Title: Developing a bioassessment protocol for Nigerian streams
Postdoc: Dr. Ofurum Francis Arimoro
Country of origin: Nigeria
University: Rhodes University
Year of registration: 2009
Supervisor: Dr. Nikite Muller
Postdoc number: S09PD004 (finished postdoc and left for Nigeria January 2010)

My post-doctoral research is focused on 'developing a bioassessment protocol for Nigerian streams'. Nigeria currently lacks formal bioassessment approaches and protocols to assist management decisions for water quality. Monitoring is also a critical element in efforts to conserve and manage biodiversity. Given the resource limitations in Nigeria and a demand for the quick generation of monitoring results at low cost, as in the case of many other countries around the world, a rapid approach to biomonitoring will be a very welcome development. The aim of this research therefore is to develop a practical method of rapid bioassessment for both non academic and professional levels by using a new approach, Nigerian scoring system (NISS), very similar to the South African scoring system (SASS) for benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages for streams in Nigeria. The professional biological research will be designed around the USEPA Rapid Bioassessment Protocols (RBPs) using the multihabitat approach. A systematic selection of candidate reference sites, metric selection, and index calibration will be part of this research. Multimetric and multivariate analyses will be examined as a foundation for bioassessment in Nigeria. Core metrics will be identified for biological index score and this will be calibrated for the final index.

Last Modified: Tue, 18 Aug 2015 13:01:14 SAST