Fish communities in river systems and associated biotopes

Except for the many lakes of East Africa, most African aquatic environments are formed by rivers whose total length is estimated at 13 million km (Welcomme & Mérona, 1988). Nevertheless, the communities, in these species-rich lotic environments, are far less well-known than those of lakes and reservoirs. Sampling difficulties in fluvial environments, particularly during flood periods, are one of the main reasons for the relative scarcity of information about riverine communities