In order to investigate the adaptation of Brachionus calyciflorus occurred in winter in Lake Tingtang to water temperature, we studied the effects of temperature (12℃, 16℃, 20℃ and 24℃) and Scenedesmus obliquus density (1.0×10⁶, 3.0×10⁶ and 5.0×10⁶ cells/mL) on life table demographic parameters including life expectancy at hatching, generation time, average lifespan, gross reproductive rate, net reproductive rate and intrinsic rate of population increase of B. calyciflorus. The results showed that at 1.0×10⁶ cells/mL of Scenedesmus, the life expectancy at hatching, the generation time and the average lifespan of the rotifers at 12℃ were all longer than those at 16℃, 20℃ and 24℃, and the rise of food level did not changed their reaction norms to increasing temperature, except that at 5.0×10⁶ cells/mL of Scenedesmus, the generation time of the rotifers at 20℃ was longer than that at 16℃. At 1.0×10⁶ cells/mL of Scenedesmus, the gross reproductive rate of the rotifers at 16℃ was higher than that at 24℃, but both of them were similar to those at 12℃ and 20℃. At 3.0×10⁶ and 5.0×10⁶ cells/mL of Scenedesmus, the gross reproductive rate of the rotifers was similar among the four temperatures (P > 0.05). At 1.0×10⁶ and 5.0×10⁶ cells/mL of Scenedesmus, the net reproductive rate of the rotifers at 16℃ was higher than that at 12℃, 20℃ and 24℃; the intrinsic rate of population increase at 16℃ was the highest, but that at 12℃ the lowest. At 3.0×10⁶ cells/mL of Scenedesmus, the gross reproductive rate of the rotifers was similar among the four temperatures (P > 0.05); the intrinsic rate of population increase at 16℃ and 24℃ was the highest, but that at 12℃ the lowest. At each of the temperatures, food level did not affect all the life table demographic parameters (P > 0.05), except that at 24℃ food level affected significantly the net reproductive rate and the intrinsic rate of population increase (P < 0.05). Two-way ANOVA showed that temperature affected significantly nearly all the life table demographic parameters (P < 0.05), except the gross reproductive rate (P > 0.05). However, food level, and the interaction between food level and temperature did not affect all the life table demographic parameters (P > 0.05). Both the life expectancy at hatching and the average lifespan were longer at 12℃ than those at 16℃, 20℃ and 24℃. The generation time was the longest at 12℃, but the shortest at both 16℃ and 24℃. The net reproductive rate was higher at 16℃ than that at 12℃, 20℃ and 25℃. The intrinsic rate of population increase was the lowest at 12℃, the highest at 16℃, and similar at 20℃ and 24℃. B. calyciflorus occurred in winter in Lake Tingtang has the highest fitness at 16℃, which might be one of the important reasons for its maximal population density occurring at mid-March when the water temperature is 17℃.