(Georgia Institute of Technology, 2010-12-20)
Ahmed, Tamanna
Reservoirs supply most of Georgia s drinking water, and plankton dynamics can greatly influence the water quality of these reservoirs. Therefore, understanding the dynamics of zooplankton as well as phytoplankton is necessary. Unlike reservoirs in the northern United States, zooplankton dynamics in reservoirs in the South remain largely uncharacterized. Samples were collected from the Clayton County Water Authority reservoirs to study correlations between zooplankton taxa distribution and environmental variables. Population count data has demonstrated that the zooplankton dynamics in southern lakes vary from the dynamics typically seen in northern lakes. While temperature noticeably shaped seasonal densities in some species, other species had variable dynamics and seemed to not be affected by this environmental factor or other taxa of zooplankton, suggesting additional factors may regulate population composition and abundance.