Environmental Determinants Influencing Fish Community Structure and Diversity in Two Distinct Seasons among Wetlands of Northern Region (Ghana)

Environmental Determinants Influencing Fish Community Structure and Diversity in Two Distinct Seasons among Wetlands of Northern Region (Ghana) Collins Ayine Nsor Department of Ecotourism and Forest Recreation, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana Edward Adzesiwor Obodai Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, University of Cape Coast, University Post Office, Cape Coast, Ghana

Fish community structure was assessed in six wetlands using cast nets, to correlate with environmental variables with diversity and distribution patterns, from 2010 to 2012. A total of 2,239 individuals belonging to 44 species and 1,938 individuals belonging to 40 species were sampled in the dry and wet seasons. Mochokid and Mormyrid families dominated fish community and constituted 14.8%, respectively, followed by Alestids (12.9%) and Chlariids (11.1%). Rarer taxons were centropomids, channids, malapteruds, and oesteoglossids and represented 1.9%, respectively. Overall, CPUE per net did not vary significantly ( Tukey HSD test , p = 0.27 ) in the dry and wet seasons. Wuntori marsh consistently showed dominance in mean monthly CPUE per net (dry = 115 ± 4.5 ; wet = 107 ± 7.7 seasons), while Bunglung constructed wetland was the least recorded (dry = 56.5 ± 6.2 ; wet = 58.3 ± 4.1 seasons). Fish diversity and richness differed significantly ( F = 0.11 , p = 0.03 ) among seasons. Environmental disturbances were season-specific and did not differ significantly ( F = 0.16 , d f = 14 , p = 0.97 ) among sites. A DCA ordination explained 69% variability in fish distribution patterns, while PCA showed that 81.8% of nitrate-nitrogen, phosphate, and grazing intensity on axis 1 and conductivity, temperature, and turbidity on axis 2 influenced fish community structure. Wetland conservation must be promoted to sustain fish abundance and overall ecosystem stability.
2016 1 10 1598701 1598701 Ghana Education Trust Fund http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100003419 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ 10.1155/2016/1598701 20160726114724 http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2016/1598701/ http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2016/1598701.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2016/1598701.xml http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2016/1598701.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2016/1598701.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2016/1598701.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2016/1598701.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2016/1598701.pdf http://downloads.hindawi.com/journals/ijecol/2016/1598701.pdf 1986 2005 10.1006/jfbi.1998.0860 Journal of Aquatic Plant Management 39 1 40 2001 African Journal of Environmental Science and Technology 3 5 149 2009 10.2307/1446392 1998 Journal of Science 59 5 1984 10.1007/BF00004881 10.1890/1051-0761(1999)009[0335:cfcdav]2.0.co;2 10.1007/bf00002524 Acta Universitatis Carolinae Environmentalica 18 1-2 107 2004 10.1016/0272-7714(95)90029-2 Current Research Journal of Biological Science 3 2 147 2011 West Africa Journal of Applied Ecology 10 73 2006 10.1155/2014/548401 1994 2002 283 1999 Annales Science Zoologiques 2004 1998 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2008.00937.x 10.1007/s10531-009-9598-2 1963 1968 1999 S041 8GN 1992 2000 700 2000 Canonical correspondence analysis: a new eigenvector technique for multivariate direct gradient analysis 10.1577/1548-8659(1973)35[221:atlant]2.0.co;2 10.1111/j.1600-0633.2006.00126.x 10.1023/A:1007660914155 10.1139/f03-145 10.1080/14634980490281407 10.1023/A:1013828304074 10.4314/wajae.v12i1.45757 Indian Journal of Marine Sciences 39 2 238 2010