Lake Naivasha, Kenya

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

   PDF

2. Towards an understanding of human impact upon the hydrology of Lake Naivasha, Kenya

   • Robert Becht, David M. Harper

   Pages 1-11

3. The physical attributes of the Lake Naivasha catchment rivers

   • Mark Everard, Jacqueline A. Vale, David M. Harper, Håkan Tarras-Wahlberg

   Pages 13-25

4. Geochemical and physical characteristics of river and lake sediments at Naivasha, Kenya

   • Håkan Tarras-Wahlberg, Mark Everard, David M. Harper

   Pages 27-41

5. Aspects of the biodiversity of the rivers in the Lake Naivasha catchment

   • Mark Everard, Anthony Kuria, Michael Macharia, David M. Harper, Jacqueline A. Vale

   Pages 43-55

6. Chemical characteristics, with particular reference to phosphorus, of the rivers draining into Lake Naivasha, Kenya

   • Nzula Kitaka, David M. Harper, Kenneth M. Mavuti, Nic Pacini

   Pages 57-71

7. Phosphorus inputs to Lake Naivasha, Kenya, from its catchment and the trophic state of the lake

   • Nzula Kitaka, David M. Harper, Kenneth M. Mavuti

   Pages 73-80

8. Magnetic susceptibilities of lake sediment and soils on the shoreline of Lake Naivasha, Kenya

   • R. R. Boar, David M. Harper

   Pages 81-88

9. Phytoplankton community structure and succession in the water column of Lake Naivasha, Kenya: a shallow tropical lake

   • David S. Hubble, David M. Harper

   Pages 89-98

10. Nutrient control of phytoplankton production in Lake Naivasha, Kenya

    • David S. Hubble, David M. Harper

    Pages 99-105

11. Impacts of the C₄ sedge Cyperus papyrus L. on carbon and water fluxes in an African wetland

    • M. B. Jones, S. W. Humphries

    Pages 107-113

12. The dynamics and ecology of exotic tropical species in floating plant mats: Lake Naivasha, Kenya

    • C. S. Adams, R. R. Boar, D. S. Hubble, M. Gikungu, D. M. Harper, P. Hickley et al.

    Pages 115-122

13. Organochlorine and organophosphorus pesticide concentrations in water, sediment, and selected organisms in Lake Naivasha (Kenya)

    • S. M. Gitahi, D. M. Harper, S. M. Muchiri, M. P. Tole, R. N. Ng’ang’a

    Pages 123-128

14. Feeding of the exotic Louisiana red swamp crayfish, Procambarus clarkii (Crustacea, Decapoda), in an African tropical lake: Lake Naivasha, Kenya

    • Andrew C. Smart, David M. Harper, François Malaisse, Sophie Schmitz, Stephanie Coley, Anne-Christine Gouder de Beauregard

    Pages 129-142

15. Distribution and abundance of the Louisiana red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii Girard at Lake Naivasha, Kenya between 1987 and 1999

    • David M. Harper, Andrew C. Smart, Stephanie Coley, Sophie Schmitz, Anne-Christine Gouder de Beauregard, Rick North et al.

    Pages 143-151

16. Population structure and secondary productivity of Limnodrilus hoffineisteri (Claparede) and Branchiura sowerbyi Beddard in the profundal zone of Lake Naivasha, Kenya

    • Phil Raburu, Kenneth M. Mavuti, David M. Harper, Frank L. Clark

    Pages 153-161

17. Population changes in sympatric Great and Long-tailed Cormorants (Phalacrocorax carbo and P. africanus): the effects of niche overlap or environmental change?

    • R. Brooks Childress, Leon A. Bennun, David M. Harper

    Pages 163-170

18. Population fluctuations and their causes in the African Fish Eagle, (Haliaeetus vocifer (Daudin)) at Lake Naivasha, Kenya

    • David M. Harper, Maureen M. Harper, Munir A. Virani, Andrew Smart, R. Brooks Childress, Rachel Adatia et al.

    Pages 171-180

19. The status and future of the Lake Naivasha fishery, Kenya

    • Phil Hickley, Roland Bailey, David M. Harper, Rodrick Kundu, Mucai Muchiri, Rick North et al.

    Pages 181-190

20. Towards the sustainability of the Lake Naivasha Ramsar site and its catchment

    • Mark Everard, David M. Harper

    Pages 191-203

This is the first comprehensive study of an east African lake for thirty years. It represents the culmination of research expeditions which stretch back twenty years and is thus able to pick up long term changes which the individual research activities do not reveal. Lake Naivasha is a tropical lake whose natural fluctuations are now dwarfed by human impacts. Papers show how the irrigation for horticulture and power cooling has reduced the lake depth significantly; exotic arrivals have altered the plant community beyond recognition and its commercial value as a fishery and a tourist feature are reduced by over use. Despite this, the lake has considerable conservation value at present. It provides a different case study in the ever-growing library of the effects of human follies. Lake Naivasha has achieved global importance in the past ten years because its waters are used to sustain the largest horticultural industry in Africa. The book highlights its fragility under such pressure and points out the way towards sustainable use of the water and the ecosystem.

• Biodiversity
• Ecology
• Phosphor
• Plankton
• ecosystem
• environment
• fluxes
• hydrology
• phytoplankton
• population structure
• wetland

• Department of Biology, University of Leicester, England

  David M. Harper

• University of East Anglia, UK

  R. R. Boar

• Environment Agency, Reading, UK

  M. Everard

• The Environmental Agency, Kidderminster, UK

  P. Hickley

Policies and ethics