CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

How to use this book

The life-giving properties of water

Conditions in southern Africa

Types of rivers and wetlands

Adaptations to life in fresh water

Physical and chemical characteristics of fresh waters

Human activity in aquatic ecosystems

The effects of human activities on our health

Habitat destruction

Restoration of rivers and wetlands

Conservation of biodiversity and freshwater ecosystems

Ecosystem services provided by freshwater systems

Management of water and aquatic ecosystems in South Africa

Classifying plants and animals

ANIMAL AND PLANT GROUPS

1  Mammals – Class Mammalia
 Gary Bronner

2  Birds – Class Aves
 Peter Ryan

3  Reptiles – Class Reptilia
 Graham Alexander

4  Amphibians – Class Amphibia
 Louis du Preez and Vincent Carruthers

5  Fishes – Class Osteichthyes
 Paul Skelton

6  Molluscs – Phylum Mollusca
 Chris Appleton and Nelson Miranda

7  Springtails – Subclass Collembola
 Charlene Janion-Scheepers

8  Mayflies – Order Ephemeroptera
 Helen M. Barber-James

9  Damselflies and dragonflies – Order Odonata
 Warwick Tarboton

10 Stoneflies – Order Plecoptera
Duncan Stevens and Mike Picker

11 Earwigs, crickets and grasshoppers – Orders Dermaptera and Orthoptera
Fabian Haas

12 Bugs – Order Hemiptera
Patrick Reavell

13 Dobsonflies, fishflies and alderflies – Order Megaloptera
Mike Picker and Duncan Stevens

14 Water beetles – Order Coleoptera
Riaan Stals

15 Flies – Order Diptera
Stephen A. Marshall and Greg W. Courtney

16 Caddisflies – Order Trichoptera
Ferdy de Moor

17 Arachnids – Class Arachnida
Ansie Dippenaar-Schoeman and Jenny Day

18 Crabs, prawns and crayfish – Order Decapoda
Savel Daniels

19 Amphipods and isopods – Superorder Peracarida
Charles Griffiths

20 Branchiopods (gill-footed shrimps) – Class Branchiopoda
Jenny Day

21 Copepods and their allies – Subclass Copepoda
Cecile Reed

22 Ostracods (seed shrimps) – Class Ostracoda
Koen Martens

23 Bryozoans (moss animals) – Phylum Bryozoa
Beth Okamura

24 Lesser-known invertebrates – Phyla Porifera, Cnidaria, Nematoda,
Nemertea, Nematomorpha, Gastrotricha, Tardigrada, Rotifera,
Platyhelminthes and Annelida
Jenny Day

25 Flowering plants (angiosperms) – Class Magnoliopsida
Carin van Ginkel

26 Mosses, liverworts and hornworts – Subkingdom Embryophyta
Terry Hedderson

27 Ferns – Phylum Pterophyta
Carin van Ginkel

28 Protists – Kingdom Protista
Sanet Janse van Vuuren, Jonathan Taylor and Jenny Day

29 Prokaryotes – Domains Archaea and Bacteria
Sanet Janse van Vuuren

WATER ACTIVITIES

Dealing with aquatic samples

Saving and caring for water

Assessing the health of an ecosystem

Making your own wetland

Photographing freshwater organisms

GLOSSARY

FURTHER READING

INDEX TO COMMON NAMES

INDEX TO SCIENTIFIC NAMES