Biodiversity of Cladocera (Crustacea: Branchiopoda) in a Natural Freshwater Mountain Lake in Arunachal Pradesh, India

Abstract

Seventeen species of Cladocera belonging to 13 genera under seven families are reported from Ganga Lake, a natural mountain lake located within the Itanagar Wildlife Sanctuary near the capital city of Itanagar. This is the first species-level report of Cladocera from the lake which is characterised by mainly cosmopolitan and circumtropical elements including one Oriental endemics, Flavalona cheni. The necessity of documenting Cladocera fauna of the lake in view of its usage for fish farming and the anthropogenic pressure exerted by virtue of its location near a capital city is highlighted.