Distribution and diversity of zooplankton in river Narmada Madhya Pradesh

Zooplankton diversity is one of the most important ecological parameters in water quality assessment. Zooplankton is good indicator of the changes in water quality because they are strongly affected by environmental conditions and due to their short life cycle, these communities often respond quickly to environmental change and water quality. They occupy an intermediate link between phytoplankton and fish. Hence qualitative and quantitative studies of zooplanktons are of great importance. Zooplankton formed important quantitative component of net plankton of the four parts; Copepoda dominantly contributed to their abundance while Rotifera > Cladocera > Protozoan were sub-dominant groups. Samples were collected during January 2014 to December 2014 from three sampling sites of river Narmada. A total of 42 species were found in sampling stations. Among these, Copepods comprise of 14 species (33%), Rotifera of 12 species (29%), Cladocera of 9 species (21%) and 7 Protozoan species (17%). The study aims to conserve the zooplanktons which are declining day by day.