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Large branchiopod occurrence and community structure in relation to land-use types in temporary ponds of northern Tanzania

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Yusuph Aron Kafula at Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere University of Agriculture and Technology
Yusuph Aron Kafula
  • Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere University of Agriculture and Technology
Gordian Mataba at Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology
Gordian Mataba
Grite Nelson Mwaijengo at Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology
Grite Nelson Mwaijengo
Pieter Lemmens at KU Leuven
Pieter Lemmens
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Abstract and Figures

Large branchiopods are a key component of the fauna of temporary ponds and play an important role in the functioning of these vulnerable ecosystems. Owing to the establishment of new settlements and agricultural expansion, temporary ponds in Tanzania are disappearing at an alarming rate whilst little is known about their diversity and ecology. We contrasted temporary ponds from a protected area with those in communal lands to detect associations between land-use types and large branchiopod community structure. Six large branchiopod species were collected, five of which have been previously reported from Southern Africa, whilst one turned out to be new to science: Streptocephalus manyarensis n.sp. Kafula and Brendonck (2023). The clam shrimp Cyzicus sp., fairy shrimps Streptocephalus lamellifer Thiele (1900) and S. bourquinii Hamer and Appleton (1993) were the most abundant and widely occurring. Variation in large branchiopod community structure was explained by the presence of Nothobranchius killifish and orthophosphate concentration. The large branchiopod community structure was different in settlement and protected areas. Our study on the occurrence and structure of large branchiopod communities in relation to land-use types serves as a base for formulation of guidelines and management tools to regulate land-use practices adjacent to temporary pond ecosystems.
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Hydrobiologia
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-023-05141-6
HOMAGE TOHENRI DUMONT
Large branchiopod occurrence andcommunity structure
inrelation toland‑use types intemporary ponds ofnorthern
Tanzania
YusuphA.Kafula· GordianR.Mataba· GriteN.Mwaijengo· PieterLemmens· LinusK.Munishi·
FrancisMoyo· TrevorDube· BramVanschoenwinkel· LucBrendonck
Received: 21 July 2022 / Revised: 2 January 2023 / Accepted: 4 January 2023
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023
Abstract Large branchiopods are a key component
of the fauna of temporary ponds and play an impor-
tant role in the functioning of these vulnerable eco-
systems. Owing to the establishment of new settle-
ments and agricultural expansion, temporary ponds in
Tanzania are disappearing at an alarming rate whilst
little is known about their diversity and ecology. We
contrasted temporary ponds from a protected area
with those in communal lands to detect associations
between land-use types and large branchiopod com-
munity structure. Six large branchiopod species were
collected, five of which have been previously reported
from Southern Africa, whilst one turned out to be new
to science: Streptocephalus manyarensis n.sp. Kafula
and Brendonck (2023). The clam shrimp Cyzicus
sp., fairy shrimps Streptocephalus lamellifer Thiele
(1900) and S. bourquinii Hamer and Appleton (1993)
were the most abundant and widely occurring. Vari-
ation in large branchiopod community structure was
explained by the presence of Nothobranchius killifish
and orthophosphate concentration. The large branchi-
opod community structure was different in settlement
and protected areas. Our study on the occurrence and
Handling editor: Dani Boix
Guest editor: Koen Martens / A Homage to Henri J.F.
Dumont, a Life in Science!
Supplementary Information The online version
contains supplementary material available at https:// doi.
org/ 10. 1007/ s10750- 023- 05141-6.
Y.A.Kafula(*)· L.Brendonck
Laboratory ofAnimal Ecology, Global Change
andSustainable Development, KU Leuven, Charles
Deberiotstraat 32, Box2439, 3000Leuven, Belgium
e-mail: arony@nm-aist.ac.tz
Y.A.Kafula· G.R.Mataba· L.K.Munishi· F.Moyo
Department ofSustainable Agriculture, Biodiversity
andEcosystem Management, School ofLife Sciences
andBio-Engineering, Nelson Mandela - African Institution
ofScience andTechnology, P. O Box447, Arusha,
Tanzania
Y.A.Kafula
Department ofAquatic Sciences, College ofAquatic
Sciences andFisheries, Mwalimu Julius K, Nyerere
University ofAgriculture andTechnology, P. O Box976,
Musoma, Tanzania
G.R.Mataba· G.N.Mwaijengo
School ofMaterials, Energy, Water andEnvironmental
Sciences, The Nelson Mandela African Institution
ofScience andTechnology, P. O. Box447, Arusha,
Tanzania
G.R.Mataba· B.Vanschoenwinkel
Community Ecology Laboratory, Vrije Universiteit
Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050Brussels, Belgium
P.Lemmens
Leibniz Institute Für Gewasserökologie Und
Binnenfischerei (IGB), Müggelseedamm 310,
12587Berlin, Germany
Content courtesy of Springer Nature, terms of use apply. Rights reserved.
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