A Checklist of Zooplanktons recorded at Melukote Ponds, Pandavapura Taluk, Karnataka

Abstract

Zooplankton species are cosmopolitan in freshwater habitat. Their abundance and composition are of ecological importance, as they are biological indicator sensitive organisms. They acts as main sources of food for many fishes and plays an important element in early detection and monitoring the water pollution. Collection of Zooplanktons was carried out from two different water bodies (Akka and Tangi Pond) using planktonic net of mesh size 25µ. The plankton was fixed using 4% formalin and Lugol’s iodine solution. Observations were done under Leica Stereozoom Microscope (LX21M). Identification of Zooplanktons was carried out with an aid of taxonomic keys and scientific literatures. The prepared Checklist revealed total of 28 different species of Zooplanktons, out of which Rotifers are dominated (47.3%) with 15 species followed by Copepods (36.5%), Cladocera (11%) and Ostracods (5.2%) respectively. Thus, this pioneer study will forms a baseline data for further Zooplankton studies in future.