Seasonal Trend of Body Protein and Growth of Chironomid Larvae

Chironomid midges technically named blood worms are known as useful live food for higher aquatic organism like fish. Present study deals with the seasonal variations of total body protein and the growth rates of chironomid larvae occurring in two water bodies of West Bengal, India. Analysis of the data revealed that the amount of body protein and the growth rate of larvae are higher during summer and monsoon. Comparative analysis of the data, indicates that the entire phenomenon depends on nutrient cycle of the water bodies which is influenced by a number of factors such as water temperature, alkalinity and soil organic carbon.