Cladocera communities in surface sediments from 31 lakes in Hungary were analysed to assess the impacts of land use on the aquatic systems. We evaluated the alpha and beta diversity metrics, with land use classification types based on the Corine Land Cover. Physical and water chemistry parameters were analysed using standardised procedures. Using redundancy analysis (RDA), total phosphorus (TP) was identified as the key driver of Cladocera composition and distribution. End-member mixing analysis (EMMA) revealed distinctive ecological patterns in Cladocera assemblages across land use types. Our results demonstrate that agriculture and urbanisation contribute to the associated degradation of the lakes and changes in trophic states. Wetlands, forests, and open waters play a critical role as buffer zones in mitigating anthropogenic effects, with Cladocera community composition mirroring the nutrient conditions of the lakes.

Climate change and global warming are increasingly affecting freshwater bodies both locally and globally, resulting in fluctuating water levels. Understanding how Cladocera communities are organized across different water body types is important for ecological assessment and conservation. In this study, we compared Cladocera assemblages between different wetland types with different water body types and evaluated the role of physicochemical characteristics and spatial structuring in shaping the community distribution patterns. Six water bodies were selected for our study; each contained three sampling points spaced at least 75–100 m apart. Cladocera specimens in the filtrate samples were identified at the species level. Homogeneity of multivariate dispersions (PERMDISP) and PCA analysis of site-related spatial effects were used to test differences in community composition. Based on previous studies and results, we concluded that the water body type significantly influenced the composition of Cladocera communities among the wetlands investigated.