Freshwater plankton

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Freshwater plankton

• Free living in open water
• Position mostly determined by currents
• (as opposed to i.e. fish)
• Three main groups NOT exact!!
• Bacterioplankton
• Phytoplankton
• Zooplankton

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Bacteria and Protists

• Bacteria
• Cyanobacteria (Blue-green algae) photosynthesis
  - i.e. Aphanizomenon flos-aquae, Anabaena
• Heterotrophic use organic molecules for
  nutrition i.e. Azotobacter, Clostridium
• Nitrogen fixation in both groups
• Protists unicellular, not animals, plants,
  bacteria, or fungi
• Ciliates i.e. Paramecium
• Flagellates i.e. Euglena, Dinoflagellates

Anabaena
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Phytoplankton

• Phytoplankton Algae plants and others with
  photosynthesis
• Green algae i.e. Volvox, Spirogyra, Chlorella,
  Desmids
• Diatoms silica cell walls, yellow-brown
  chloroplasts

Pediastrum
Spirogyra
Asterionella
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Zooplankton

• Three Main Groups
• Cladocera
• Copepoda
• (Crustaceans)
• Rotifera

Daphnia pulex
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Cladocera - perloocky
Ceriodaphnia reticulata
Bosmina longirostris

• Filtration feeding
• Parthogenesis
• Asexual reproduction of females
• Poor conditions males appear, sexual
  reproduction producing ephippia (winter eggs)

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Copepoda - klanonožci

• Filtrators and Predators
• Cyclopoida i.e. Cyclops
• Calanoida i.e. Diaptomus
• Harpacticoida
• Nauplius
• Larval stages (usually 6)

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Rotatoria - vírníci

• Corona cilia for movement, capturing food
• Mastax grinding organ made of chitin
• Carapace present in most species

Asplanchna
Keratella
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Chaoborus

• Diptera
• Important predator on plankton and other insects

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Web links

• http//www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/full_menu.html
• Then Micro-organisms in ponds
• http//micro.magnet.fsu.edu/optics/olympusmicd/gal
  leries/moviegallery/pondscum.html
• http//www.microscopyu.com/moviegallery/pondscum/i
  ndex.html
• http//www.wikipedia.org i.e. search for
  plankton
• http//www.biolib.cz/