The zooplankton biodiversity of some freshwater environments in Parnaíba basin (Piauí, Northeastern Brazil)

Abstract

The plankton fauna of the state of Piauí, Northeastern Brazil, especially in the Parnaíba basin, is still poorly known; the results of most studies of the subject have not been published and can only be found in grey literature (unpublished scientific works), such as course completion work and consulting reports. Thus, this paper presents data from samples taken recently from different water bodies in Piauí and represents the second study to be published on the region's zooplankton since the pioneering work of Spandl (1926). A total of 38 species were recorded, including 23 new occurrences of rotifers, 10 of cladocerans and 2 of copepods for the state of Piauí. The greatest richness was observed for the rotifers, of which the genus Brachionus must be highlighted, especially at the Joana reservoir. Among the crustaceans, the greatest richness was observed at the Bezerra reservoir, where cladocerans of the genus Bosmina were prominent. The rotifers Brachionus havanaensis Rousselet, 1911 and Filinia longiseta (Ehrenberg, 1834); the cladocerans Diaphanosoma spinulosum Herbst, 1967 and Moina micrura Kurz, 1874; and the copepods Notodiaptomus cearensis Wright, 1936 and Thermocyclops decipiens Kiefer, 1927 occurred in all or in most environments in which the respective groups were studied. The results presented here expand the taxonomic list of zooplankton for the state of Piauí, including a total fauna of 30 species of rotifers, 15 of cladocerans and 3 of copepods. The zooplankton richness was considered low in the studied reservoirs compared to other freshwater ecosystems from Northeastern Brazil; however, the few studies developed in the Parnaíba basin suggest that the diversity for these organisms should be higher. Keywords

Zooplankton community in the Upper Parnaíba River (Northeastern, Brazil)

“…Adult copepods have few records in rivers: the young forms are more numerous (Paggi, 1984). This predominance of young stages of copepods in the zooplankton community was also reported by other authors (e.g., Nogueira et al, 2008;Almeida et al, 2009;Lansac-Tôha et al, 2009) and is frequently linked to high mortality rates of adult forms, which are more susceptible to predation by planktivorous fish (Paranhos et al, 2013). Ecological studies on the zooplanktonic fauna in the Parnaíba River channel are lacking.…”

“…In the northeastern Brazil, studies on the potamoplankton are scarce, highlighting recent work by Medeiros et al (2011) and Lucena et al (2015), although zooplankton studies in lentic environments are not uncommon to the region (e.g., Eskinazi-Sant'Anna et al, 2007;Almeida et al, 2009;Paranhos et al, 2013). The lack of extensive studies on the ecological processes of the Caatinga biome and its water courses, as well as the lack of knowledge about its biodiversity, has led to the incorrect perception that its aquatic biota is poor in species and endemism.…”

Composição Da Comunidade Zooplanctônica Em Um Pequeno Corpo D’água Raso No Sul De Minas Gerais

“…É formado pelo represamento de um córrego que é afluente do rio Cabo Verde (porção represada do Reservatório da Usina Hidrelétrica de Furnas-MG) e seu entorno possui um fragmento florestal de Mata Atlântica Estacional Semidecidual Secundária, com uma área total de 72,35 ha. (SILVA et al, 2013). O fragmento possui latossolo vermelho escuro com textura argilosa e uma precipitação anual média de 1590 mm (IBGE, 1991).…”

Composição da comunidade zooplanctônica de um pequeno açude da Reserva Particular do Patrimônio Natural da Mata Atlântica (RPPN) Fazenda Lagoa, município de Monte Belo - MG.

“…Com relação a comunidade zooplanctônica, foram identificados 28 espécies, com 11 de cladóceros, 2 de copépodos, 7 de rotíferos e 8 de protozoários (Tabela 2). A riqueza de espécies registradas no presente estudo foi próxima ao encontrada por Paranhos et al (2013) que registraram 38 espécies da comunidade zooplanctônica em diferentes corpos d'água do Piauí. Santos et al (2012) também registrou uma riqueza de espécies semelhante a do presente estudo em um lago do Parque Ecológico do Baguaçu (31 espécies) na cidade de Araçatuba, SP.…”