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A PRELIMINARY EVALUATION OF ASPECTS OF SASS (SOUTH AFRICAN SCORING SYSTEM) FOR THE RAPID BIOASSESSMENT OF WATER QUALITY IN RIVERS, WITH PARTICULAR REFERENCE TO THE INCORPORATION OF SASS IN A NATIONAL BIOMONITORING PROGRAMME
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: Southern African Journal of Aquatic Sciences • Authors: H. F. Dallas --- , , South AfricaThe rapid bioassessment method, SASS (South African Scoring System) has been developed to assess water quality in riverine ecosystems. It is a scoring system based on the presence or absence of macroinvertebrate groups, and yields three values, namely SASS4 Score,... -
THE EFFECT OF SEASON ON A BIOTIC WATER QUALITY INDEX: A CASE STUDY OF THE YELLOW JACKET AND MAZOWE RIVERS, ZIMBABWE.
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: Southern African Journal of Aquatic Sciences • Authors: B. Gratwicke --- , , ZimbabweThe effect of season on the South African Scoring System (SASS) biotic index for rapid assessment of water quality using benthic macroinvertebrates was investigated using the Yellow Jacket and Mazowe Rivers in Zimbabwe as a case study. Several impacts in... -
Community composition and distribution of macroinvertebrates in the Umzimvubu River, South Africa: a pre-impoundment study
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: BR Madikizela AH DyeThis paper presents baseline biological data on aquatic macroinvertebrates and water quality in the Umzimvubu River and selected tributaries, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, prior to the construction of proposed large-scale water resource developments. Sampling was conducted seasonally at 14... -
miniSASS — A novel technique for community participation in river health monitoring and management
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: P Mark Graham ChrisWS Dickens R Jim TaylorReliable indicators of water quality and river health are often difficult and expensive to derive. This paper reports on a process to develop a low technology, scientifically reliable and robust technique to monitor water quality in rivers and streams. With... -
Spatial variability in macroinvertebrate assemblages: comparing regional and multivariate approaches for classifying reference sites in South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: HelenF DallasSpatial variability in macroinvertebrate assemblages was examined with the aim of evaluating the utility of regional classification systems in aquatic bioassessment. Sampling was undertaken at reference sites in the Western Cape and Mpumalanga, South Africa, using the rapid bioassessment method... -
Seasonal variability of macroinvertebrate assemblages in two regions of South Africa: implications for aquatic bioassessment
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: HelenF DallasSeasonal variability of macroinvertebrate assemblages was examined in two regions of South Africa: Western Cape and Mpumalanga. Sampling was undertaken at reference sites using the rapid bioassessment method SASS4 (South African Scoring System, Version 4). This study examined the influence... -
The Namibian Scoring System (NASS) version 2 rapid bio-assessment method for rivers
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: RW Palmer ED TaylorThis paper presents a rapid bio-assessment method for assessing the ecological condition of streams and rivers in Namibia. The method uses the composition and abundance of aquatic invertebrates, which are identified in the field, mostly to family level. The method... -
Preliminary testing of the Integrated Habitat Assessment System (IHAS) for aquatic macroinvertebrates
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: DeanJ Ollis Charles Boucher HelenF Dallas KarenJ EslerPreliminary testing of the Integrated Habitat Assessment System (IHAS), a widely-used aquatic macroinvertebrate habitat assessment method in South Africa, was undertaken. Based on the sensitivity of the South African Scoring System (SASS) to biotope availability and assuming that SASS Scores... -
Bioassessment of the ecological integrity of river ecosystems using aquatic macroinvertebrates: an overview with a focus on South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: DeanJ Ollis HelenF Dallas KarenJ Esler Charles BoucherAn overview is given of the bioassessment of the ecological integrity of river ecosystems using aquatic macroinvertebrates, focussing on the South African situation within a global context. Biotic indices and their use in aquatic bioassessment are covered, and comparative descriptions... -
Testing the applicability of the SASS5 scoring procedure for assessing wetland health: a case study in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands, South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: Rebecca Bowd DonovanC Kotze CraigD Morris NevilW QuinnA study was undertaken between 29th January and 17th February 2004 to test the applicability of the South African Scoring System Version 5 (SASS5) scoring and calculation procedure in nutrient-enriched palustrine wetlands in the midlands of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Four... -
The impact of water quality deterioration on macroinvertebrate communities in the Swartkops River, South Africa: a multimetric approach
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: ON Odume --- Unilever Centre for Environmental Water Quality, South Africa WJ Muller --- Unilever Centre for Environmental Water Quality, South Africa FO Arimoro --- Unilever Centre for Environmental Water Quality, South Africa CG Palmer --- Unilever Centre for Environmental Water Quality, South AfricaA multimetric approach, using 21 metrics representing five categories — abundance, composition, richness, diversity and biotic indices — was applied to investigate the impacts of water quality deterioration on macro-invertebrate communities in the Swartkops River. Macroinvertebrates were sampled seasonally between... -
Bioassessment in ephemeral rivers: constraints and challenges in applying macroinvertebrate sampling protocols
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: M Watson --- Centre for Environmental Management, South Africa HF Dallas --- , South AfricaHydrology is a major factor controlling the structure and function of river ecosystems. In contrast to perennial rivers, temporary rivers have periods where surface flow ceases resulting in a highly variable flow regime. Existing bioassessment methods in South Africa are... -
The effect of biotope-specific sampling for aquatic macroinvertebrates on reference site classification and the identification of environmental predictors in Mpumalanga, South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: HelenF DallasThe classification of reference sites based on macroinvertebrate assemblages sampled in different aquatic biotopes in Mpumalanga, South Africa, was examined. Environmental variables that best predicted group membership for each of four classifications (stones, vegetation, sand and these three biotopes combined)... -
Rapid bioassessment of the effects of repeated rotenone treatments on invertebrate assemblages in the Rondegat River, South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: TA Bellingan --- Department of Zoology and Entomology, South Africa DJ Woodford --- Centre for Invasion Biology, South Africa J Gouws --- Scientific Services, CapeNature, South Africa MH Villet --- Department of Zoology and Entomology, South Africa OLF Weyl --- Centre for Invasion Biology, South AfricaThe potential collateral effects of eradicating invasive fishes in streams necessitate the monitoring of invertebrate communities during treatment. In an environmental rehabilitation programme, non-native smallmouth bass were removed from the lower reaches of the Rondegat River, Western Cape, South Africa,... -
Aquatic macroinvertebrate responses to pollution of the Boesmanspruit river system above Carolina, South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: RB Tate --- Digby Wells Environmental, South Africa A Husted --- Digby Wells Environmental, South AfricaThe upper Boesmanspruit river system received much attention in 2012 when a pollution event in January rendered the drinking water of the town of Carolina non-potable. The responses of aquatic macroinvertebrate assemblages in the upper Boesmanspruit system to that event... -
Response of instream animal communities to a short-term extreme event and to longer-term cumulative impacts in a strategic water resource area, South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: SH Foord --- Department of Zoology, Chair in Biodiversity Value and Change, Centre for Invasion Biology, South Africa PSO Fouché --- Department of Zoology, South AfricaDisturbance plays an integral part in generating heterogeneity required for ecosystem persistence, but the increased amplitude and duration of disturbances linked to drivers of global change could result in ecosystem shifts or collapse. Biomonitoring over time provides insights into trajectories... -
Use of biological and water quality indices to evaluate conditions of the Upper uMngeni Catchment, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Aquatic Science • Authors: R van Deventer --- , South Africa CD Morris --- , South Africa TR Hill --- , South Africa NA Rivers-Moore --- , South AfricaUrban and agricultural land uses have the potential to severely compromise the quality of impoundments, if ineffectively managed and operated. A case in point is the upper uMngeni Catchment, including Midmar Dam, which is integral to the freshwater supply infrastructure... -
Physico-chemical variables influencing the distribution and abundance of macroinvertebrates in salt marsh habitats of the Berg River Estuary, South Africa
Item type: Journal Article • Journal: African Journal of Marine Science • Authors: NT Mngomezulu --- Department of Plant Sciences, University of the Free State, South Africa N Peer --- Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, South Africa A Rajkaran --- Department of Biodiversity and Conservation Biology, University of the Western Cape, South Africa DA Veldkornet --- Department of Plant Sciences, University of the Free State, South AfricaMacroinvertebrates such as snails and crabs influence aspects of salt marsh structure and function through herbivory and bioturbation. However, the effects of physico-chemical variables and habitat composition on their abundance and distribution remain underexplored. This study examined the influence of...