Original Research Article
Zooplankton Assessment of Usuma Reservoir, in FCT Abuja Nigeria
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Article Number: DRJA1703412086
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26765/DRJPHET.2018.2086
ISSN: 2734-2182
Direct Research Journal of Public Health and Environmental Technology:Vol.3 (7), pp. 87-101, December 2018
Copyright © 2019
Author(s) retain the copyright of this article
Abstract
This paper assessed the zooplankton composition of Usuma reservoir. The occurrence and growth of various species of plankton in the water body are controlled by factors such as abiotic, morphometric factors of water body, sewage discharges and anthropogenic factors. A total of 3.59×104 organisms/L was recorded for phytoplankton abundance. For zooplankton, a total of 3.925 ×104 cells/l were counted. Rotifer was observed to have a total abundance of 43%, while copepods contributed a total of 29% of all zooplankton, Cladocera gave 28%. The zooplankton fauna observed are Cladocera with 11 genera, Copepods which is made up of 13 genera, Rotifera with 17 genera. This is an indication that the Usuma reservoir has a total 41 genera constituting its zooplankton composition. The order of dominance of the zooplankton of Usuma reservoir is Rotifer > Copepoda. > Cladocera with Bosmina longirostis being the most dominant (8.9%) of the total zooplankton of Usuma reservoir. The hydrology, water residence time, precipitation, evaporation, and bedrock chemistry were some of the factors identified to influence the variations. Significant positive and negative correlations were observed between the physico-chemical parameters with each other and with the phytoplankton, zooplankton. The reservoir falls into the class II level of pollution which is indicative of Moderate pollution. Canonical correspondence analysis further extracted “organic (DO, BOD), eutrophication (air temperature, water temperature, water current velocity, turbidity, chloride ion, phosphate and nitrate), acidification (manganese, pH, nitrate, BOD and DO) and industrial and anthropogenic” as major influencing factors in the Usuma reservoir. The study showed the reservoir to be eutrophic with moderate water quality, high ecological and pass chemical status, with diverse assemblages of plankton.
Keywords: Physicochemical parameters, plankton, zooplankton and reservoirReceived: November 12, 2018 Accepted: December 26, 2018 Published: December 27, 2018