Fireflies population and the aquaculture industry (Coleoptera: Lampyridae) of the Sungai Sepetang, Kampung Dew, Perak, Malaysia

Abstract

A study on the population of fireflies along the Sungai Sepetang, Kampung Dew, Perak was conducted on March, May and June 2014. This study aim to investigate the abundance of fireflies from the upstream to downstream of the Sungai Sepetang in regards to the shrimp pond located at the side of Sungai Sepetang as well as investigating the correlation of water and soil quality to the abundance of fireflies there. The 2 minutes sweep-netting for fireflies, water and soil sampling was adopted. The 20 sampling stations indicated by stations before the shrimp pond (station 1-10) and after the shrimp pond (station 11-20). A total of 3044 individuals of fireflies were recorded. The stations before the shrimp pond recorded higher abundance (2421) of fireflies compared to the later (623). There was a significant different (p<0.05) on the abundance of fireflies within the sampling station. The Water Quality Index (WQI)obtained was 59% indicated the status polluted. Sungai Sepetang is categorized in class III based on Interim National Water Quality Standards (INWQS) for Malaysia. The WQI have a positive correlation in regards to the abundance of fireflies indicated the abundance increases as the quality of water increase. ANOVA test on the abundance of fireflies and heavy metal showed that there is a significant different (p<0.05) but fireflies have a negative correlation with heavy metal. The abundance of fireflies decreases with the increasing concentration of heavy metal in the river. Fireflies are more abundance at the area where the percentage of silt in soils is high indicates that the eggs and larva of fireflies are suitable to live in soils with high percentage of silts. It can be concluded that fireflies are sensitive to the environmental changes, and the abundance of fireflies are highly dependent on the environmental factor such as water quality.