Temporary lentic water bodies of Latin America and Caribbean: a scientometric study

Abstract

ABSTRACT Temporary lentic waters, those which alternate wet and dry periods, are globally distributed and highly prevalent on Earth and can be classified according to their hydroperiod. We used a scientometric perspective, to summarize the knowledge about temporary lentic ecosystems in 19 Latin American and Caribbean countries. We conducted a topic search in Web of Science (WoS) using various keyword combinations of hydroperiod type (temporary, ephemeral, intermittent, episodic and seasonal), type of aquatic lentic ecosystem (wetland, pond, pool, lake and lagoon) and the name of the country. Final searches and screenings provided 608 publications. To analyze the data, we used two qualitative approaches. We generated word clouds to ascertain the primary research topics concerning temporary lentic waters in Latin America. In addition, we constructed a bipartite network to visualize the geographical distribution of publications by topics. Knowledge gaps observed were geographical, encompassing disparities between and within countries, and thematic, as certain topics have received limited attention. Moreover, we detected a terminology gap: a lack of consensus about the terms used that are associated with temporary waters and a collaborative gap: the study of temporary waters has historically been fragmented in Latin America. Finally, we attempted to unravel the potential factors contributing to these knowledge gaps. By revealing major gaps in understanding the structure and functioning of temporary water bodies in the region, our study provides a valuable tool for identifying pertinent research areas to be explored in the future.