Abstract

The Benthic invertebrates such as nymphs of stonefly, mayfly, caddisfly larvae, snails, mussels, crustaceans, rat-tailed maggot, etc., convert and transport nutrients from one part of the water body to another, influencing nutrient cycling. In the present study, phytobenthos comprised of three major groups namely Bacillariophyceae, Chlorophyceae, Myxophyceae, whereas zoobenthos comprised of eleven major groups namely Protozoa, Rotifera Cladocera, Ostracoda, Coleoptera, Diptera, Ephemeroptera, Hemiptera, Trichoptera, Gastropoda and Odonata. The study revealed that zoobenthos were more dominant than phytobenthos. Among zoobenthos, Dipterans were found to be abundant followed by Cladocerans and least were Trichopterans, whereas among phytobenthos Bacillariophyceae was found to be most dominant followed by Chlorophyceae and Myxophyceae. The negative but significant correlation between zoobenthos and phytobenthos in all selected water bodies during study indicated grazing of former on latter proving top down control in these lentic ecosystem.

Keywords: Benthos; Phytobenthos; Zoobenthos; Lentic waterbodies