TITLE:
Insect Assemblage as Bioindicators for Stream Quality within Two Sacred Groves in Ghana
AUTHORS:
Victor Parry, Roger Sigismund Anderson, Samuel Adu-Acheampong, Mukundi Mukundamago, Emmanuel Robert Blankson, Rosina Kyerematen
KEYWORDS:
Abiriw, Biodiversity, Bioindicator, Odumante, Stream
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection,
Vol.14 No.5,
May
26,
2026
ABSTRACT: Sacred groves are patches of relict forests set aside by communities for traditional, religious and conservation purposes. However, freshwater ecosystems in these sacred groves are impacted by anthropogenic activities, due to lack of enforcement of traditional edicts to check encroachment. This study measured the effect of stream dynamics (stream size and water quality) on aquatic insect diversity and by extension to assess the stream health in two sacred groves-Abiriw and Odumante-in Ghana. Insects were sampled across rainy and dry seasons using multiple standard collection methods and compared between these sacred groves via sampling different microhabitats associated with the different human impacts using Dip net and Surber Stream-bottom sampler to ensure a representative sampling at all places within the streams. We also used Eureka Sub3 multiparameter water-quality multiprobe to measure the physico-chemical parameters of the streams. Results: The study recorded 2767 aquatic insects classified into 65 families and 11 orders. The results showed that abundance did not differ significantly between groves, but family richness was higher at Odumante (60 families) compared to Abiriw (46 families). The results further revealed that seasonality influenced insect diversity with both abundance and richness significantly higher in the dry season in both sacred groves. There was low representation of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera (EPT) and high Hemiptera dominance suggesting moderate to high environmental stress especially in these streams. Conclusions: Based on the results we can infer that streams in the two sacred groves have been impacted by anthropogenic activities with a resultant change in stream dynamics and a profound influence on aquatic insect communities, especially at Odumante with implications for integrated conservation of sacred groves freshwater ecosystems. We recommend that conservation efforts must address watershed-level waste management and farming activities along the riparian zones in sacred groves to protect aquatic ecosystems.