Professional paper
https://doi.org/10.33765/thate.13.3.3
Published in: Holistic Approach Environ. 13(2023) 3, pp. 106 – 112
Paper reference number: HAE-2212
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PHYTOPLANKTON AND ZOOPLANKTON DIVERSITY IN RURAL WETLANDS OF ANAND AND KHEDA DISTRICTS, GUJARAT INDIA
Neel Rajendrakumar Talati*, Rita Nirmal Kumar*, Dhara Ravikant Tuteja*, Nirmal Kumar**
* Natubhai V. Patel College of Pure and Applied Sciences, Department of Biological and Environmental Science, Vallabh Vidyanagar, Gujarat, India
** Institute of Science & Technology for Advanced Studies & Research (ISTAR), P.G. Department of Environmental Science & Technology (EST), Vallabh Vidyanagar, Gujarat, India
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ABSTRACT
Plankton diversity plays an essential role in aquatic wetlands. Phytoplankton and zooplankton communities were assessed in three permanent water bodies: Petli (S1), Deva (S2) and Heranj (S3) of the Anand and Kheda districts. Sampling was done from December 2020 to March 2021. Collection of plankton and identification of planktons was done using various published plankton manuals. A total of 32 phytoplankton have been recorded during the study period, from which 36 % belong to class Chlorophyta, 32 % belong to class Bacillariophyta, 16 % belong to Cyanophyta, 10 % belong to Charophyte, 3 % belong to Dinophyta, and 3 % belong to Euglenophyta. In addition, a total of 27 zooplankton species have been found, from which 46 % belong to Maxillopoda, 23 % belong to Monogononta, 19 % belong to Branchiopoda, 8 % belong to Eurotatoria, and 4 % belong to Hexanauplia. S1 has the maximum number of phytoplankton (24), followed by S3 with 18 and S2 with 15 species. Zooplankton were at the maximum in S1 (19), followed by S2 with 16, and S3 with 11 species. Results of the present study indicate that the studied wetlands have rich plankton diversity.
Keywords: biodiversity, phytoplankton, zooplankton, freshwater ponds
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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