African Journal of Ecology and Ecosystems

African Journal of Ecology and Ecosystems ISSN 2756-3367 Vol. 13 (1), pp. 001-005, January, 2026. Available online at www.internationalscholarsjournals.org © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Bridging the Funding Gap: An Analysis of Credit Dynamics for Forest Entrepreneurs in South West Nigeria

F. A. Azeez¹*, F. Awe¹, A. O. Ajibola² and M. A. Amoo³

1Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria, P. M. B. 5054, Jericho, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria.
²Community Development and Welfare Agenda (CODWA), 159, Ibrahim Taiwo Road, Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria.
³Federal College of Forestry, Jericho, Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria.

Accepted 4 October, 2025

This study was carried out to assess the credit characteristics of forest based entrepreneurs in South West Nigeria. Structured questionnaire were employed in obtaining primary data for this study. Average interest charges were 11% which exceeded the single digit interest rate recorded. The collateral and non-collateral credit sources were almost equal, 51 and 49% respectively. Descriptive statistics and Logit model were used. Iseyin L.G.A in Oyo state was purposively chosen due to its closeness to Old Oyo National Park which is one of the prominent national forests in Nigeria. Seventy-one percent(71%) of the respondents were in their working age with average age of 45.5 years; forest enterprises were male dominated, of which 80% of them were married and 71% were educated putting them in good stead for forestry extension and innovation and the average income was N10, 000 which is low compared with the household size. It was recommended that to influence their demand for credit positively, the collateral issue on credit, needs to be more entrepreneur friendly. As such government should as a matter of policy interventions provide necessary incentives that will promote forest based enterprises in order to increase the entrepreneurs’ income.

Key words: Forest enterprises, credit facilities, financial institution, rural households.
 

African Journal of Ecology and Ecosystems ISSN 2756-3367 Vol. 13 (1), pp. 001-007, January, 2026. Available online at www.internationalscholarsjournals.org © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Dominance of Invasive Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) Over Indigenous Species in the Kafue Floodplains, Zambia

Chikopela Sikazwe Theresa¹*, Katongo Cyprian² and Hangoma Gordon Mudenda²

¹Department of Biological Sciences, University of Zambia, Zambia. ²University of Zambia, Zambia.

Accepted 6 October, 2025

The relative abundance of three mouth brooding tilapiines of the Kafue floodplains, Zambia, Oreochromis andersonii, Oreochromis macrochir and the introduced Oreochromis niloticus were studied between October 2010 and March 2011. This study was aimed at determining whether or not the alien species has dominated the floodplains in comparison to the local Oreochromis species. The floodplain showed a Shannon’s diversity of H = 2.289 and an even distribution of J = 0.73. The relative abundance was compared so as to establish the dominance of the alien species, O. niloticus, over the local Oreochromis spp. Three stations were selected for this investigation. The stations represented the major habitats in a floodplain, lagoon (Chanyanya), swamp (Chilumba) and riverine (Kasaka) habitats. The introduced O. niloticus showed the highest percentage index of relative importance (IRI) of 3.2% followed by O. andersonii (0.4%) and O. macrochir (0.1%). It was further noted that O. niloticus contributed the most to the diversity (H = 0.063) and evenness (0.02) of the floodplain compared to the local Oreochromis spp. Chanyanya had the most number (10 ± 1.8085) of fish samples and was highly diverse (0.5433 ± 0.2117) and the species were evenly spread (0.5320 ± 0.1970).

Key words: Mouth brooders, index of relative importance, diversity, evenness.
 

African Journal of Ecology and Ecosystems ISSN 2756-3367 Vol. 12 (6), pp. 001-012, June, 2025. Available online at www.internationalscholarsjournals.org © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Elevational diversity of butterflies in the Bioko Island

Mercy Murkwe^{1, 5,} Geraud C. Tasse Taboue^{2, 5,} Maximiliano S. Fero-Meñé^3, Mary K. Gonder⁴ and Eric B. Fokam^5,6

¹Department of Biology, Higher Teachers Training College, University of Bamenda, P.O.Box 39 Bambili, Cameroon
²Multipurpose Agricultural Research Station Bangangte, Institute of Agricultural Research for Development, P.O.Box 222 Bangangte, Cameroon
³Environmental Science Programme, Universidad Nacional de Guinea Ecuatorial, Malabo, Bioko Notre, Equatorial Guinea
⁴Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States of America
⁵Laboratory for Biodiversity and Conservation Biology, Department of Animal Biology and Conservation, Faculty of Science, University of Buea, P.O.Box 63 Buea, Cameroon
⁶Department of Animal Biology and Conservation, Faculty of Science, University of Buea, P.O.Box 63 Buea, Cameroon

Abstract

Received 8 June, 2025; Revised 13 June, 2025; Accepted 15 June, 2025; Published 24 June, 2025

Understanding the diversity and distribution of species composition is crucial for informing conservation strategies. This study documented the diversity of butterflies at various elevations on Bioko Island, specifically between 618 m and 1075 m above sea level. Butterfly sampling was carried out in November 2015 using 15 baited traps and nets across 15 locations. Generally, 1,029 individuals were collected, representing 92 species from 5 families: Nymphalidae, Papilionidae, Heliconiinae, Pseudopontiinae, and Lycaenidae. The species collected varied by elevation with the mid elevations (540-618 m) harbouring the most (76 species), followed by high elevations (655-1075 m) with 28 species and low elevations (4-116 m) with the fewest (19 species). Overall diversity patterns, as indicated by the Shannon-Wiener and Simpson’s Index, revealed that butterfly species richness and abundance were significantly higher within the mid and high elevations. Diversity indices were relatively similar between high and low elevation. Importantly, this study identified three endemic species: Bicyclus feae, Cymothoe fumana, and Ceratrichia flava Fernanda, most of which were found at elevations exceeding 500 m a.s.l. The findings improve understanding of elevational diversity patterns in tropical ecosystems, particularly Bioko Island, aiding conservation management in predicting species shifts due to elevation, population growth, deforestation and climate change.

Keywords: Elevation, Butterfly diversity, Bioko Island, conservation management.
 

African Journal of Ecology and Ecosystems ISSN 2756-3367 Vol. 12 (6), pp. 001-006, June, 2025. Available online at www.internationalscholarsjournals.org © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Endophytic Microbial Communities in Maize: Bacterial and Fungal Associations with Grains and Roots

Orole, O. O. and Adejumo, T. O.*

Department of Microbiology, Adekunle Ajasin University, P. M. B. 001, Akungba-Akoko, Ondo State, Nigeria.

Accepted 20 March, 2025

The study was carried out to determine the microbes of maize grains sourced from five markets in Akungba and Ikare-Akoko, Ondo State, Nigeria. Bacterial and fungal microbes from roots of two maize cultivars DMR-LSR-Y and TZMSR-W were also investigated using the pour plate method. Results showed that grains from Oja Oba had the highest bacterial population of 4.8 × 105 cfu/g, while, the highest fungal load of 4.1 × 103 cfu/g was obtained from Osele market in Ikare. The two maize cultivars showed generally a low fungal count compared to their bacterial counterparts with 1.1 × 105 cfu/g root for a cultivar DMR-LSR-Y and 0.2 × 105 cfu/g root for TZMSR-W. The dry white maize grains showed generally low bacterial and fungal colonizations of 0.2 × 105 and 0.3 × 103 cfu/g respectively when compared to dry and fresh yellow types. Eleven bacteria genera and eight fungal species were isolated and identified from the roots and grains of maize. These include Cellulomonas, Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Staphylococcus, Micrococcus, Pediococcus, Microbacterium, Azospirillum, Kurtia, and Enterobacter, Acremonium zeae, Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Colletotrichum graminicola, Fusarium verticillioides, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Trichoderma koningii. The study was important in bioprospecting for biological activities and plant growth enhancers.

Key words: Bacterial population, fungal population, endophytes, grains, roots, maize.
 

African Journal of Ecology and Ecosystems ISSN 2756-3367 Vol. 12 (6), pp. 001-013, June, 2025. Available online at www.internationalscholarsjournals.org © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Environmental Determinants of Plant Colonization: A Study of Lava Flows on Mount Cameroon

Fonge B. A.1, Focho D. A.2*, Egbe E. A.1, Tening A. S.3, Fongod A. N.1, Neba G. A.1 and Mvondo Ze A.4

1Department of Plant and Animal Sciences, University of Buea, P. O. Box 63, Buea, Cameroon.
2Department of Plant Biology, University of Dschang, P. O. Box 67, Dschang, Cameroon.
3Department of Chemistry, University of Buea, P. O. Box 63, Buea, Cameroon.
4Department of Soil Sciences, University of Dschang, P. O. Box 67, Dschang, Cameroon.

Accepted 20 May, 2025

Tropical ecosystems exhibit several ecological characteristics that make their sustainable management a very difficult task. Surveys were conducted from December 2000 to December 2002 to study the influence of climate and edaphic factors on vegetation cover, species diversity and distribution on three lava flows of Mount Cameroon. On each of the lava flows, thirteen plots in the centre and 2 plots on the adjacent sides were sampled randomly, during two dry and two rainy seasons. A total of 169 plant species belonging to 55 families were identified. The Orchidaceae was the most abundant family having 16 and 19 species in 1922 and 1959 lava flows respectively. Shannon-Weaver Diversity Indices of 2.75, 3.16 and 3.61 were obtained for the 1999, 1959 and 1922 lava flows respectively. Mean annual rainfall values of 5726.7, 4938.6 and 1618.7 mm respectively, were recorded for the 1922, 1999, and 1959 lava flows. Vegetation establishment on the three lava flows was highly influenced by rainfall. 60.7% of the seeds/spores of the plant species identified are dispersed by wind. Organic carbon was found to be the main soil parameter that affected vegetation establishment on the three lava flows.

Key words: Vegetation cover, species diversity, climate and soils.
 

African Journal of Ecology and Ecosystems ISSN 2756-3367 Vol. 12 (6), pp. 001-005, June, 2025. Available online at www.internationalscholarsjournals.org © International Scholars Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Human Impact on Olive Ridley Turtles at Rushikulya: An Assessment of Coastal Water Anthropological Factors

S. N. Bramha1*, U. C. Panda2, P. Rath 3, P. K. Mohanty2 and K. K. Satpathy1

1Environmental and Industrial Safety Section, IGCAR, Government of India, Kalpakkam-603102, India.
2Department of Marine Sciences, Berhampur University, Berhampur-760 007, India.
3Department of Chemistry, Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT University), Bhubaneswar-751 024, India.

Accepted 12 April, 2025

The olive ridley turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) is known for its spectacular mass nesting behavior. The Rushikulya river mouth has emerged as one of the major mass nesting site in the world. To study the status of hydrological characteristics viz. depth, air and water temperature, salinity, conductivity, pH, total suspended solid, turbidity, dissolve oxygen, biochemical oxygen demand, nutrients (NO2-N, NO3-N, (NH3+NH4)-N, SiO3 and PO4-P), petroleum hydrocarbon and dissolved trace metals such as Pb, Cd and Hg are evaluated in mass nesting period of olive ridley turtles at Rushikulya mass nesting site. In order to evaluate the status level of the pollutants and ultimately to protect the precious marine environment, an intensive monitoring has been carried out near Rushikulya, Gopalpur, Chatrapur and Haripur Creek of mass nesting site. The basic scientific objective of the present study is to determine the concentration, migration pattern and dynamics of the pollutants in the estuary and coastal environment.

Key words: Environmental pollution, water quality, trace metals, olive ridley (Lepidochelys olivacea), Rushikulya mass nesting site.