Plankton population and physico-chemical properties of a lake of Jahangirnagar University campus, Bangladesh at various lunar rhythms

Abstract

Planktonic biomass and physico-chemical properties of water from a lake at Jahangirnagar University, Bangladesh were studied during new moon, first quarter, full moon and last quarter phases from 16^th June to 15^th July 2015. Twenty four species of phytoplankton belonging to Chlorophyceae, Bacillariophyceae and Euglenophyceae were recorded. Maximum abundance (162-301 unit/l) of Chlorophyceae was recorded in first quarter phase followed by full moon phase (112-224 unit/l), new moon phase (85-222unit/l) and last quarter phase (60-125 unit/l), respectively. Chlorella vulgaris and Biddulphia aurita were the most abundant phytoplankton throughout the lunar period. Among the zooplankton, 5 species of Protozoa, 2 species of Rotifer, 3 species of Cladocera and 1 species of Ostracoda were recorded. Highest zooplankton was recorded in full moon phase (54-105 unit/l) and Daphnia cephalata was the most abundant species throughout the lunar cycle. Physico-chemical parameters indicate that the water temperature, colour, odour and pH were almost similar throughout the lunar cycle, whereas maximum dissolved oxygen (7.16 mg/l) and minimum (4.43 mg/l) were found during the last quarter and the full moon phase, respectively. The highest content of free carbon dioxide (4.36 mg/l) and chloride (22.8 mg/l) were recorded during first quarter and full moon phase accordingly.

Jahangirnagar University J. Biol. Sci. 4(2): 31-36, 2015 (December)