Studies of Species Distribution for Phytoplankton in Balanga Dam

Abstract

Dam construction often causes spatiotemporal changes of physicochemical parameters and integrity of water flow which affect the biological community of phytoplankton. However, due to gradual successional process, identification of the highly tolerant species has become a great challenge. The present study was carried out to analyse the phytoplankton abundance and distribution in Balanga dam, area of Gombe State. A total number of 21 phytoplankton species were identified from the three sampling stations belonging to about seven taxa. Chlorophyceae was recorded as taxa with highest species score of about 28.6%, followed by Baccillariophyceae, Cyanophyceae, Desmidiaceae and Chrysophyceae of about 19%, 19%, 14.3% and 9.5% respectively. Five physicochemical parameters were studied and their variations greatly affect the distribution of phytoplankton species. This study shows that, despite the variation in species abundance, the physical chemistry of the water did not vary greatly.