Abstract
Diatoms, a common siliceous alga, are effective paleoclimate and pollution indicators. They have been used in northern, eastern, and southern Africa as such because of well-documented ecologies of many taxa. In southwestern Africa, however, the country of Angola lacks similar modern assemblage studies. To close this gap, modern diatoms were sampled across four water bodies on the Humpata Plateau in southwestern Angola in the dry season of July 2019, with in-situ measurements of pH, conductivity, and total dissolved solids and laboratory analysis of cations and anions. This research concludes that bedrock determines local hydrochemistry. In addition, this exploratory study finds that diatoms in southwestern Angola can infer relative conductivities and trophic levels, but limited data hinder interpretations of diatom ecological preferences of pH, temperature, alkalinity, ions, and pollution, requiring further analyses. Such research is beneficial for both African diatomists interested in using accurate transfer functions across Africa to reconstruct paleoclimates as well as local communities and hydrologists interested in understanding water chemistry and pollution, given that these studied sites are vital water resources for local communities on the Humpata Plateau.
Highlights
Exploratory correspondence analysis results will lead to future questions about interactions between diatom assemblages and hydrochemistry on the Humpata Plateau. These results show that conductivity and trophic level are best inferred by the diatom assemblages, a lack of data or possible errors for the other parameters limit their interpretation
It is difficult to deduce how diatom assemblages and temperature may be related. These results indicate that diatom assemblages cannot infer temperature either due to data collection bias or that diatom assemblages are instead impacted by the influence of temperature on other variables such as ionic composition, pH, and conductivity as a physical parameter [12]
This research includes the first description of water chemistry and diatom communities on the Humpata Plateau in southwestern Angola
Summary
Studies of rural water sources are limited because many techniques used to manage and analyze water are time consuming and access to collection sites is limited due to a lack of roads in many rural communities across the country [4]. This emphasizes the importance for communities to have in-depth knowledge about their local water supplies and adopt practices that support community-based monitoring to keep waters clean [5]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
