Impacts of the exceptionally high temperature and salinity on species composition, abundance, biomass and diversity of zooplankton communities were examined in the central Arabian (Persian) Gulf in late winter and summer of 2010 and 2011. Remarkably diverse zooplankton assemblages were characterized with small calanoids (Paracalanus aculeatus and Temora longicornis), cyclopoids (Oithona nana, Oithona plumifera, Corycaeus flaccus and Corycaeus lautus) and harpacticoids (Euterpina acutifrons) with relatively low abundance and biomass. Overall, the low biomass and abundance were not significantly associated with phytoplankton, whereas zooplankton faunal similarities were significantly correlated with water properties measured as environmental distances across sampling sites. Spatially, the lowest abundance, biomass and diversity occurred in extremely saline nearshore waters off the western Qatar peninsula, whereas the highest abundance, biomass and diversity consistently appeared at northeast offshore locations that periodically encounter nutrient and species-rich but low-salinity water entering the Arabian Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz. Numerically, the relative dominance of calanoids along with lower salinity and high chlorophyll-a concentration in the northeast Arabian Gulf implies that zooplankton populations are likely replenished by the seasonal (summer) transport of species from the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, which may explain partly the high variations of species richness and zooplankton abundance previously reported in the region. Given increasing evidence of climate-change induced responses of zooplankton, our findings suggest that in the semi-closed Arabian Gulf resident populations stressed by the harsh environment are likely to continue to be sustained only by invading water masses during the summer.

2010 年和 2011 年冬末和夏季，在阿拉伯（波斯）湾中部研究了异常高温和盐度对浮游动物群落的物种组成、丰度、生物量和多样性的影响。Paracalanus aculeatus和Temora longicornis）、圆角纲（Oithona nana、Oithona plumifera、Corycaeus flaccus 和 Corycaeus lautus）和 harpacticoids（Euterpina acutifrons) 的丰度和生物量相对较低。总体而言，低生物量和丰度与浮游植物没有显着相关性，而浮游动物群落的相似性与作为跨采样点的环境距离测量的水特性显着相关。在空间上，最低丰度、生物量和多样性发生在卡塔尔半岛西部近海的极咸水近岸水域，而最高丰度、生物量和多样性始终出现在东北近海位置，这些位置周期性地遇到营养物质和物种丰富但盐度低的水进入阿拉伯湾经霍尔木兹海峡。在数字上，calanoids的具有较低的盐度和高叶绿素沿相对优势一个阿拉伯湾东北部的集中意味着浮游动物种群很可能通过来自阿曼湾和阿拉伯海的物种的季节性（夏季）运输得到补充，这可能部分解释了该地区先前报道的物种丰富度和浮游动物丰度的高度变化. 鉴于越来越多的证据表明气候变化引起浮游动物的反应，我们的研究结果表明，在半封闭的阿拉伯湾，受恶劣环境压力的居民种群可能仅通过夏季入侵水团继续维持。