Spatial distribution of zooplankton in a cascade system of Pomeranian dam reservoirs (Hajka, Rosnowo), northern Poland

The structure of the zooplankton community and its spatial distribution were examined in two stratified rheolimnic Pomeranian reservoirs, Rosnowski (7 sampling sites) and Hajka (4 sampling sites), in July 1999. These reservoirs are part of the cascade system situated on the Radew River in northern Poland. In the Rosnowski reservoir 34 species of zooplankton were identified and in Hajka, 32. The two dominant species of rotifers in both reservoirs were Keratella cochlearis f. tecta and Polyarthra vulgaris. The dominant copepod and cladoceran species in both reservoirs were Mesocyclops leuckarti and Daphnia cucullata, respectively. Along the longitudinal axis of both reservoirs, rotifers were the dominant group at all sampling sites, except for the hypolimnion layer in both reservoirs and the metalimnion layer in Hajka reservoir at site H1. This initial study was undertaken in order to determine the spatial distribution of rotifer, copepod and cladoceran communities in riverine reservoirs built in the cascade system.