Water Quality Evaluation of the Cabra River Using Biological Indicators

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the water quality of the Cabra River through the use of aquatic macroinvertebrates implementing the EPT and BMWP/Pan indexes. The diversity of orders and families of macroinvertebrates was quantified, giving a total of 9460 individuals, distributed in 9 orders and 44 families. According to the BMWP/Pan, points P1 and P2 presented good quality waters from January to March, except for P2 which registered regular quality in February. P3 presented a transition from good quality waters to polluted waters from January to March. According to the EPT, points P1 and P2 presented waters of good quality from January to March. However, P3 showed regular water quality in January and February, and poor quality in March. This study identified an abundant diversity of freshwater macroinvertebrates of the Insecta class; when comparing the BMWP/Pan and EPT indexes. When evaluated, the two indexes had similar results. It is necessary to highlight the BMWP / Pan and EPT indexes to determine the water quality, since they can be used as guideline for the conservation and remediation of the rivers of the Republic of Panama.