Masters Degree Dissertations

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Browsing Masters Degree Dissertations by Author "Chegem, Lolem Lucy"

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    Effects of human activities on plant species diversity in a wetland ecosystem: a case study of koga wetland, in river rwizi, mbarara district
    (Kyambogo University [unpublished work], 2018-12) Chegem, Lolem Lucy
    Wetlands are the most productive life support systems in that they provide diverse wildlife habitats. In Uganda 50% of the wetlands have been interfered with by human activities to support livelihoods either through direct consumption or sale of wetland products. The overall objective of this study was to examine the effects of human activities on plant species diversity in river Rwizi with a focus on Koga wetland which is 23km long and 4km wide. The wetland was purposely selected as a representative sample because it was characterized by a majority of human activities taking place in river Rwizi wetland in Mbarara District. Google Earth map and Geographical Information System tools were used to identify and map human activities and it was found out that the dominant human activities were Brick making, animal grazing, crop growing and settlement. Nested plots of varying sizes were used to determine plant species diversity; 2500 m2 nested plot, 400 m2 4 m2 and 1 m2 were used for trees, shrubs, herbs and grasses respectively. Counts, percentages and twin comparisons of plant species in the disturbed and the undisturbed study sites were determined and recorded. Simpson's Diversity index was used to measure plant to measure the plant species index. Findings of the study revealed that, among the dominant human activities carried out in the study area, all human activities were destructive to the population of the plant species, in that the cropped area had only 6% of the plant species, the bricked had 9% while the settled had 35% and the grazed 36% indicating that there were very slight differences in their effects. This study further determined the differences in diversity score of plant species diversity among the disturbed and the w1disturbed sites by use of Simpson's Diversity Index. The study revealed that the bricked site had 0.65(65%), followed by the undisturbed site with 0.59 (59%), The grazed site ranked third with 0.53 (53%) diversity score, then settled came fourth with 0.50(50%) and cropped ranked last with the least diversity score of 0.46 (46%). Based on the findings, the study concludes that there are no much differences among the effect of the human activities on plant species diversity and thus all activities affect the plant species diversity. So, there is an urgent need for government and environmental activists to mitigate this situation. From the findings, it is recommend that future researchers need to consider qualitative studies such as in-depth interviews with wetland invaders.