Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 October 2018 | 10(11): 12552–12560

Status of studies on zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh, India

Bikramjit Sinha

Zoological Survey of India, Arunachal Pradesh Regional Centre, Senki Valley, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh 791113, India

bj.sinha@gov.in

Abstract: This paper gives a brief review of the studies on zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh, the major shareholder of the eastern Himalaya biodiversity hotspot. Altogether, 66 species of zooplankton (45 Rotifera, 20 Cladocera, & one Copepoda) have been recorded along with their distribution in the state, wherever available. It is apparent that there is a lack of serious taxonomic studies on all three major groups of zooplankton from this Himalayan state. The urgency and importance of documenting the zooplankton fauna of this biogeographically unique and biodiversity-rich state is highlighted in view of the fragility of the ecosystem as well as the effect of climate change.

Keywords: Arunachal Himalaya, Cladocera, Copepoda, Rotifera, zooplankton.

doi: https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.2998.10.11.12552-12560 | ZooBank: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:F286EB0A-1236-451D-A3BC-0A1E2E095B46

Editor: Anonymity requested. Date of publication: 26 October 2018 (online & print)

Manuscript details: Ms # 2998 | Received 13 September 2017 | Final received 12 September 2018 | Finally accepted 28 September 2018

Citation: Sinha, B. (2018). Status of studies on zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 10(11): 12552–12560; https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.2998.10.11.12552-12560

Copyright: © Sinha 2018. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use of this article in any medium, reproduction and distribution by providing adequate credit to the authors and the source of publication.

Funding: In-house study.

Competing interests: The author declares no competing interests.

Author Detail: Dr. Bikramjit Sinha is a Senior Scientist with Zoological Survey of India presently posted in the Arunachal Pradesh Regional Centre, Itanagar. His research thrusts are Freshwater Ecology and Science Policy studies and current research includes survey and exploration of freshwater fauna of Arunachal Pradesh including zooplankton.

Acknowledgements: I am thankful to the Director, Zoological Survey of India, for infrastructure. Thanks are also due to the staff of Arunachal Pradesh Regional Centre, Zoological Survey of India, for their support during the work, and to the anonymous reviewers for their critical comments on the original manuscript.

Introduction

Zooplankton is an important biotic component of aquatic ecosystems (Dadhick & Saxena 1999; Sinha & Islam 2002) acting as indicators of the trophic condition of an ecosystem (Gannon & Stemberger 1978; Sharma 1998). Changes in zooplankton abundance, species diversity, and community composition are considered as good indicators of environmental change (Sharma et al. 2008). Truly planktonic animals or zooplankton are dominated by three major groups in freshwaters, the Rotifera and the two groups of the subphylum Crustacea, namely, Cladocera & Copepoda. The present study, thus, concentrates on these three major groups.

Freshwater rotifers are represented by over 2000 species (Segers 2007, 2008) of which 419 species belonging to 65 genera are known from India (Sharma & Sharma 2017a). The Indian Rotifera diversity is relatively richer than other Southeast Asian countries like Thailand (Sa-Ardrit et al. 2013). Of the nearly 700 species of freshwater cladocerans known globally (Forro et al. 2008; Kotov 2013), 131 species in 47 genera have been reported from India (Chatterjee et al. 2013; Sharma & Sharma 2017b). Out of about 3000 species of freshwater copepods known globally, the Indian diversity is estimated to be nearly 200 species under 60 genera (Reddy 2017). Rotifera, Cladocera,, and Copepoda, thus, share roughly 21%, 18%, and 7% of their respective global diversity till date.

Studies on Indian zooplankton began more or less at the beginning of the 20th century. Studies on Indian Cladocera was initiated with the description of Daphnia newporti Baird, 1860 (now it is a ‘species inquirenda’). The momentum, however, picked up with the publication of two papers on Indian Cladocera at the beginning of the 20^th Century (Gurney 1906, 1907). Though Indian Rotifera studies started near the end of the 19^th Century with the report of 47 species from Calcutta and its surroundings by Anderson (1989), a clear impetus in Rotifera studies from India is evident with the works of Murray (1906), who reported 32 species from the Sikkim Himalaya (now a part of northeastern India), followed by quite a number of publications. Works of Gurney (1906, 1907) at the beginning of the last century were the first reports on Indian freshwater Copepoda.

The progress of studies on Indian zooplankton, encompassing all facets, is well- documented (see Sharma & Sharma 2017a for Rotifera; Sharma & Sharma 2017b & Chatterjee et al. 2013 for Cladocera; Reddy 2017 for Copepoda). While these studies dealt with individual groups, a common observation by them is the non-homogeneity of the progress in space. All the biogeographic zones of the country are not equally studied including different ecosystems like hot springs and alpine regions. Also, studies from different regions as well as states of the country are disproportionate, a fact that can be attributed to the recorded low diversity in these groups in relation to global diversity. Within the Indian landmass, substantial work has been done from the northeastern region in terms of Rotifera and Cladocera while most of the studies on Indian copepods have been confined to the southern peninsula.

A similar trend of non-uniform coverage of all the states of northeastern India, too, is evident. Most of the zooplankton studies in the region have been confined to select states. About two-thirds (~280 species) of the Indian Rotifera are known from northeastern India. This rich rotifer diversity is mainly attributed to Assam (220 species), Manipur & Mizoram (162 species each), Meghalaya (161 species), and Tripura (152 species) (Sharma 2017a). There is no quantification of the rotifers from states like Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, and Sikkim though there are some occasional reports like those by Murray (1906) from Sikkim. Similarly, Assam (75 species), Meghalaya (58 species), Manipur (56 species), and Tripura (50 species) (Sharma 2017a) contributed to the relatively rich cladoceran diversity of the region. Not much is known about the Cladocera diversity of the remaining northeastern states except for sporadic reports. The copepod fauna of northeastern India as a whole is poorly studied with only a few reports (Reddiah 1964; Reddy 2013a,b) from the region. The only systematic study on the zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh is perhaps by Sharma et al. (2017a,b,) who reported seven species each of Rotifera and Cladocera from Tawang. But it neither mentioned the occurrence of other species in the district nor provided any details on the number and distribution of zooplankton in the state.

There is a complete dearth of studies exclusive to any of the three zooplankton groups from Arunachal Pradesh though it is a part of the eastern Himalaya global biodiversity hotspot (Myers et al. 2000) and is also among the 200 globally important ecoregions (Olson & Dinerstein 1998). Therefore, it is critically imperative to undertake comprehensive and dedicated studies on important aquatic faunal groups like zooplankton of Arunachal Pradesh that is ecologically fragile, especially due to the developmental pressure it is witnessing of late. This is upholded by the more sensitive nature of these tiny organisms. In this context, it is imperative to know the state of affairs of zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh before undertaking a detailed study. This is what this study is aimed at, making a sincere effort to collate all the existing scattered information on zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh.

Arunachal Pradesh: the biodiversity mine

The state of Arunachal Pradesh (26.4–29.5 ⁰N & 91.5–97.5 ⁰E; 83,743km²; Fig. 1) in northeastern India is uniquely situated in the transition zone between a) the eastern Himalaya & Indo-Burmese biodiversity hotspots, b) Palearctic & Oriental biogeographic region, and c) Himalaya & peninsular India. The state has an unmatched composition of biological diversity having representative elements of the different conjoining ecosystems as well as its own unique elements. Wide altitudinal range from 50 to >7000 m within the state has brought about a great diversity of habitat and forest types and climatic conditions from temperate to alpine or tundra that arguably support the evolution and existence of diverse forms of biota. The landscape is one of the richest in biological values in the world, high in endemism and holding a large number of rare and threatened species (Rao 1994; Baishya et al. 2001; Borang 2001). Frequent new discoveries and new records in almost all groups of flora and fauna from the state reinforces the above observations and the state can be rightly considered as a ‘biodiversity mine’ for its biodiversity potential.

This Himalayan state harbours a wide variety of both lotic and lentic freshwater biotopes, ranging from sub-tropical wetlands to hot-springs to high-altitude glacial lakes. The five major rivers, namely, Kameng, Subansiri, Siang, Dibang, and Lohit, along with another 123 rivers and streams (SAC 2009) constitute the lotic habitats accounting for 86% of the total wetland area of the state. The state has a total of 2,653 wetlands, natural as well as man-made, with a total area of 155,728ha that accounts for more than 2% of the total geographic area of the state. These vast wetland systems harbour diverse aquatic fauna including freshwater zooplankton, most of which are yet to be explored. There are about 1672 high altitude lakes (SAC 2009) in the state, most of which are set in some form of complexes like the Bhagajang Wetland Complex and Nagula Wetland Complex in Tawang District. The state also has a number of hot springs like Thingbu & Tsachu in Tawang, hot springs in Dirang, West Kameng District, and Kibitho & Walong in Anjaw District. There are records of zooplankton from these types of unique habitats from other parts of India as well as the world. For instance, Padhye & Kotov (2010) found two species of Cladocera in a hot water spring in the Western Ghats of India. Among all other organisms, the diaptomid Arctodiaptomus jurisovitchi, was the most widely distributed species recorded from high altitude mountain lakes at 4000–6000 m in the Khumbu Valley in the Nepal Himalaya (Manca et al. 1998).

Rotifera of Arunachal Pradesh

Rotifers are pseudocoelomate, multicellular, mostly microscopic organisms with size of about 40–250 µm. Though omnipresent, rotifers are primarily freshwater invertebrates, with about 95% of the species reported from freshwater habitats (Sharma 1996). At present, roughly a little over 2000 species of rotifers are known from the world and classified in to three main groups, the marine Seisonida (three species), the Monogononta (1,570 species), and the unique, exclusively parthenogenetic Bdelloidea with 461 clonal species (Segers 2007, 2008). Out of these, 419 species are known from India (Sharma & Sharma 2017a).

Though a majority of attempts on the systematics of Indian Rotifera are from the northeastern states (see Sharma & Sharma 2017a; Vanjare 2017), that from Arunachal Pradesh is very negligible. The first ever review of taxonomic studies on Indian Rotatoria (Sharma & Michael 1980) indicates no studies on rotifer fauna of Arunachal Pradesh till that time.

The report of three species of Lepadella, namely, L. acuminata, L. ovalis & L. patella by Sharma & Sharma (1987) was probably the earliest record of Rotifera from Arunachal Pradesh. While studying the distribution of lecanid rotifers in northeastern India, Sharma (1987a) recorded five species of Lecane, namely, L. bulla, L. closterocerca, L. leontina, L. luna & L. lunaris, from the state. Sharma (1987b) reported the occurrence of Anuraeopsis fissa from Arunachal Pradesh. While studying the zooplankton biodiversity of the amphibian habitats of Arunachal Pradesh, Sinha et al. (2002) recorded an additional 10 species of rotifers from eight districts of the state. At this time, altogether 19 species of rotifers are known from Arunachal Pradesh. Sharma & Sharma (2005), however, while studying the biodiversity of freshwater rotifers from northeastern India, reported the occurrence of 26 species of Rotifera in Arunachal Pradesh. But, no published information could be found for the remaining seven species, hence they are not considered.

Later, Lecane quadridentata and Synchaeta oblonga were added to the rotifer fauna of Arunachal Pradesh (Sharma 2008; Sharma & Sharma 2008). In the latest review on the diversity and distribution of Indian Brachionidae, Sharma & Sharma (2014a) mentioned the occurrence of 11 brachionid rotifers from Arunachal Pradesh including two new additions, namely, Keratella serrulata (Ehrenberg, 1838) & Notholca squamula (Műller, 1786). Recently, another 19 species were added to the rotifer fauna of the state by Barik et al. (2014), bringing the total number of Rotifera known from Arunachal Pradesh to 42 species. Reportedly, 76 species of rotifers are known from Arunachal Pradesh (Sharma & Sharma 2014b). This figure, however, is based on unpublished data and hence not incorporated. Recently, Sharma et al. (2017) recorded seven species of Rotifera from Tawang District of Arunachal Pradesh. Out of these, three species, namely, Euchlanis triquetra Ehrenberg, 1838, Polyartha vulgaris Carlin, 1843, & Trichocerca cylindrica (Imhof, 1891) are new additions to the state’s Rotifera list. Thus, the number of rotifer fauna of Arunachal Pradesh has been restricted to 45 species pending validation of the additional species.

Cladocera of Arunachal Pradesh

Cladocerans are small crustaceans in the range of 0.2–6 mm. They inhabit most types of continental fresh and saline water habitats, occurring more abundantly in both temporary and permanent stagnant waters (Forro et al. 2008). Nearly 700 species of cladocerans are known globally (Forro et al. 2008; Kotov 2013). Systematic studies on Indian Cladocera was initiated by Baird (1860) describing Daphnia newporti Baird, 1860 (Species inquirenda, Chatterjee et al. 2013) from Nagpur and surrounding areas. About 131 species of freshwater Cladocera are known from India (Chatterjee et al. 2013; Sharma & Sharma 2017b).

Within India, the cladoceran fauna of the northeast is the best known (Sharma & Sharma 1990, 2011). Studies on Cladocera of Arunachal Pradesh, however, is virtually lacking except for some scattered reports. The first record of Cladocera from Arunachal Pradesh was the report of Alona costata (Flavalona costata Sinev & Dumont, 2016) from the Kameng division (Biswas 1964). This, however, did not get reflected in the successive review (Sharma & Michael 1987), monograph (Michael & Sharma 1988), and checklist (Chaterjee et al. 2013) on Indian Cladocera. Flavalona costata (Flavalona is the new generic name of costata-group of Alona sensu lato (Sinev & Dumont, 2016)) is not included in the present list pending confirmation of its occurrence in the Indian subcontinent where an endemic form F. cheni is available. While studying the planktonic diversity of amphibian habitats, Sinha et al. (2002) recorded five species of Cladocera from Arunachal Pradesh. These are Bosmina longirostris (O.F. Muller, 1776) sensu lato, Alona guttata Sars, 1862, Moina micrura Kurz, 1874, Moinodaphnia macleayi (King, 1853) and Diaphanosoma sarsi Richard, 1894.

Gupta et al. (2013) recorded the occurrence of Sida crystallina (O.F. Müller, 1776) sensu lato in the Apatani Plateau of Arunachal Pradesh. Another chydorid, Flavlona cheni (Sinev, 1999), has been reported from Arunachal Pradesh (Sharma & Sharma 2013). Surprisingly, the latest checklist of Indian Cladocera (Chaterjee et al. 2013) did not mention the record of any Cladocera from Arunachal Pradesh. Seven more species of Cladocera have been reported (Barik et al. 2014) from the Tawang basin of the state. Out of these, Macrothrix laticornis (Jurine, 1820) sensu lato is not considered in this report as its record from India needs revalidation (Chatterjee et al. 2013). Recently, Sharma et al. (2017) recorded seven more cladocerans from Tawang, out of which the occurrence of two species, namely, Chydorus pubescens Sars, 1901 sensu lato & Eurycercus lamellatus (O.F. Müller, 1776) sensu lato, in India is doubtful (Chatterjee et al. 2013). These two species, however, are included in the present list as only a revision of the Indian population is required to validate the presence of one or more species of the genus. Thus, a total of 20 valid taxa of Cladocera are reported from Arunachal Pradesh.

Copepoda of Arunachal Pradesh

Copepods are the largest among the three major groups of zooplankton, ranging from 0.5–15 mm in size. These are claimed to be numerically the most abundant metazoans on earth and conservative estimates reveal that they may outnumber the abundance of insects (Schminke 2007). Approximately, 2814 species of freshwater copepods under 257 genera are known globally (Boxshall & Defaye 2008).

Scientific reports on Indian freshwater copepods began to appear with the works of Gurney (1906, 1907). Nearly 200 species of freshwater copepods are known from India (Reddy 2017). Investigations on copepod diversity of northeastern India/eastern Himalaya, however, is completely lacking (Battish 1992), though some recent studies on diaptomids are reported (Reddy 2013a,b). These include a description of Neodiaptomus prateek Reddy, 2013 from Assam and a record of the little known Tropodiaptomus signatus Kiefer, 1982 from Manipur. As such, our knowledge of Copepoda from the northeastern region, in general, and Arunachal Pradesh, in particular, is virtually nil. The only record of copepods from Arunachal Pradesh is that by Sinha et al. (2002) who reported three copepods, namely, Heliodiaptomus cinctus, Eucyclops speratus, and Mesocyclops leuckarti, from the amphibian habitats of the state. The latter two species, however, are not included in the present list as their occurrence in the Indian landmass awaits revalidation.

Discussion

Scrutiny of available literature clearly indicates that virtually no taxonomic studies sensu stricto have been done on the zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh. Whatever is known about the zooplankton diversity of the state is ancillary to other studies; some are mentioned in the faunal inventories of other states, some in review of a particular taxon or a particular region, some in routine EIA studies, while others in either feeding behaviour studies of zooplankton consumers or limnological studies. Thus, there is a complete lack of comprehensive and exclusive studies on zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh.

Nonetheless, collation of whatever scattered reports that are available in the public domain reveals that zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh comprises of 45 species of Rotifera under 20 genera and 13 families, 20 species of Cladocera under 16 genera and 9 families, and only one species of Copepoda. As apparent, copepods are the least studied group (Table 1, Fig. 2) as only one species under one genera under one family is known so far from the state. This is purely an under-representation of the zooplankton diversity of the state which is otherwise well known for its rich and unique biodiversity. The poor zooplankton diversity of Arunachal Pradesh is in contrast to the established fact that within the Indian landmass, the highest diversity of Rotifera (Sharma & Sharma 2014b) and Cladocera (Sharma & Sharma 2011) have been documented from the northeastern region, which also includes this state. Low level of exploration of zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh is perhaps due to the mostly inaccessible terrain of the state and lack of experts in and around the state. The record of nine rare species of rotifers from the aquatic biotopes of Arunachal Pradesh, however, is an indication of the unique nature of zooplankton fauna that is yet to be explored in detail; a thorough exploration may reveal many more elements of biological, ecological, and evolutionary interest. Prevalence of the wide range of climatic conditions from temperate to alpine conditions and the phenomenal range of habitats owing to the unique biogeographic positioning of the state supports this hypothesis.

Studies on organisms like zooplankton in these extreme aquatic habitats may throw light on their adaption, thus helping us to understand the evolution of cryptic species group complexes like those in Lecanidae, Brachionidae, and similar others in Cladocera as well as Copepoda. Further, zooplankton are considered as ‘beacons of climate change’ (Richardson 2008) and studying them from high altitude areas like those in Arunachal Pradesh may provide better insight into understanding climate change impacts. These are just the glimpses out of many such opportunities we are missing out by not exploring the zooplankton fauna of a unique and critical region like Arunachal Himalaya.

Table 1. Reported zooplankton fauna of Arunachal Pradesh

Taxa	District	Reference
Phylum: Rotifera
Class: Eurotatoria
Subclass: Monogononta Plate, 1889
Order: Flosculariaceae Harring, 1913
Family: Conochilidae Harring, 1913
Conochilus hippocrepis (Schrank, 1803)	E. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
Family: Testudinellidae Harring, 1913
Testudinella emarginula (Stenroos, 1898)*	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
T. patina (Hermann, 1783)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Family: Trochosphaeridae Harring, 1913
Filinia pejleri Hutchinson, 1964	E. Siang	Sinha et al. 2002
Order: Ploima Hudson & Gosse, 1886
Family: Brachionidae Ehrenberg, 1838
Anuraeopsis fissa (Gosse, 1851)	NA	Sharma 1987b
Brachionus calyciflorus Pallas, 1766	E. Siang	Sinha et al. 2002
B. ahlstromi Lindeman, 1939	Papumpare	Sinha et al. 2002
B. quadridentatus (Hermann, 1783)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Keratella serrulata (Ehrenberg, 1838)*	NA	Sharma & Sharma 2014
Notholca squamula (Műller, 1786)*	NA	Sharma & Sharma 2014
Platinous patulus (Muller, 1786)	E. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
Platyias quadricornis (Ehrenberg, 1832)	E. Kameng, E. Siang	Sinha et al. 2002
Family: Epiphanidae Harring, 1913
Epiphanes brachionus (Rousselet, 1901)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Family: Euchlanidae Ehrenberg, 1838
Euchlanis dilatata (Ehrenberg, 1832)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014; Sharma et al. 2017
E. triquetra Ehrenberg, 1838	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
Family: Lecanidae Remane, 1933
Lecane bulla bulla (Gosse, 1851)	NA
Tawang	Sharma 1987a;
Sharma et al. 2017
L. closterocerca (Schmarda, 1859)	NA	Sharma 1987a
L. curvicornis (Murray, 1913)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
L. flexilis (Gosse, 1886)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
L. inopinata Harring & Myers, 1926	E. Kameng, Papumpare, U. Subansiri, E. Siang	Sinha et al. 2002
L. leontina (Turner, 1892)	NA	Sharma 1987a
L. luna (O.F. Muller, 1776)	NA	Sharma, 1987a
L. lunaris (Ehrenberg, 1832)	NA
Tawang	Sharma 1987a;
Sharma et al. 2017
L. papuana (Murray, 1913)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014; Sharma et al. 2017
L. ploenensis (Voigt, 1902)	E. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
L. quadridentata (Ehrenberg, 1832)	NA	Sharma, 2008
L. signifera (Jennings, 1896)*	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Family: Lepadellidae Harring, 1913
Colurella obtusa (Gosse, 1886)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
C. sulcata (Stenroos, 1898)*	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Lepadella acuminata (Ehrenberg, 1834)	NA	Sharma & Sharma 1987
L. cf. nartiangensis (Sharma & Sharma, 1987)*	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
L. ovalis (Muller, 1786)	NA	Sharma & Sharma 1987
L. patella patella (Muller, 1773)	E. Siang (Sinha et al. 2002)	Sharma & Sharma 1987
L. quadricarinata (Stenroos, 1898)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
L. vandenbrandei (Gillard, 1952)*	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Family: Mytilinidae Harring, 1913
Mytilina ventralis (Ehrenberg, 1832)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Family: Notommatidae Hudson & Gosse, 1886
Cephalodella gibba (Ehrenberg, 1830)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Family: Scaridiidae Manfredi, 1927
Scaridium longicaudum (Muller, 1786)	E. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
Family: Synchaetidae Hudson & Gosse, 1886
Polyartha vulgaris Carlin, 1843	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
Synchaeta oblonga Ehrenberg, 1832	NA	Sharma & Sharma 2008
Family: Trichocercidae Harring, 1913
Trichocerca bidens (Lucks, 1912)*	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
T. cylindrica (Imhof, 1891)	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
T. porcellus (Gosse, 1886)	W. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
T. pusilla (Jennings, 1903)*	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
T. weberi (Jennings, 1903)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Class: Branchiopoda Latreille, 1817
Order: Cladocera Latreille, 1829
Family: Bosminidae Baird, 1845
Bosmina longirostris (O.F. Muller, 1776) s.lat.	E. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
Family: Chydoridae Dybowski & Grochowski, 1894
Subfamily: Aloninae Dybowski & Grochowski, 1894
Acroperus harpae (Baird, 1834) s.lat.	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
Alona affinis (Leydig, 1860) s.lat.	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
A. guttata Sars, 1862	E. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
A. quadrangularis (O.F. Müller, 1776) s.lat.	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
Flavalona cheni (Sinev, 1999)	NA	Sharma & Sharma 2013
Karualona karua (King, 1853) s.lat.	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Leberis diaphanus (King, 1853) s.lat.	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Subfamily: Chydorinae Dybowski & Grochowski, 1894
Alonella (Nanalonella) nana (Baird, 1843)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
C. parvus Daday, 1898	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
C. pubescens Sars, 1901 s.lat.	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
C. sphaericus (O.F. Müller, 1776) s.lat.	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
Family: Daphniidae Straus, 1820
Daphnia tibetana (Sars, 1903)	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Family: Macrotrichidae Norman & Brady, 1867
Macrothrix spinosa King, 1853	Tawang	Barik et al. 2014
Family: Moinidae Goulden, 1968
Moina micrura Kurz, 1874	E. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
Moinodaphnia macleayi (King, 1853)	E. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
Family: Eurycercidae Kurz, 1875 sensu Dumont & Silva-Briano, 1998
Eurycercus lamellatus (O.F. Müller, 1776) s.lat.	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
Family: Ilyocryptidae Smirnov, 1976 sensu Smirnov, 1992
Ilyocryptus spinifer Herrick, 1882	Tawang	Sharma et al. 2017
Family: Sididae Baird, 1850
Diaphanosoma sarsi Richard, 1894	E. Kameng	Sinha et al. 2002
Sida crystallina (O.F. Müller, 1776) s.lat.	L. Subansiri	Gupta et al. 2013
Class: Maxillopoda
Subclass: Copepoda Milne-Edwards, 1840
Order: Calanoida Sars, 1903
Family: Diaptomidae Baird, 1850
Heliodiaptomus cinctus (Gurney, 1907)	Papumpare, E. Siang	Sinha et al. 2002

References

Anderson, H.H. (1889). Notes on Indian Rotifers. Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 58: 345–358.

Baishya, A.K., S. Haque, P.J. Bora & N. Kalita (2001). Flora of Arunachal Pradesh – an overview. Arunachal Pradesh Forest News 19(1&2) : 1–25.

Baird, W. (1860). Description of the two new species of Entomostracous Crustacea from India. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 213–234.

Barik, S.K., D. Adhikari, H.N. Pandey, S.K. Mishra, R. Tiwary, P.P. Singh, E. Kharlyngdoh, M.K. Lyngdoh, B.R. Suchiang, I.M. Nonghuloo, B.K. Sharma, S.N. Ramanujam, P. Ramanujam, D. Paul, H. Siangbood, N. Narah, A. Upadhaya, S. Barua, S. Lynser, N. Thapa, R.R. Gogoi, S. Dutta, S.K. Padhee, A. Anjaneyulu, V. Chembolu, L.N.V. Satish, R. Panda, I. Ali, R. Pathak, K. Haridasan, A. Sarmah & P. Chakraborty (2014). Perspective plan for development of Tawang river basin. Cumulative Impact Assessment of Proposed Hydel Power Projects, Determination of Basin Carrying Capacity and Landscape Level Biodiversity Management Plan, Vol. I. Main Report. Submitted to Government of Arunachal Pradesh, North Eastern Hill University, Shillong, 901pp.

Battish, S.K. (1992). Freshwater Zooplankton of India. Oxford & IBH Publishing Co., New Delhi, 210pp.

Biswas, S. (1964). Five species of Daphniidae (Crustacea: Cladocera) from Simla Hills in India, with a new record of Alona costata Sars, from NEFA. Journal of Zoological Society of India 16: 92–98.

Borang, A. (2001). Mammalian fauna of Arunachal Pradesh (checklist and distribution in protected areas) – an overview. Arunachal Pradesh Forest News 19(1&2) : 43–82.

Boxshall, G.A. & D. Defaye (2008). Global diversity of copepods (Crustacea: Copepoda) in freshwater. Hydrobiologia 595: 195–207.

Chatterjee, T., A.A. Kotov, K. van Damme, S.V.A. Chandrasekhar & S. Padhye (2013). An annotated checklist of the Cladocera (Crustacea: Branchiopoda) from India. Zootaxa 3667(1): 1–89.

Dadhick, N. & M.M. Saxena (1999). Zooplankton as indicators of trophic status of some desert waters near Bikaner. Journal of Environmental Pollution 6: 251–254.

Forro, L., N.M. Korovchinsky, A.A. Kotov & A. Petrusek (2008). Global diversity of Cladocerans (Cladocera; Crustacea) in freshwater. Hydrobiologia 595: 177–184.

Gannon, J.E. & R.S. Stemberger (1978). Zooplankton (especially Crustaceans & Rotifers) as indicators of water quality. Transactions of the American Microscopical Society 97(1): 16–35.

Gupta, B.D., T. Das & D.N. Das (2013). A preliminary investigation on planktonic communities in the rice-fish system of Apatani Plateau, Arunachal Pradesh, pp143–152. In: Singh, K.K., K.C. Das & H. Lalruatsanga (eds.). Bioresources and Traditional Knowledge of northeast India. Mizo Post Graduate Science Society & Pachunga University College, Aizawl, India, 424pp.

Gurney, R. (1906). On some freshwater Entomostraca in the collection of the Indian Museum, Calcutta. The Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 2(7): 273–281.

Gurney, R. (1907). Further notes on Indian freshwater Entomostraca. Records of the Indian Museum 1: 21–33.

Kamei, R.G., D. San Mauro, D.J. Gower, I. van Bocxlaer, E. Sherratt, A. Thomas, S. Babu, F. Bossuyt, M. Wilkinson & S.D. Biju (2012). Discovery of a new family of amphibians from northeast India with ancient links to Africa. Proceedings of the Royal Society: Biological Sciences 279(1737): 2396–2401.

Kotov, A., L. Forró, N.M. Korovchinsky & A. Petrusek (2013). World checklist of freshwater Cladocera species. http://fada.biodiversity.be/group/show/17. Accessed on 17 July 2016.

Manca, M., D. Ruggiu, P. Panzani, A, Asioli, G. Mura & A.M. Nocentini (1998). Report on a collection of aquatic organisms from high mountain lakes in the Khumbu Valley (Nepalese Himalayas), 77–98. In: Lami, A. & G. Giussani (eds.). Limnology of High Altitude Lakes in the Mt. Everest Region (Nepal). Memorie dell Istituto Italiano di Idrobiologia 57.

Michael, R.G. & B.K. Sharma (1988). Fauna of India and adjacent countries, Indian Cladocera (Crustacea: Branchiopoda: Cladocera). Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta, 262pp.

Murray, J. (1906). Some Rotifera of the Sikkim Himalaya. Journal of Royal Microscopical Society, London 2(9): 637–644.

Myers, N., R.A. Mittermeier, C.A. Mittermeier, G.A.B. da Fonseca & J. Kent (2000). Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature 403: 853–858.

Olson, D.M. & E. Dinersterin (1998). The global 200: a representation approach to conserving the Earth’s most biologically valuable ecoregions. Conservation Biology 12: 502–515.

Padhye, S. & A.A. Kotov (2010) Cladocera (Crustacea: Branchiopoda) in Indian hotsprings. Invertebrate Zoology 7: 155–158.

Rao, R.R. (1994). Biodiversity in India: Floristic Aspects. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, Dehradun, 315pp.

Reddiah, K. (1964). The copepod fauna of Assam (India) 1. Neodiaptomus kamakhiae n. sp. from Kamarup District. Crustaceana 7: 161–166.

Reddy, Y.R. (2013a). Neodiaptomus prateek n. sp., a new freshwater copepod from Assam, India, with critical review of generic assignment of Neodiaptomus spp. and a note on diaptomid species richness (Calanoida: Diaptomidae). Journal of Crustacean Biology 33: 849–865.

Reddy, Y.R. (2013b). Tropodiaptomus signatus Kiefer 1982, a little known species from Loktak lake, Manipur State, India (Copepoda: Calanoida: Diaptomidae). Crustaceana 86: 1675–1688.

Reddy, Y.R. (2017). Crustacea: Copepoda — a note, pp243–245. In: Chandra, K., K.C. Gopi, D.V. Rao, K. Valarmathi & J.R.B. Alfred (eds.). Current Status on Freshwater Faunal Diversity of India – An Overview. Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, 624pp.

Richardson, A.J. (2008). In hot water: zooplankton and climate change. ICES Journal of Marine Science 65: 279–295.

SAC (2009). National Wetland Atlas: Arunachal Pradesh, SAC/RESA/AFEG/NWIA/ATLAS/06/2009. Space Applications Centre (ISRO), Ahmedabad, India, 98pp.

Sa–Ardrit, P., P. Pholpunthin, & H. Segers (2013). A checklist of the freshwater rotifer fauna of Thailand (Rotifera, Monogononta, Bdelloidea). Journal of Limnology 72(2): 361–375.

Schminke, H.K. (2007). Entomology for the copepodologist. Journal of Plankton Research 29: 149–162.

Segers, H. (2007). Annotated checklist of the rotifers (Phylum Rotifera), with notes on nomenclature, taxonomy and distribution. Zootaxa 1564: 1–104.

Segers, H. (2008). Global diversity of rotifers (Rotifera) in freshwater. Hydrobiologia 595: 49–59.

Sharma, B.K. & R.G. Michael (1980). Synopsis of taxonomic studies on Indian Rotatoria. Hydrobiologia 73: 229–236.

Sharma, B.K. & R.G. Michael (1987). Review of taxonomic studies on freshwater Cladocera from India with remarks on biogeography. Hydrobiologia 145: 29–33.

Sharma, B.K. & S. Sharma (1987). On species of genus Lepadella (Eurotatoria: Monogononta: Colurellidae) from northeastern India, with remarks on Indian taxa. Hydrobiologia 147: 15–22.

Sharma, B.K. & S. Sharma (1990). On the taxonomic status of some cladoceran taxa (Crustacea: Cladocera) from Central India. Revue d’Hydrobiologie Tropicale 23: 105–113.

Sharma, B.K. & S. Sharma (2005). Biodiversity of freshwater Rotifers (Rotifera: Eurotatoria) from north-eastern India. Zoosystematics & Evolution 81: 81–88.

Sharma, B.K. & S. Sharma (2011). Faunal diversity of Cladocera (Crustacea: Branchiopoda) of Nokrek Biosphere Reserve, Meghalaya, northeastern India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 3(10): 2120–212; https://doi.org/10.11609/JoTT.o2637.2120-7

Sharma, B.K. & S. Sharma (2014a). The diversity of Indian Brachionidae (Rotifera: Eurotatoria: Monogononta) and their distribution. Opuscula Zoologica Budapest 45(2): 165–180.

Sharma, B.K. & S. Sharma (2014b). Northeast India: an important region with a rich biodiversity of Rotifera. International Review of Hydrobiology 99: 20–37.

Sharma, B.K. & S. Sharma (2017a). Rotifera: Eurotatoria (Rotifers), pp93–113. In: Chandra, K., K.C. Gopi, D.V. Rao, K. Valarmathi & J.R.B. Alfred (eds.). Current Status on Freshwater Faunal Diversity of India – An Overview. Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, 624pp.

Sharma, B.K. & S. Sharma (2017b). Crustacea: Branchiopoda (Cladocera), pp199–223. In: Chandra, K., K.C. Gopi, D.V. Rao, K. Valarmathi & J.R.B. Alfred (eds.). Current Status on Freshwater Faunal Diversity of India – An Overview. Zoological Survey of India, Kolkata, 624pp.

Sharma, B.K. (1987a). The distribution of lecanid rotifers (Rotifera: Monogononta: Lecanidae) in northeastern lndia. Revue d’Hydrobiologie Tropicale 20: 101–105.

Sharma, B.K. (1987b). Rotifera: Eurotatoria: Monogonota (Freshwaters), pp323–340, In: Director, ZSI (ed.). State Fauna Series No. 1, Fauna of Orissa, Part 1. Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta, 340pp.

Sharma, B.K. (1996). Biodiversity of freshwater Rotifera in India – a status report. Proceedings of Zoological Society of Calcutta 49(2): 73–85.

Sharma, B.K. (1998). Rotifera, pp. 57–70, In: Alfred, J.R.B., A.K. Das, & A.K. Sanyal (eds.). Faunal Diversity of India. Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta, 497pp.

Sharma, S. (2008). Freshwater monogonont rotifers (Rotifera: Eurotatoria: Mononogonta), pp5–22. In: Fauna of Kopili Hydro Electric Project Site, Umrong-North Cachar Hills District, Assam and Jaintia Hills District, Meghalaya, Wetland Ecosystem Series 9. Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta, 91pp.

Sharma, S. & B.K. Sharma (2008). Zooplankton diversity in floodplain lakes of Assam. Records of Zoological Survey of India, Occassional Paper No. 290, 307pp.

Sharma, S. & B.K. Sharma (2013). Faunal Diversity of Aquatic Invertebrates of Deepor Beel (A Ramsar site), Assam, northeast India, Wetland Ecosystem Series 17. Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta, 227pp.

Sharma, S., J. Thilak & J. Chitra (2017). Zooplankton, pp15–28. In: Fauna of Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh. Zoological Survey of India, Calcutta, 268pp.

Sharma, V., M.S. Sharma, H. Malara, R. Sharma & B.S. Bafheal (2008). Trophic status and zooplankton diversity of lake Jaisamand in relation to physicochemical characteristics, pp490–495. Proceedings of Taal 2007 - the 12th World Lake Conference.

Sinev, A.Y. & H.J. Dumont (2016). Revision of the costata-group of Alona s. lato (Cladocera: Anomopoda: Chydoridae) confirms its generic status. European Journal of Taxonomy 223: 1–38.

Sinha, B. & M. Islam (2002). Seasonal variation in zooplankton population of two lentic bodies and Assam State Zoo Cum Botanical garden, Guwahati, Assam. Ecology, Environment & Conservation 8: 273–278.

Sinha, B., M.M. Borah & S.C. Bordoloi (2002). Planktonic biodiversity in the amphibian habitats of eight districts of Arunachal Pradesh, India, pp338–344, In: Kumar, A. (ed.). Ecology & Ethology of Aquatic Biota, Vol. II. Daya Publishing House, Delhi, India, 901pp.

Vanjare, A.I., C.A.V.N. Panikar & S.M. Padhye (2017). Species richness estimate of freshwater rotifers (Animalia: Rotifera) of western Maharashtra, India with comments on their distribution. Current Science 112(4): 695–698.