Seasonal and Spatial Variability of the Microcrustacean Community in Lake Texoma, Texas and Oklahoma

Twenty-eight species of zooplankton were identified from Lake Texoma. Seasonal density of the overall microcrustacean community and seasonal cycles of individual species were compared with northern populations and any available literature from the Southwest. Cycles of occurrence and abundance were similar to those observed in northern populations but tended to occur earlier in the year due to higher temperatures. Spatial distributions within the reservoir were heavily influenced by nutrient and salt input from the Red River, which resulted in dense populations in the Red River Arm. In addition, during the summer, the microcrustacean community was restricted to the epilimnion due to anoxic conditions in the hypolimnion of the reservoir.