Species diversity and distribution for zooplankton in the wetlands of the Chlef region, western Algeria

Abstract

This work is a contribution to the study of the carcinological fauna of the aquatic ecosystems of the Chlef region. This is the first inventorie of crustaceans since the last research of Ghauthier 1928. The inventory was based on samples collected from 20 freshwater bodies (reservoirs, ponds, ditches, oueds and dams) between 2021 and 2022.The sites contain a diverse carcinological fauna, among which are 4 taxonomic groups: ostracods, cladocerans, copepods and large branchiopoda (Anostraca). A total of 18 taxa were identified, the Anostraca chirocephalus salinus is reported for the first time in the region, Cyclops viridis and Daphnia similis is the most common in the majority of the sampled sites. The Cladocera Corenattella anemae was reported for the first time in the chlef region and the second time in Algeria, in the Beni Bouattab dam wich is the richest sites in our samples