Abstract:
Distribution and abundance of zooplankton along the Eastern Coast of Thailand were investigated in March 2004 (dry season) and August 2004 (wet season). Fifteen phylum belonging to 41 groups of zooplankton were found. The abundance of zooplankton was greater in the dry season than that in wet season. Arthropoda was the dominant taxon found in the dry season, followed by Chordata and Mollusca respectively. In the wet season, the dominant phylum of zooplankton found were Protozoa, followed by Chordata and Arthropoda, respectively. The copepods found in the dry season were 39 species of 4 suborder such as Calanoida, Cyclopoida, Harpacticoida and Poecilostomatoida. Paracalanus crassirostris, Oithona aruensis, Bestiolina similis and Oithona simplex were dominant species in the dry seasons. While Acartia plumosa, Oithona aruensis, Paracalanus crassirostris and Euterpina acutifrons were mostly found in the wet season.In addition, a new species of copepod, Pseudodiaptomus sp. was found in the wet season from the Prasae River Estuary, Rayong Province.