Ecological Characteristics and Morphological Features of the Lubigi Wetland in Uganda

Abstract

The Lubigi is one of the largest Lake Kyoga drainage basin wetlands located in the northwestern part of Kampala, the capital city of Uganda. It receives stormwater and polluted water from Kampala city and discharges it into Mayanja River and finally Lake Kyoga. Unfortunately, there is lack of information and knowledge on the capacity of the Lubigi wetland to protect the downstream water bodies from pollution. In an effort to address this it was necessary to investigate ecological and morphological characteristics of the Lubigi wetland. Pertinent field investigations, surveys, data collection and field tests and analyses were carried out. The results revealed that the area of drainage basin feeding the wetland is about 40 km 2. The width of wetland main study area varies from 250 m to 450 m and water depth varies up to a maximum of 2.5 m. The wetland study area has a total surface area and volume are 1.09 ha and 1,073,000 m 3 , respectively. The wetland soil is dominated by thick loose peat near the inlet, but thickness of loose peat decreased rapidly towards the downstream end. Nine plant species were dominant in Lubigi wetland, but the most dominant species are Echinochloa pyramidalis, Cyperus papyrus, Thelypteris acuminata and Paspalum crobiculatum.