IDENTIFICATION OF FRESHWATER ZOOPLANKTON IN GODAVARI RIVER CONCERNING FOOD CHAIN IN AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM OF NANDED, MAHARASHTRA, INDIA

Abstract

Plankton occupies the first link in the food chain of the aquatic ecosystem and considers as an important source of food for fish and other aquatic organisms in which zooplankton is the secondary producer of the aquatic ecosystem. It always survives near the surface area of the fresh water and sea because; it requires a food nutrient which is near sea and river banks. Zooplankton is the fauna for the food it depends on phytoplankton. The growth of these organisms’ other aquatic life depends. Most changes in the diversity of this organism are due to seasonal wise and with some abiotic factors. Hence the study of zooplankton undertaken with some physicochemical characteristics of this water body needs to be monitored. The present study is aimed to study zooplankton and its diversity along with composition relationships among different zooplankton groups and abiotic factors during the period January 2020 to December 2020 of a Godavari River from Nanded city, Maharashtra. Samplings were carried out seasonally like summer, winter, and monsoon nearly four sampling sites in this reservoir were selected. In study showed that the Rotifera group was the most dominant among all three groups and having Positive correlation was found between zooplankton growth with water temperature and pH while their growth was a negative correlation with increasing dissolved oxygen. are mostly affected with seasonal basis observed the period of this winter is highly suitable for Cladocera genera and Rotifera genera summer season and Copepoda, Protozoa and Ostracoda monsoon respectively highly suitable