Ecological Systems and Devices Annotation << Back DEVELOPMENT OF ZOOPLANKTON (CLADOCERA, COPEPODA, ROTATORIA) IN THE ECOSYSTEM OF A POND WITH A HIGH ORGANIC MATTER CONTENT T.N. Gerasimova, A.P. Sadchikov In a fish-rearing pond, where artificial food is used and phytoplankton biomass is low, the detrital food chain acquires the main role in zooplankton development. Daphnia longispina dominate among cladocerans. Dominating among copepods are Mesocyclops (Thermocyclops) crassus. Asplanchna priodonta helvetica, Brachionus angularis angularis, and Brachionus calyciflorus make up the majority in the rotifer fauna. Detritus is the main source of food for zooplankton in the pond. A response of D. longispina population to the use of detritus is its high fertility (up to 11 egg/female in summer and up to 23 egg/female in autumn) and the absence of ephippium females. The excessive input of organic food and fish life products leads to their bacterial decomposition on pond bed. Detritus floats up into the top water layers because of microbiological processes. Zooplankton filters detritus suspended in the water mass, thereby reducing the turbidity of pond water. Keywords: zooplankton, detritus, Daphnia longispina, Mesocyclops (Thermocyclops) crassus, Asplanchna priodonta helvetica, trophic relationships, detrital food chain. DOI: 10.25791/esip.6.2022.1302 Pp. 19-25.