Effect Of Soil Erosion On Microbial Communities

ABSTRACT

This study evaluated microbiologically, the effect of soil erosion on microbial communities based on soil microbial load. In the course of this study, soil samples were obtained from three (3) different erosion sites Umuobia, Amuzukwu and Isieke-Ibeku, with three (3) soil samples obtained in each erosion site from the Upper Slope, Middle Slope and Lower Slope and in addition to them, two other soil samples (Agricultural soil and Trampled soil) were obtained and used as controls. From this study, the mean microbial counts from the samples analyzed revealed that Agricultural soil had the highest bacterial count at 1.37×105, followed by the Lower Slope soil samples of the eroded sites, and the least bacterial count was recorded in the Middle Slope of the eroded soil samples. The total fungal plate count investigated revealed Agricultural soil as having the highest fungal count (1.26×105) and the Middle Slope of eroded soil samples  as having the least fungal count (0.00×105). Bacterial strains were isolated using the spread plate techniques and were identified using colonial morphology, Gram staining reaction, biochemical and motility tests which revealed the major bacterial isolates to be Bacillus species, Pseudomonas species, Actinomycetes species, Staphylococcus species and Escherichia coli while microscopic and colonial morphology revealed the fungal isolates to be Aspergillus niger, Fusarium solani, Fusarium oxysporum. The percentage occurrence of bacterial isolates showed Bacillus species as the most frequently occurring at 6(30%) while percentage occurrence of fungal isolates revealed Aspergillus niger as the highest occurring fungi at 5(45.5%).