Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

INCIDENCE AND RELATIVE ABUNDANCE OF THE ZOOPLANKTON FAUNA IN THE PARAVUR LAKE - A TROPICAL TEMPORARY ESTUARY OF KERALA

S. Shibu, S.D. Ritakumari and N. Balakrishnan Nair

Abstract

Qualitative and quantitative analysis of zooplankton collected for 12 months from 5 stations showed that the fauna were diverse in time and space. The planktonic groups included coelenterates, rotifers, nematods, oligochaets, polychaets, copepods, ostracods, cladocerans, amphipods, insects and fish larvae. Rotifers and copepods formed the major components in all the samples. Absence of some of the major groups in the retting zone was very conspicuous