Physicochemical Parameters of Water and Its Implications on Avifauna and Habitat Quality

Abstract

Wetland ecosystems are essential for maintaining biological diversity and are significant elements of the global landscape. However, the biodiversity of wetlands has been significantly reduced by more than 50% worldwide due to the rapid expansion of urban areas and other human activities. The aforementioned factors have resulted in drastic antagonistic effects on species composition, particularly aquatic avifauna. The decline in wetland avifauna, which can be attributed to changes in water quality that impact aquatic habitats, is a major concern. In this study, we evaluated the impact of physicochemical parameters on aquatic avifauna in India’s first Conservation Reserve, a Ramsar site and an Important Bird Area. Water samples were collected on a monthly basis across nine different sites and various parameters, such as temperature, electrical conductivity, pH, biological oxygen demand, dissolved oxygen, total dissolved solids and salinity, were analyzed for pre-monsoon and post-monsoon seasons, while point count surveys were conducted to assess species richness and the density of waterbirds. Our findings show a positive correlation of species density with water temperature (r = 0.57), total dissolved solids (r = 0.56) and dissolved oxygen (r = 0.6) for pre-monsoon season and a negative correlation for dissolved oxygen (r = −0.62) and biological oxygen demand (r = −0.69) for post-monsoon season. We suggest that a synergistic effect of pH, salinity, biological oxygen demand and total dissolved solids may affect aquatic bird populations in Asan Conservation Reserve. Poor water quality was observed in a few sampling sites, which may negatively affect the number and density of waterbirds present. The findings of this study emphasize the importance of water quality in wetland conservation, particularly for aquatic avifauna.

Environmental Status of the Ligawasan Marsh: A Critically Important Wetland in the Philippines

“…Water bodies receiving wastewater may have BOD values of up to 10 mg/L or higher, particularly close to sources of release, compared to unpolluted waters, which normally have BOD values of 2 mg/L or less [55]. The observed inverse correlations between dissolved oxygen and conductivity, total dissolved solids, COD, and BOD further indicate that areas with higher conductivity due to higher pollutant concentrations may experience lower dissolved oxygen levels [50,56].…”

“…Another possible link is the excessive nutrient input that fuels algal blooms, and the subsequent decomposition of these algae consumes oxygen, further diminishing dissolved oxygen levels. Dissolved oxygen in water is often inversely proportional to biological oxygen demand and chemical oxygen demand (Mishra et al, 2023). Chemical and biological oxygen demands are typical indicators of water quality and pollutants [51][52][53], and high levels of COD typically indicate that all amounts of organic matter are present (both biodegradable and non-biodegradable), resulting in surface water pollution [38].…”

Evaluating the Influence of Reverse Osmosis on Lakes Using Water Quality Indices: A Case Study in Saudi Arabia

“…Another finding that stands out from these results is that a drastic decrease in BOD and a significant increase in DO were observed in both lakes. According to [47], BOD and DO are inversely related. Given the negative correlation found in Lake 1 between TDS and DO, the increase in DO could be explained by the decrease in TDS, which led to a decrease in the BOD level.…”

Measuring the Levels of Heavy Metal Pollution in Al - Diwaniyah River Water Using Oomycetes Fungus

“…2. The PDA media was prepared, the fungi were isolated, and the bait method was used to catch these fungi (APHA American Public Health Association; Mishra et al, 2023). Then the fungal enzyme was prepared using method 9, and the enzymatic filtrate was quantitatively analyzed using FAAS.…”