Abstract
Taudaha Lake is one of the important wetlands in Nepal, as it provides critical habitats for thousands of migratory birds and fishes. Despite being a critically important water body, there is a lack of detail chemical and biological studies on this lake. The present study investigates the effects of seasonal water quality variations in distribution and abundance of macroinvertebrates in Taudaha Lake, during four different seasons in 2006. The results indicate that all the water quality parameters, except secchi depth, and total alkalinity, significantly varied among seasons. The gross primary productivity of the lake also significantly varied among the seasons, with highest primary production during summer (3.92 ± 0.18 gC/m3/day) and lowest during spring (2.44 ± 0.67 gC/m3/day). A total of 2166 individual benthic macroinvertebrates from 10 families and 7 orders were collected during the study period. Unlike water quality parameters, the macroinvertebrate species composition did not vary significantly among the seasons. The results suggested that the change in lake water quality did not have significant impacts on community metrics such as species diversity, species richness, and species evenness.
Highlights
Lakes and ponds cover 2 - 2.8 × 106 km2 or 1.3% - 1.8% of earth’s non-oceanic area [1] [2]
The present study investigates the effects of seasonal water quality variations in distribution and abundance of macroinvertebrates in Taudaha Lake, during four different seasons in 2006
The general sampling for this study entailed that lake water quality and benthic macroinvertebrates were monitored in six sites during winter, spring, summer, and autumn seasons of 2006
Summary
Lakes and ponds cover 2 - 2.8 × 106 km or 1.3% - 1.8% of earth’s non-oceanic area [1] [2]. Water quality and biological monitoring of the lakes and ponds has become critical with an increase in adverse anthropogenic impacts on these water bodies [5]. Land use changes such as agriculture and urban development are important factors affecting the water quality [6] and the biological communities of the lakes [7]. Understanding the abundance and community structure of the macroinvertebrates provides important information on the condition of the water quality and the overall health of the lake ecosystems [9]. Species of order Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera (EPT) have been commonly used as indicators of healthy lakes [10], whereas species of Diptera and Oligochaeta provide useful information about the pollution of a lake [9] [11]
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