BIODIVERSITAS ISSN: 1412-033X Volume 24, Number 3, March 2023 E-ISSN: 2085-4722 Pages: 1833-1844 DOI: 10.13057/biodiv/d240359 Temporal and spatial distribution of plankton community in three Indonesian salt pond environments RINI SUSILOWATI 1,♥ , DIETRIECH G. BENGEN 2 , MAJARIANA KRISANTI 3 , HEDI INDRA JANUAR 4 , IMAN RUSMANA 5 1 Graduate School of Marine Sciences, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences, Institut Pertanian Bogor. Jl. Rasamala, Kampus IPB Dramaga, Bogor 16680, West Java, Indonesia. Tel.: +62-251-622908, Fax.: +62-251-622907,  email: rini.susilowati@brin.go.id 2 Department of Marine Science and Technology, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences, Institut Pertanian Bogor. Jl. Rasamala, Kampus IPB Dramaga, Bogor 16680, West Java, Indonesia 3 Program of Conservation Biology, Department of Aquatic Resources Management, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences, Institut Pertanian Bogor. Jl. Rasamala, Kampus IPB Dramaga, Bogor 16680, West Java, Indonesia 4 Ecology and Ethnobiology Research Center, National Research and Innovation Agency. Jl. Raya Jakarta-Bogor Km. 46, Cibinong, Bogor 16911, West Java, Indonesia 5 Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Institut Pertanian Bogor. Jl. Meranti, Kampus IPB Dramaga, Bogor 16680, West Java, Indonesia Manuscript received: 24 January 2023. Revision accepted: 27 March 2023. Abstract. Susilowati R, Bengen DG, Krisanti M, Januar HI, Rusmana I. 2023. Temporal and spatial distribution of plankton community in three Indonesian salt pond environments. Biodiversitas 24: 1833-1844. Plankton is a biological community that plays an important role in biological systems during salt crystallization. The correlation between plankton communities and water quality parameters was examined in three salt pond center areas (Brebes, Tuban, and Sampang). The values of nutrient content in Brebes were higher compared to other locations, with phosphate (5.38-5.66 mg/L), nitrate (0.17-0.74 mg/L), nitrite (0.07-0.1 mg/L), and total organic matter (0.03- 0.07 mg/L). Based on multivariate analysis, there was no significant difference in the abundance of plankton among the three salt pond locations. Furthermore, Spearman's correlation test indicated a negative correlation (Sig<0.05) between salinity and the abundance and diversity of plankton. The highest abundance of phytoplankton (127,721±11.227 cells/L) and zooplankton (3,339±391 idvs/L) was found in the Brebes. Phytoplankton from the genera Bacillarophyceae Bacillarophyceae was dominant in the three locations. In Brebes and Sampang, the dominant classes of zooplankton were Litostomatea, whereas, Oligotrichea was dominant in Tuban, The phytoplankton community structure has a diversity index (H') of 0.91-2.05, and Evenness index (E) ranging from 0.12-0.20, and a dominance index (C) showing a level of 0.14-0.34. At the same time, the zooplankton community has a diversity index (H') of 0.81- 1.64, an evenness index (E) that has ranged from 0.18-0.22, and a dominance index (C) that has ranged from 0.03-0.20. The research examines plankton communities in varying salinity and their response to environmental changes. This data is useful for managing salt pond productivity, vital for sustainable and high-quality salt production. Keywords: Phytoplankton, salt ponds, water quality, zooplankton INTRODUCTION Traditional salt ponds are semi-enclosed coastal ecosystems that receive seawater and gradually evaporate, resulting in a salinity gradient from reservoir areas (low salinity) to crystallization ponds (high salinity). Apart from being a source of salt production, salt ponds are also one of the integrated coastal environments with a diverse range of microorganisms and constant salinity (Martínez et al. 2022). According to Rodrigues et al. (2011), the salt pond ecosystem has two ecological cycles, including periods of salt production and non-production. Generally, the salt pond ecosystem has a biological community similar to coastal ecosystems during non-salt production periods. However, the ecosystem develops distinct physicochemical and biological characteristics once salt production begins due to the salinity gradient (Wasserman et al. 2022). Salt pond habitats are typically heterogeneous based on salinity, which strongly influences organism community dynamics, chemical compositions, and genetic structures (Soares et al. 2018). Seawater exchanges, hydrology, salinity, and nutrients influence the development of biological communities in salt pond environments (Soares et al. 2018). Furthermore, according to Rodrigues et al. (2011), the biological community living in salt water is an important ecosystem for salt production. They are valuable in salt production using biological systems due to their functions to increase evaporation, reduce organic matter, and improve salt quality (Asencio 2013). According to Davis (2000), phytoplankton is one of the biological communities in salt ponds that contributes to salt crystallization. Phytoplanktonic organisms influence the salt quality and play an ecological role in salt pond environments (Costa et al. 2015). Davis (2009) stated that the characteristics of biological ecosystems are responsible for the quality of salt products. Several studies on plankton diversity and abundance in salt lakes and salt ponds have been conducted around the world in recent decades, including phytoplankton community structure in Kenyan salt ponds