Title: Chironomidae larval deformities as indicators of anthropogenic impacts in the Swartkops River
Student: Oghenekaro Nelson Odume
Country of origin: Nigeria
University:Rhodes University
Degree:  MSc (Water Resource Science)
Supervisor: Dr. Nikite Muller
Co-supervisor: Dr. Arimoro
Year of registration: 2009
Student number: 609O6996

Rivers and streams suffer various kinds of perturbations resulting from human activities. Pollution of fresh water bodies have become a serious threat to biodiversity and ecological integrity as a result of deteriorating water quality, and this presents the need for more effective ways of assessing the impacts of pollution on instream biota. Morphological deformities in chironomid larval represent sub-lethal effects of exposure to contaminants and may be considered as early warning signals of environmental degradation .The Swartkops River is one of the most valuable fresh water systems in South Africa yet, it remains one of the most impacted. The research therefore aimed at assessing the impacts of anthropogenic activities in the Swartkops River using Chironomidae larval deformities as bioindicators. Different deformities types in chironomid larval and their severity will be assessed and quantified to provide the degree and level of contamination. The research therefore attempts to create a baseline for using Chironomidae larval deformities as a biomonitoring tool in South Africa.

Last Modified: Tue, 18 Aug 2015 11:51:53 SAST