A preliminary checklist of zooplanktons and macroinvertebrates of river Kashimbila, Taraba state, Nigeria

Abstract

A preliminary study was conducted to determine the composition and abundance of zooplankton and macroinvertebrates of Kashimbila River, Takum LGA, Taraba State, Nigeria. Zooplankton samples were collected monthly from the River from August 2016 to March 2017 using plankton net of 55μm mesh size. The plankton was preserved using 4% formalin and three drops of Lugol’s solution and stored in plastic containers and taken to laboratory for further analysis. Zooplankton identification and counting were done by use of a binocular light microscope. Twenty one (21) species belonging to twelve (12) taxonomic groups were recorded. Macroinvertebrates were the dominant taxon with 38% followed by ciliophora with 14% while Cnidaria, Rotifera, Arthropoda, Nematoda, Amoebozoa, Copepoda, Diptera, Heterichida, Cladocera and Coleoptera with 4.76% each had one species. The findings indicate the unpolluted nature of the Kashimbila River and also provide useful information on the checklists and ecology of the zooplankton’s species which could be potentially used as bio-indicators for assessing and monitoring the River.