) to evaluate the lichen species composition, diversity, and distribution across three distinct forest sites; (ii) investigate the relationship between lichen species richness and proximity to the pollution source; and (iii) evaluate heavy metal bioaccumulation using a moss species (Funaria hygrometrica) and a lichen species (Xanthoria parietina) as bioindicators of atmospheric pollution. High concentrations of toxic metals were observed along the transect and closer to the pollutant source with marked interspecies variability. X. parietina exhibited high bioaccumulation potential for most toxic metals (Fe, Zn, Pb, Cr, Cu, and Ni) compared to F. hygrometrica with concentrations varying across the three sites, reaching maximum dry-mass values of 6289 µg/g for Fe at the first site and 226 µg/g for Zn at Site 3. Our results suggest that X. parietina can be used as a potential bioindicator for long-term spatial biomonitoring of air quality by determining atmospheric toxic metals concentrations.