Crustacean Plankton Communities of 340 Lakes and Ponds in and near the National Parks of the Canadian Rocky Mountains

Abstract

The crustacean plankton communities of 340 lakes and ponds in southern Alberta and southeastern British Columbia were examined. The waters are situated between 660 m and 2455 m in elevation, have areas from < 0.1 to 3940 hectares, and range from 0.5 m to 136 m in depth. They represent a wide range of salinities, from 2 ppm to 29,800 ppm. The communities were grouped into seven main types on the basis of the copepod species present. Of the 97 crustacean species present, 32 were copepods, 50 were cladocerans, and 9 were anostracans. The three most common species accounted for over 25% of the total species occurrences. Only two species were present in more than half the total lakes and ponds. A few species seem to be restricted to highly saline waters, and a few to low salinities, but most inhabited a wide range of aquatic environments. The most frequently occurring and abundant species tolerate a wide range of conditions. These species are also characterized by up to a fivefold variation in generation time. Certain species having restricted distribution patterns appear to be limited by both the chemistry of the water and the heat content. Aspects of species distribution, ecology, and interspecific relationships are discussed.

Latitudinal patterns in the size distribution and seasonal dynamics of new world, freshwater cladocerans

“…For example, larger bodied cladocerans, as are typically found in temperate lakes, can also be found in high-elevation lakes in tropical South America and Africa (Fernando et al 1987;Green 1995). Similarly, cladoceran species found in highelevation lakes in temperate regions often closely resemble those found in lakes in subarctic and arctic regions (Anderson 1974). Yet, the thermal regimes of these high-elevation lakes are also more similar to those of lakes at a higher latitude than to those at lower elevations at the same latitude.…”

The distribution of zooplankton in selected Oregon lakes

“…Other studies (Whittaker, 1958;Anderson, 1974;Harris, 1979) consider this species indicative of deep oligotrophic lakes. Wallowa…”

“…It has been found from British Columbia (Carl, 1940;Anderson, 1971Anderson, , 1974) to California (Wilson and Yeatman, 1959 Diaptomus kenai -Located in 11 lakes, all in the Cascades. Wilson and Yeatman (1959) describes it as common in high altitudes from Alaska to California.…”

“…Carl (1940) found it only rarely in British Columbia, mainly on Vancouver Island. Anderson (1974) found it in one lake in the Canadian Rocky…”

“…Western Canadian lakes have been examined by Carl (1940), Anderson (1971Anderson ( , 1974, and Patalas and Salki (1973). Eastern Canadian lakes were intensively investigated by Carter et al (1980) for crustacean and dipteran species and Carter et al (1988) for crustacean and rotifer assemblages.…”