The microbial and physico-chemical survey of Oron mangrove swamp. – M. A. Ekpo and G. N. Madu
ABSTRACT
The microbial and physico-chemical studies of mangrove swamp ecology of Oron area was carried out. The samples which included water, sediment, Crab, Oyster, Periwinkle and Prop Root from the mangrove swamp revealed significant differences in both the heterotrophic and coliform count within the sample units. The sediment had the highest heterotrophic and coliform count of 2.87 + 0.32 x 107 cfu/g and 2.74 + 0.12 x 107 cfu/g respectively. The fungi had the lowest count which ranged from 1.45 + 0.22 x 104 cfu/g in crab sample and the highest count of 2.6 +0.15 x 105 cfu/g in sediment sample. The hydrocarbonoclastic count from different swamp locations though not significantly different, were considerably high. Among the microbial isolates, Staphyloccus aureus, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis, Vibrio cholerae, Salmonella typhi, Aspergillus flavus, Candida sp were observed as organisms with health implications in the aquatic ecosystem. The physicochemical analysis revealed normal concentrations except for iron which was above WHO standard. The result revealed high human interactions with the swamp ecology which posses health risk to the riverine dwellers.
Keywords: Mangrove swamp, hydrocarbonoclastic, coliforms, heterotrophic organisms, ecosystem, biodegradation.