A review on the distribution of Phylum Phoronida from India with recent observations on <em>Phoronis psammophila</em>

1941-1943Phoronida is one of the smallest and least familiar phyla. A brief review on the distribution of Phylum Phoronida from India along with current observations on Phoronis psammophila is presented in this article. The aim of the study is to document the records of phoronids from Indian coast

Mass mortality of macrobenthos in a biodiverse rocky beach- Impact of a minor oil spill

1098-1100A field survey was carried immediately post an accidental oil spill at rocky intertidal zone of Uran. Mass mortality of macrobenthos was observed at spillage site whereas reference site harboured diverse and live macrobenthic population. This study aims to highlight the importance of early monitoring of impacted and reference locations for determining the magnitude of damage caused to the environment due to any kind of spill and in turn acquire baseline information for tracing future path of recovery

Polychaete Community of a Marine Protected Area along the West Coast of India-Prior and Post the Tropical Cyclone, Phyan.

Tropical cyclones are extreme random meteorological events that can have profound implications to coastal biodiversities. Given that the frequency, intensity and duration of these events are poised to increase due to the global climate change, understanding the ecological impacts of such erratic occurrences becomes imperative to devise better management strategies. The eventful passage of the tropical cyclone, Phyan, along the northwestern coast of India in November 2009, coupled with the availability of historical data presented a rare opportunity to elucidate the consequences on the polychaete assemblages of the Malvan Marine Sanctuary and their subsequent recovery. This was achieved by comparison of the pre- and post-Phyan seasonal data from four different sites in and around the Sanctuary. MDS analyses and polychaete community parameters suggested conspicuous cyclone related effects on the polychaete community characteristics in the three outer stations off Malvan, whereas the relatively protected bay station remained more or less unscathed. Impacts, attributable to the cyclone apart from seasonal variations, included changes in polychaete composition, reductions in total polychaete density, species diversity, evenness and functional groups. Dominance of the opportunistic polychaete, Paraprionospiopatiens was all pervasive just after Phyan, resulting in poor diversity and evenness values. In the outer stations, diverse feeding modes present prior to the cyclone were replaced by microphagous feeders post the disturbance. However, the study also observed complete recovery as substantiated by the improvement inpolychaete density, diversity indices and re-instatement of multiple feeding guilds in affected areas. This resilience of the coastal waters off Malvan is attributed to its marine protected status, implying that reduced human interference aided rapid revival of damaged ecosystems

Canonical correspondence analyses triplot of 17 most abundant polychaete species and 7 explanatory variables at the four stations during the 6 sampling occasions; Premonsoon 2007, Postmonsoon 2007, Phyan 2009, Monsoon 2011, Postmonsoon 2011 and Premonsoon 2012.

<p>●:stations; →:environmental variables; Sand; Silt; Clay; C_org; Salinity; DO; pH; Δ:Polychaete species;; <i>Agl dib</i>: <i>Aglaophamusdibranchis</i>; <i>Eun pen</i>: <i>Eunice pennata</i>; <i>Nin sp</i>: <i>Ninoe</i>sp; <i>Aon cir</i>: <i>Aonidellacirrobranchiata</i>; <i>Par</i>sp: <i>Paraprionospio</i>sp; <i>Par pat</i>: <i>Paraprionospiopatiens</i>; <i>Het</i> sp: <i>Heterospio</i>sp; <i>Mag cin</i>: <i>Magelonacincta</i>; <i>Cir</i>sp: <i>Cirratulus</i>sp.; <i>Scouni</i>: <i>Scoloplosuniramus</i>; <i>Sco arm</i>: <i>Scoloplos armiger</i>; <i>Cos coa</i>: <i>Cossuracoasta</i>; <i>Cap</i>: Capitellidae (gen. sp.); <i>Mal</i>: Maldanidae (gen. sp.); <i>Stescu</i>: <i>Sternaspisscutata</i>; <i>Sab lon</i>: <i>Sabellastarte longa</i>; <i>Nov ban</i>: <i>Novafabriciabansei</i>. General groupings of stations and species are indicated. Shaded stations are <i>Phyan</i> impacted).</p

Sediment composition and Organic Carbon at the four stations during the 6 sampling occasions Premonsoon 2007, Postmonsoon 2007, Phyan 2009, Monsoon 2011, Postmonsoon 2011 and Premonsoon 2012.

<p>Sediment composition and Organic Carbon at the four stations during the 6 sampling occasions Premonsoon 2007, Postmonsoon 2007, Phyan 2009, Monsoon 2011, Postmonsoon 2011 and Premonsoon 2012.</p

Chemical parameters across study periods.

<p>Chemical parameters across study periods.</p

Summary of the results of CCA analysis.

<p>Summary of the results of CCA analysis.</p

Spearman’s Rank correlation between univariate indices, trophic groups and environmental variables.

<p>Spearman’s Rank correlation between univariate indices, trophic groups and environmental variables.</p

Study area and position of sampling stations.

<p>Shaded region denotes the limits of the Malvan Marine Sanctuary.</p

Univariate analyses using polychaete density at the four stations during the 6 sampling occasions: Premonsoon 2007, Postmonsoon 2007, Phyan 2009, Monsoon 2011, Postmonsoon 2011 and Premonsoon 2012.

<p>Shaded region denotes sampling immediately after <i>Phyan</i>.</p