Abstract
A study on the diversity of plant species is of vital importance for the conservation of natural ecosystems that are increasingly being threatened by various anthropogenic activities. Greater diversity makes ecosystems healthier and resilient to stress, thus providing its services on which humans depend. This study aimed to assess the health of the ecosystem around the Geita Gold Mine (GGM) based on the diversity and composition of plant species. Two transects with a total of 14 sampling sites were established where the number of plant species were systematically recorded using nested quadrats. The diversity of species was determined using species richness (S), Shannon-Wiener index (H’), and species evenness (E). The variations in species richness, species diversity, and species evenness between transects were compared using a paired t-test. Cluster analysis to determine similarity index was determined using the Dice similarity (DC) coefficient. The highest index recorded for richness (S), Shannon (H’), and evenness (E) was 32, 3.4 and 0.98, respectively; while the lowest was 12, 2.3 and 0.86, respectively. The Shannon (H’) diversity index obtained (2.3–3.4) indicated the study area is moderately rich in the diversity of plant species as it falls within the range of tropical ecosystems. However, the comparison of the diversity of species for all indices between the transects was not significant (p > 0.05). In addition, cluster analysis for species composition revealed a dendogram with three groups, and two groups had similarity coefficient below 50%. This reflects a considerable higher heterogeneity of the composition of plant species, which is an indication of a moderate healthier ecosystem
Recommended Citation
G. Mgendi, Mariam; Manoko, Mkabwa Lawrence; and J.S. Mwegoha, William
(2021)
"Diversity and Composition of Plant Species in the Geita Gold Mining Catchment Area, Tanzania,"
Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences: Vol. 10
:
No.
4
, Article 2.
Available at: https://doi.org/10.56279/jhss.v10.i4.8
Publication Date
11-23-2021
DOI
10.56279/jhss.v10.i4.8
Publisher
Dar es Salaam University College of Education (DUCE)