The hard corals (Scleractinia) of India: A revised checklist

1651-1660Persistence of coral reefs is threatened globally due to intensified human activities and ongoing climate change. Coral reefs in India are also suffering from acute stress events like mass coral bleaching and coastal development activities, which has led some of the coral species on the verge of local extinction. Here, we present a revised checklist of scleractinian corals from the major Indian reefs, namely Gulf of Kachchh (GoK), Lakshadweep Islands (LI), Gulf of Mannar Marine Biosphere Reserve (GoMBR), and Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI), representing a total of 585 species belonging to 108 genera and 23 families. Maximum species richness is recorded in the ANI (523 species of 95 genera belonging to 23 families), followed by the GoMBR (169 species belonging to 46 genera and 16 families), the LI (165 species from 54 genera and 17 families), and GoK (76 species of 30 genera and 12 families). Apart from these reefs, we also enlisted scleractinian fauna from other small reefs across the West coast of India, namely the Malvan Marine Sanctuary, Angria bank, Grande Island, and Netrani Island

First record of patchy coral reef off Terekhol, North Goa, India

This study reports the first time record of the patchy coral reef (~ 2 km2) of Terekhol in North Goa, the western coast of India during January – February 2020. There were more than 07 genera/species of hard corals in the reef and is dominated by a reef building Turbinaria mesenterina (Dendrophylliidae), which is considered as a sediment tolerant coral species. A total of 25 fish species were counted and the major species recorded were Chromis viridis, Chromis sp., Dascyllus sp., Abudefduf saxatilis, Abudefduf bengalensis, Acanthurus blochii, Acanthurus nigroris, Acanthurus sp., and Odonus niger that contributed 80 % of the total fish community. The documentation and record of the reef area could give identity to the ecosystem in the spatial platform and the conservation efforts can be planned for the reef by limiting the anthropogenic activities in and around the ecosystem

Оценка эндоскопической картины и микробного пейзажа бронхиального дерева при хронических неспецифических заболеваниях легких у детей

БРОНХОСКОПИЯДЕТИ, СЛУЖБЫ ОХРАНЫ ЗДОРОВЬЯЛЕГКИХ БОЛЕЗНИ ОБСТРУКТИВНЫ

Age related histological and histochemical studies on the testis of Aseel and Vanaraja breeds of poultry

Birds (10) of 2 age group, viz. 5 months (grower) and 13 months (adult) of Aseel and Vanaraja breeds of poultry were used. The thickness of tunica albuginea, maximum and minimum diameter of seminiferous tubules, diameter of primary spermatocytes and number of sustentacular cells or Sertoli cells per seminiferous tubule were significantly higher in growers and adults of Vanaraja than Aseel whereas, number of interstitial cells per field were significantly higher in growers and adults of Aseel than Vanaraja. The density of connective tissue fibers, PAS activity and AB-PAS activity was more in both groups of Vanaraja than Aseel

INCIDENCE AND CLINICO-PATHOLOGICAL STUDIES ON CANINE BABESIOSIS IN AND AROUND AKOLA, MAHARASHTRA, INDIA

Canine babesiosis is a tick-borne hemoprotozoan disease of canines. Two main infective agents of the disease are intra-erythrocytic i.e. Babesia vogeli and Babesia gibsoni. In the present study, a total of 145 numbers of dogs (90 male and 55 female) in and around Akola, Maharashtra were screened from January 2022 to September 2022 for Babesiosis and 18 animals (12.41%) were found clinically and cytologically positive. The incidence of babesiosis was higher in females (11/145, 7.58%) than in males (07/ 145, 4.83%). Out of 18 positive samples, 14 (9.65%) and 4 (2.75%) animals were found infected with small and large forms of Babesia spp., respectively. Further small form was confirmed as B. gibsoni and the large form was confirmed as B. vogeli by employing PCR assay. All the cases with babesiosis revealed moderate to severe regenerative anemia with occasional basophilic stippling and Howell jolly bodies with hemoglobin ranging from 7 to 11 g/dL. Characteristic clinical features were observed among 18 positive clinical cases. The present investigation reports the incidence of B. vogeli and B. gibsoni in canines in and around Akola of Maharashtra state of India

Megafaunal Community Structure of Andaman Seamounts Including the Back-Arc Basin – A Quantitative Exploration from the Indian Ocean

Species rich benthic communities have been reported from some seamounts, predominantly from the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but the fauna and habitats on Indian Ocean seamounts are still poorly known. This study focuses on two seamounts, a submarine volcano (cratered seamount – CSM) and a non-volcano (SM2) in the Andaman Back–arc Basin (ABB), and the basin itself. The main purpose was to explore and generate regional biodiversity data from summit and flank (upper slope) of the Andaman seamounts for comparison with other seamounts worldwide. We also investigated how substratum types affect the megafaunal community structure along the ABB. Underwater video recordings from TeleVision guided Gripper (TVG) lowerings were used to describe the benthic community structure along the ABB and both seamounts. We found 13 varieties of substratum in the study area. The CSM has hard substratum, such as boulders and cobbles, whereas the SM2 was dominated by cobbles and fine sediment. The highest abundance of megabenthic communities was recorded on the flank of the CSM. Species richness and diversity were higher at the flank of the CSM than other are of ABB. Non-metric multi-dimensional scaling (nMDS) analysis of substratum types showed 50% similarity between the flanks of both seamounts, because both sites have a component of cobbles mixed with fine sediments in their substratum. Further, nMDS of faunal abundance revealed two groups, each restricted to one of the seamounts, suggesting faunal distinctness between them. The sessile fauna corals and poriferans showed a significant positive relation with cobbles and fine sediments substratum, while the mobile categories echinoderms and arthropods showed a significant positive relation with fine sediments only

Recruitment of mud clam Polymesoda erosa (Solander, 1876) in a mangrove habitat of Chorao island, Goa

Habitat-specific settlement success results either from active habitat selection or differential mortality after non-selective settlement. The mud clam Polymesoda erosa (Solander, 1876) is an ecologically and economically important benthic invertebrate with high abundance in the mangrove forests of Chorao Island, Goa, India. A one-year study (Jul 2004-Jul 2005) was conducted to characterize the patterns of post-larval settlement and survival of P. erosa in the mangrove habitat. The mean density of settling post-larvae was 28 no.m-2 with a majority of settlers during Sept 04. The density of adult clams in the landward zone ranged from 7-12 no.m-2 (mean: 9 ± 6 sd; n=122). In the seaward region, adults were completely absent at the low tide level. Higher densities of juveniles observed at the low- and mid-tide levels were assumed to be due to frequent inundation which allowed the young individuals to feed adequately and attain the critical sizes at which vulnerability to physical and biological constraints is substantially reduced, whereas, at high-tide level, increased desiccation may account for the mortality of settlers. It is speculated that initially the settlers settle according to the hydrodynamic conditions for sedimentation; however, adult survival is affected by their recruitment in a suitable habitat (e.g. substrates near Avicennia sp.). Thus, habitat dependent viability during the post-settlement phase could be the best explanation for the non-random, patchy distribution of P. erosa observed in the Chorao mangrove swamp.Um assentamento larval bem sucedido resulta da seleção ativa do habitat pelas larvas ou da mortalidade diferencial destas após o assentamento não seletivo. Nos manguezais da ilha Chorao, Goa, India, a ostra do lodo Polymesoda erosa (Solander, 1876) é um invertebrado muito abundante e de importância econômica. O presente trabalho, realizado durante um ano (julho de 2004 a julho de 2005), visou caracterizar os padrões de assentamento pós-larval e a sobrevivência de P. erosa no ambiente do mangue. Os resultados mostraram que a densidade de larvas pós-assentadas foi de 28 indiv.m-2, com a maioria dos assentamentos ocorrendo em setembro de 2004. A densidade de adultos fixados no lado terrestre variou de 7 a 12 indiv.m-2 (média: 9 ± 6 dp; n = 122). Na região voltada ao mar, os adultos estiveram ausentes no nível da maré baixa. As altas densidades de juvenis observadas nos níveis de maré baixa e média estão provavelmente relacionadas à inundação frequente da área, o que permite aos indivíduos jovens alimentarem-se adequadamente e atingirem os tamanhos críticos em que a vulnerabilidade aos estresses físicos e biológicos são substancialmente reduzidos. Além disso, na maré alta, o aumento da dissecação pode favorecer a mortalidade dos indivíduos recém-assentados. É lançada a hipótese de que o assentamento ocorre inicialmente devido às condições hidrodinâmicas da sedimentação, mas a sobrevivência do adulto é afetada pelo recrutamento em ambiente favorável (p. ex., em substratos próximos a Avicenia sp.). Desta forma, a viabilidade do habitat durante o período pós-assentamento pode ser a melhor explicação para a distribuição não randômica, em manchas, observada para P. erosa no manguezal da ilha Chorao

Cross-cutting principles for planetary health education

Since the 2015 launch of the Rockefeller Foundation Lancet Commission on planetary health,1 an enormous groundswell of interest in planetary health education has emerged across many disciplines, institutions, and geographical regions. Advancing these global efforts in planetary health education will equip the next generation of scholars to address crucial questions in this emerging field and support the development of a community of practice. To provide a foundation for the growing interest and efforts in this field, the Planetary Health Alliance has facilitated the first attempt to create a set of principles for planetary health education that intersect education at all levels, across all scales, and in all regions of the world—ie, a set of cross-cutting principles

Is the meiofauna a good indicator for climate change and anthropogenic impacts?

Our planet is changing, and one of the most pressing challenges facing the scientific community revolves around understanding how ecological communities respond to global changes. From coastal to deep-sea ecosystems, ecologists are exploring new areas of research to find model organisms that help predict the future of life on our planet. Among the different categories of organisms, meiofauna offer several advantages for the study of marine benthic ecosystems. This paper reviews the advances in the study of meiofauna with regard to climate change and anthropogenic impacts. Four taxonomic groups are valuable for predicting global changes: foraminifers (especially calcareous forms), nematodes, copepods and ostracods. Environmental variables are fundamental in the interpretation of meiofaunal patterns and multistressor experiments are more informative than single stressor ones, revealing complex ecological and biological interactions. Global change has a general negative effect on meiofauna, with important consequences on benthic food webs. However, some meiofaunal species can be favoured by the extreme conditions induced by global change, as they can exhibit remarkable physiological adaptations. This review highlights the need to incorporate studies on taxonomy, genetics and function of meiofaunal taxa into global change impact research