MUSTAPHA AYOMIDE ADEJUWON

Fisheries

At the Fisheries department office

Appointment on Visitation important

Topic: Aquatic Ecology And Environmental Pollution

Description:

My research revolves around aquatic ecology and environmental pollution, with a keen interest in understanding how environmental and anthropogenic stressors affect aquatic environment and fish population dynamics. I examine the impacts of contaminants such as heavy metals and microplastics on aquatic organisms and their environments. I use quantitative and qualitative approaches, including statistical analysis, ecosystem modelling tools to better understand aquatic systems, and create predictive models that better inform organism conservation and sustainable management practices.

#	Certificate	School	Year
1.	M.Sc (FISHERIES AND AQUATIC BIOLOGY)	LAGOS STATE UNIVERSITY, OJO CAMPUS	2026

Mangrove Ecosystem Services in Lagos State, Nigeria: Community Perception, Livelihood Dependence, and Environmental Quality Across Badagry Creek and Epe Lagoon

Mangrove forests sustain coastal livelihoods throughout Lagos State, yet most Nigerian ecosystem service research still centres on the Niger Delta. The western and eastern flanks of the Lagos Lagoon system, including Badagry Creek and Epe Lagoon, remain comparatively understudied. This study presents a comparative, community-based characterisation of mangrove ecosystem services at two sites within this system: Gbaji, a fishing settlement on Badagry Creek, and Epe, a peri-urban town on Epe Lagoon. Structured household surveys measured provisioning, regulating, supporting, and cultural service recognition, together with perceived threats and governance gaps, among 46 Gbaji and 100 Epe respondents. Physicochemical analysis of surface water and Random Forest classification of Sentinel-2 imagery supplemented the Epe survey. Gbaji respondents rated supporting services highest (mean 4.12 of 5), driven by strong recognition of the mangrove nursery function for juvenile fish, while cultural services scored lowest (mean 3.20). Epe respondents most strongly recognised cultural (88.0%) and regulating (76.0%) services. Both communities reported substantial mangrove-linked income dependence, 71.7% in Gbaji and 76.0% in Epe, and near-universal awareness that local human activity was degrading the resource. Sand mining and dredging ranked as the leading perceived drivers of decline in Gbaji, while perceived government involvement in mangrove protection was low in Epe (16.0%) despite strong community willingness to participate in conservation (80.0%). Surface water at Epe showed acidic pH and organic pollution exceeding national regulatory limits, corroborating resident concern. Household income dependence correlated significantly with overall ecosystem service recognition at both sites. These findings show that resident perception tracks measured ecological condition and identify sand mining, dredging, and organic pollution as priority targets for coordinated, community-based mangrove management along the Lagos Lagoon corridor.

MUSTAPHA ADEJUWON is a Assistant Lecturer at the Department of Fisheries

MUSTAPHA has a M.Sc in FISHERIES AND AQUATIC BIOLOGY from LAGOS STATE UNIVERSITY, OJO CAMPUS