Distribution and Role of Fungi and Fungus-Like Organisms in Zooplankton of Freshwater Ecosystems (Review)

Abstract

Information on the species composition and distribution of zooplankton mycoparasites is summarized: 8 species of Chytridiomycota, 2 – Ascomycota, 7 – microsporidia, 19 – fungal-like organisms Oomycota. Known life cycles, dependence of infection spread on water temperature, density of host and parasite populations, host are given. The presence of saprotrophic species in plankton is indicated. They feed on dead inhabitants of plankton and introduced invertebrate corpses from terrestrial conditions: 30 species of Chytridiales, 4 – Mucorales and 35 species of fungus-like Saprolegniales. Information on the role of fungi in the nutrition of zooplankton is given, mainly zoospores and mitospore ascomycetes.