Spatial and temporal distribution of atmospheric Poaceae pollen in Catalonia (Northeast Spain).

LATORRE, F. & BELMONTE, J.

Montbello, Canadá.

Congreso; 7th International Congress on Aerobiology. Canada, Québec.; 2002

IAA y Universidad de Montréal

Spatial and temporal DISTRIBUTION of ATMOSPHERIC Poaceae pollen in CATALONIA (Northeast Spain) Latorre, F. and J. Belmonte, Botany Unit, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain. A comparative study with Poaceae pollen data from an 8 years period (1994-2001) at six localities (see the names in the table) was performed to evaluate possible differences in pollen seasons and to determine if they could be associated to particularities in climate, biogeography or human activity. Poaceae is a complex group represented in Catalonia by 296 species. This pollen type is present in the atmosphere all the year round, but concentrations are especially significant between May and August. Even if there are differences among years, Girona and Lleida present generally the highest annual total with, in average 2212 pollen grains (3.7% of the total pollen) and 2141 pollen grains (7.9%), respectively. Barcelona and Tarragona (the littoral sites) show the lowest values, with 1146 (2.3%) and 1141 (3.9%) pollen grains. Bellaterra and Manresa account, in average, 1658 (4.6%) and 1553 (4.7%) pollen grains in the year. The absolute peaks of the mean daily and mean weekly Poaceae pollen concentration are shown in the table. Locality Daily peak Weekly peak p/m3 date p/m3 week year Barcelona 83 4 June  2001 28 23 2001 Bellaterra 92 4 June  1994 52 22 1994 Girona 124 2 June  2001 73 22 2001 Lleida 93 19 May 1998 64 21 1996 Manresa 83 27 May 1996 42 23 1996 Tarragona 69 4 June  1996 32 24 1996 Keywords: Poaceae airborne pollen, allergy, annual dynamics.