TITLE:
Temporal Changes in the Lesser Flamingos Population (Phoenicopterus minor) in Relation to Phytoplankton Abundance in Lake Manyara, Tanzania
AUTHORS:
Emilian Samwel Kihwele, Charles Lugomela, Kim M. Howell
KEYWORDS:
Arthrospira; Lake Manyara; Lesser Flamingo; Phytoplankton; Population
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Ecology,
Vol.4 No.3,
March
17,
2014
ABSTRACT: A study on seasonal
variations in the abundance of Lesser Flamingo (Phoenicopterus minor) in relation to phytoplankton
abundance in lake Manyara was conducted for a period of fourteen consecutive
months (July 2007 to August 2008). The aim
was to relate the temporal variability in the phytoplankton species abundance
and diversity of the lake to the population size of the Lesser Flamingo.
Lesser Flamingo population numbers were obtained from monthly ground surveys whereby
the lake was subdivided into defined
counting vantage points. Water samples for phytoplankton species composition
and biomass analyses were taken to the University of Dar es Salaam for laboratory
analysis. The flamingo population estimates ranged from 9319 in August 2007 to
640,850 in August 2008. The Lesser Flamingo populations showed that temporal
fluctuations were related to the changes in the abundance and diversity of
phytoplankton species. The occurrence of Arthrospira associated with the increase in the abundance of Lesser Flamingo. It was
observed that changes in the Lesser Flamingo numbers were influenced by the
changes in the abundance and availability of their preferred food. The results
indicated that microalgae assemblage positively correlated with ammonium and
nitrate which were also related to the abundance of lesser flamingo. The
phytoplankton community was dominated by cyanobacteria particularly Arthrosipira fusiformis likely due to
the high lake salinity and pH that limited the growth of other microalgae.
Correlation analysis showed strong correlation between the Lesser Flamingo
abundance with the concentration of nitrate and ammonium and between the number of Lesser Flamingo and the
cyanobacterium Arthrospira.