COMPARATIVE STUDIES ON THE DESTRIBUTION AND BIOLOGY OF CLADOCERA OCCURRING ON THE LITTORAL ZONE OF LAKES IN JAPAN

Littoral cladoceran species (Crustacea, Cladocera) distributed in the natural lakes of Japan were investigated. Samples were collected from (1) three lakes located on Nagano Prefecture, Lake Kizaki, Lake Nakatuna and Lake Aoki, and (2) the natural lakes widely distributed in the Japanese, Islands, from Hokkaido to Kyushu. The seasonal fluctuation of cladoceran species occurred in the littoral zone and the differences of cladoceran fauna between littoral zone and limnetic zone are analyzed using the former samples. Until now 85 species of Cladocera were detected from the lakes, ponds, swamps and rivers in the Japanese Islands. It was shown in this study that 55 species of 85 were found only in the littoral zone of lakes, ponds and temporary pools. And the distribution and biology of Japanese cladoceran species will be studied using the latter samples, because at the present time only a part of samples were observed under the microscope and identified to the species. I am going to observe the samples under the microscope from now on. The information on the species already identified was inputted into the personal computer as the database of littoral Cladocera.