Novas ocorrências de Lecane no plâncton de distintos ambientes da planície de inundação do alto rio Paraná (Brasil)

Abstract

New occurrences of Lecane in plankton in different environments of the upper Paraná river floodplain. The upper Paraná river floodplain possesses a great diversity of rotifers, with 288 planktonic taxa recorded. Surveys performed in this ecosystem since 1992 have shown that Lecanidae is the most abundant family, with 45 registered taxa. The main goal of the present study was to investigate the occurrence of this family in environments that have not yet been studied. Seven new occurrences of Lecane were recorded in plankton samples: L. bifurca, L. rhytida, L. subtilis, L. crepida, L. bulla styrax, L. obtusa, and L. thienemanne. Although the described taxa were found in plankton, this family is characterized by being typically non-planktonic. As such, exclusively taxonomic studies must explore the great habitat heterogeneity in this floodplain, e.g., the littoral region and the extensive areas colonized by aquatic macrophytes, aiming to expand knowledge on the diversity of this family in the upper Paraná river floodplain