Wetlands of Small Island Nations in South Asia vis-à-vis the Mainland and Island Groups in India: Status and Conservation Strategies

Abstract

The wetlands of small island nations in South Asia such as Sri Lanka and the Maldives are compared with that of India with respect to their status, biodiversity, threats and conservation measures. Sri Lanka has diverse coastal habitats, which are known to support fishes (1800 species), marine turtles (5 species), marine mammals (38 species), corals (183 species), mangroves (40 species), birds (100 species), reptiles (33 species) and seagrasses (10 species). The Maldives boasts one of the world’s richest marine biodiversity comprising 250 species of corals, over 1200 of reef fishes, 200 species of sponges, over 1000 species of crustaceans and over 100 species of echinoderms. Marine biodiversity of India comprises 12,913 species, of which more than 5800 species are reported from Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Marine biodiversity of Lakshadweep islands is represented by corals (172 species), fishes (396), sponges (95), molluscs (260), echinoderms (84), crustaceans (80), turtles (04),birds (142), marine mammals (6), seagrasses (07) and mangroves (03). The major threats to these wetlands of South Asian countries are climate change, extreme events like tsunami, coastal erosion, population pressure, habitat destruction and over-exploitation. The chapter emphasises the need for adopting frontier tools for biodiversity documentation and innovative strategies for their conservation