The trophodynamic implications of reduced freshwater inflow on the zooplankton of eastern Cape estuaries was investigated by a comparison of the community composition and standing stocks, grazing rates and food resources of zooplankton in two systems, the Kariega and the Great Fish estuaries, which are subject to contrasting freshwater inflow. The climate of South Africa is semi-arid, and the low rainfall, coupled with high evaporative loss, result in the region having one of the lowest conversions of rainfall to run-off in the world. In addition, many of the major rivers are extensively impounded, consequently, estuaries often experience prolonged periods of zero or reduced freshwater inflow. The amount of freshwater available for estuarine management in the future is expected to decline as the demand for domestic, agricultural and industrial use increases. The influence of climate, tidal amplitude and wave action are essentially constant, consequently, the individual characteristics of an estuary are determined largely by the indirect influences of catchment size and regulation. Estuaries along the eastern Cape coast range from negative hypersaline systems, to positive systems in which a salinity gradient is well established. The Kariega estuary is a homogeneous marine estuary as a result of minimal freshwater inflow, whereas the Great Fish estuary receives sustained freshwater inflow and is partially-stratified. The quality and quantity of particulate food resources for suspension-feeders depended to a large extent on the allochthonous import of material associated with freshwater inflow. Nutrients, rather than light penetration of the watercolumn are the major factor limiting phytoplankton standing stocks. In the Kariega estuary, phytoplankton standing stocks were low (up to 1.0 μg l⁻¹) and the estuary is classified as oligotrophic. Correlation analyses indicated that lower quality detritus, originating from fringing macrophytes, may contribute substantially to suspended particulate organic material. Phytoplankton food resources were considerably higher in the Great Fish estuary (up to 21.8 μg ⁻¹) which is classified as mesotrophic/eutrophic, and correlation analyses indicated that phytoplankton comprised the dominant fraction of the particulate organic material. Although this suggested that the organic material was of a higher quality, the seston was "masked" by a higher suspended inorganic load. Consequently, the organic fraction comprised between 13 and 22% of total particulate material in the Great Fish estuary, compared with between 20 and 39% in the Kariega estuary. Food resources demonstrated a fairly uniform distribution along the length of the Kariega estuary and exhibited a slight seasonal increase during warmer months. By contrast, the point source influence of freshwater inflow resulted in a spatial gradient of food resources in the Great Fish estuary with higher values recorded towards the upper reaches. There was evidence that higher concentrations of particulate material in the upper reaches are also a consequence of hydrodynamic trapping. There was no marked seasonal pattern in the availability of food resources which were generally elevated in response to sporadic pulses of freshwater inflow. Tidal currents were responsible for elevating suspended food resources by re-suspension of material from the sediments. This effect was probably of greater importance in the Kariega estuary where food resources were generally limiting. In the Kariega estuary, the zooplankton community was dominated by calanoid copepods of the genera Acartia and Pseudodiaptomus. However, in the Great Fish estuary, the community was dominated by the mysid Mesopodopsis siabberi, and the calanoid P. hessei. Community biomass generally reflected the trophic status of the estuary. The mean seasonal biomass recorded in the Kariega estuary was 38 mg m⁻³ compared with 1597 mg m⁻³ in the Great Fish estuary. Greater spatial variability in community biomass was evident in the Great Fish estuary, partly in response to the food resource gradient, but also due to the inability of the mysid shrimps, which dominated the community biomass, to penetrate the lower salinity water of the upper reaches. Zooplankton in the Kariega estuary demonstrated a seasonal pattern of abundance whereas in the Great Fish estuary, community biomass was elevated in response to sporadic pulses of freshwater inflow. Grazing rates, measured in situ using a modified Gliwicz-Haney chamber, indicated that the zooplankton communities were capable of "clearing" substantial proportions of the watercolumn at certain times of the year. The pattern of grazing pressure over a diel cycle was examined in relation to the diel vertical migration movements of the zooplankton. Higher nighttime grazing rates were generally associated with the greater abundance of zooplankton resulting from the movement of zooplankton into the watercolumn after dusk, and their return to the sediments at dawn. Seasonal estimates of diel grazing pressure, extrapolated from daytime and nighttime feeding rates, indicated that the zooplankton "cleared" up to 40% of the watercolumn in a day in the Kariega estuary, and up to 120% d⁻¹ in the Great Fish estuary. However, values of around 25% d⁻¹ in the Kariega estuary, and 50 to 80% d⁻¹ in the Great Fish estuary, were not uncommon. Multiple regression analyses were used in an attempt to explain the influence of environmental factors on the variation in in situ grazing rates. These attempts were largely unsuccessful and the possible reasons, as well as recommended improvements to the methods used, are discussed. Seston concentration in the estuaries was highly variable as a result of the effects of tidal re-suspension and freshwater inflow. Consequently, further laboratory-based experiments were carried out to examine the influence of seston concentration on the filtration rates of the dominant calanoid copepods. Results indicated that some of the unexplained variability in the community filtration rates may be attributed to differences in species-specific response to changes in seston concentration.

No description available.

Zooplankton abundance, hydrilla biomass, and physicochemical parameters were sampled for one year in a small central Florida lake. Annually, rotifers comprised most of the species collected and were the most abundant zooplankton group. Hydrilla biomass was lowest during winter and spring while orthophosphate and phtoplankton concentrations were highest. Zooplankton densities were highest when hydrilla biomass was low. Small-bodied limnetic herbivores comprised most of the zooplankton during the spring. Zooplanton abundances were lowest during summer and fall and may have been either directly or indirectly related to the hydrilla growth. Factors, such as lower phytoplankton and dissolved oxygen concentrations, possible increased predation by fish, and substances that may have been secreted by the hydrilla may have had a negative effect on the lake's zooplankton density. Littoral zooplankton species were frequently collected from the lake when hydrilla biomass was high. Species diversity (─æ) was lowest during winter and spring and ranged from 1.69 to 2.11; species diversity peaked during the summer reaching 3.04.

Methylmercury (MeHg) bioaccumulation in freshwater aquatic systems is impacted by anthropogenic stressors, including climate change and excess nutrients. The goal of this study was to determine how warmer water temperatures and excess nutrients would impact zooplankton communities and phytoplankton concentrations, and in turn increase or decrease MeHg concentrations in freshwater zooplankton. I used a 2x2 factorial design to determine if the interaction of temperature and nutrients would impact plankton metrics and zooplankton MeHg concentrations. Mesocosms were filled with Hg-contaminated water and plankton from Cottage Grove Reservoir, Oregon, a waterbody that has experienced decades of elevated MeHg concentrations and corresponding fish consumption advisories due to run-off from Black Butte Mine tailings, located within the watershed. Treatment combinations of warmer temperature (increased by 0.5°C) and nutrient addition (a single pulse of excess nitrogen and phosphorous), control, and a combination of temperature and nutrients were applied to mesocosms. While plankton did respond to treatments, zooplankton biomass and phytoplankton concentrations did not have significant relationships to MeHg concentrations. However, a significant interactive effect of nutrients and temperature was present: nutrients appeared to buffer against increased MeHg concentrations when temperature was elevated. The mechanisms for this interaction appear to be related to a shift to larger body size and an increase in abundance of Daphnia over copepods. Findings suggest that community composition and species-specific differences in both zooplankton and phytoplankton could play a role in MeHg transfer to higher trophic levels.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Lehigh University, 2002. / Includes vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 121-132).

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Dept. of Botany, University of Adelaide, 1991. / Typescript (Photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 166-189).

Zooplankton samples were collected from 166 Oregon lakes. The lakes included a wide range in size, trophic status, and water quality. Lakes were located throughout the state. Zooplankton were identified using standard taxonomic keys and counted. Seventy-four species were identified from the 200 total samples, including 32 species of cladocera, 22 copepods, and 11 rotifers. Two species of copepod were recorded for the first time in Oregon: Diaptomus mississippiensis and Diaptomus pallidus. Seven species had widespread distributions throughout most of the watersheds in the state. Seventeen other species had distributions restricted to eastern, central, or western Oregon. The remaining species were either rare or had random distributions.

Seasonal variation in zooplanton abundance and diversity in Spring Lake, Florida was studies between 1973 - 1976. This clear, sand bottom lake is considered among the most oligotrophic in central Florida. Sixty rotifer species, sixteen cladoceran species, and seven copepod species were collected during the three year study. Annual mean zooplanton abundances ranged between 70 individuals/l and 80 individuals/l. Rotifers were more abundant than either cladocerans or adult copepods. Rotifers and immature crustaceans comprised nearly 75% of the annual mean zooplankton abundance. There was no significant difference (P < 0.05) between years for the annual mean abundance of zooplankton. The monthly mean abundance of cladocerans and adult copepods was generally less than 5 individuals/l. The greater abundance of rotifers in comparison to other zooplankton was mainly responsible for the variation in the values of the Shannon and Simpson Indices. The monthly mean Shannon Index was usually between 3.0 and 4.0. Seasonal differences in zooplankton abundance were apparently due to water temperature and specific conductivity for the 1974 - 1975 and 1975 - 1976 study years. Shannon diversity was significantly correlated with dissolved oxygen for the 1973 - 1974 and 1974 - 1975 study years.

Twenty-eight species of zooplankton were identified from Lake Texoma. Seasonal density of the overall microcrustacean community and seasonal cycles of individual species were compared with northern populations and any available literature from the Southwest. Cycles of occurrence and abundance were similar to those observed in northern populations but tended to occur earlier in the year due to higher temperatures. Spatial distributions within the reservoir were heavily influenced by nutrient and salt input from the Red River, which resulted in dense populations in the Red River Arm. In addition, during the summer, the microcrustacean community was restricted to the epilimnion due to anoxic conditions in the hypolimnion of the reservoir.