BIODIVERSITY OF AQUATIC PLANTS AND MICROFLORA IN TAGWAI DAM, NIGERIA

Abstract

Aquatic biodiversity of microflora and plants are the varieties of organisms and the ecosystems that make up the wetlands of the world and their interactions. Tagwai Dam is located in Chanchaga local government area of Niger State, Nigeria, located between longitude 60°39' to 60°44' East and latitude 34° to 90°37' North to South-west of Minna, Niger State, Nigeria. Transect sampling collection of aquatic flora and phytosociological method was adopted by using planktonic net, sterilized poly pots and plastic bottles from five sampling stations. Isolation and identification of microflora was conducted using serial dilution for bacterial species and biochemical tests for the identification. Agar pour plate method for the isolation and morphological characteristics for the identification of fungal species. The dominant families of aquatic plants included Araceae, Nymphaeaeceae, Alismataceae, Marsileaceae and Ceratophyllaceae. The identified bacterial species were Salmonella species, Proteus species, Psuedomonas species, Enterobacter species, while, the fungal species identified were Aspergillus species, Mucor pusillus, Penicillum notatum and Candida albicans were the most dominant microflora found from the sampling stations. The abundance and identification of these aquatic plants and microflora revealed there biodiversity and importance as they serve source of food and energy to the wetland. Aquatic plants and micro flora make up the ecosystem more reliable and comfortable for the aquatic animals and zooplanktons. They are the primary source of energy, the first organisms in food chain in a wetland community.

Keywords

• aquatic plants
• biodiversity
• ecosystem
• microflora
• transect sampling
• wetlands.