Research Article
Sedimentological and Paleoecological Research Techniques, with Applications to the Environmental History of Loboi Swamp, Kenya
Peter N Gitau1* and Dirk Verschuren2
1Kenya Wetlands Biodiversity Research Team (KENWEB), Kenya, Vrije Universiteit, Brussels, DBIO, Belgium
2Limnology Research Unit, Department of Biology, Ghent University, Belgium
- *Corresponding Author:
- Peter N Gitau
Kenya Wetlands Biodiversity Research Team
(KENWEB), Kenya Vrije Universiteit, Brussels, DBIO, Belgium
Tel: +254720608634
E-mail: peter.nganga.gitau@vub.ac.be
Received May 14, 2016; Accepted May 27, 2016; Published May 30, 2016
Citation: Gitau PN, Verschuren D (2016) Sedimentological and Paleoecological Research Techniques, with Applications to the Environmental History of Loboi Swamp, Kenya. J Earth Sci Clim Change. 7:351. doi:10.4172/2157-7617.1000351
Copyright: © 2016 Gitau PN. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
This research involved sedimentological and paleoecological research techniques, with application to the environmental history of Loboi Swamp (Kenya) in the context of water-resource management and wetland conservation. The analyses included non-destructive scanning of sediment cores (magnetic properties, water content, colour spectroscopy, digital photography), determination of bulk sediment composition (organic matter, carbonate, mineral sediments), grain-size analysis, and aquatic invertebrate remains. This was undertaken at Ghent University, department of Biology in the Limnology research unit.
