Seasonal changes in zooplankton community structure in Lake Kucukcekmece, Istanbul, Turkey

Abstract

The zooplankton community of Lake Kucukcekmece includes individuals from freshwater groups Rotifera and Cladocera, and also marine species Acartia clausi of the subclass Copepoda; Tintinnopsis nana, Favella sp. Jorgensen, 1924, and Strobilidium spiralis from the group Ciliata; Micronereis sp. Linnaeus, 1758 and Spio sp. Fabricius, 1785 from the class Polychaeta; Pleurobrachia pileus from the phylum Ctenophora; and Gammarus sp. Fabricius, 1775 from the order Amphipoda. Rotifera was the dominant group for each season studied. In autumn, dominant specimens included Bosmina longirostris, Spio sp. Fabricius, 1785, Pleurobrachia pileus, the cypris and nauplius larva of Balanus sp., and veliger larva. In winter, dominant species included Synchaeta pectinata, Filinia longirostris, and Epiphanes sp. Ehrenberg, 1832. In spring, dominate species included Asplanchna priodonta and Strobilidium spiralis. In summer, the dominant species was Brachionus plicatilis. Polyarthra major, Filinia longiseta, Keratella cochlearis, and Brachionus, which were found in the lake, are indicator species of eutrophication. Marine species Tintinnopsis nana peaked during spring at the first and second sampling stations, while Acartia clausi peaked during summer at the second station.