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Assessing the ecological quality of the Port Blair coast (South Andaman, India) using different suites of benthic biotic indices

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 August 2017

Jawed Equbal ,
Ganesh Thiruchitrambalam Open the ORCID record for Ganesh Thiruchitrambalam [Opens in a new window] ,
Raj Kiran Lakra ,
M. Savurirajan  and
Kunal Satyam
Jawed Equbal*
Affiliation:
Department of Ocean Studies and Marine Biology, Pondicherry University, Brookshabad Campus, Port Blair, Andaman Islands 744112, India
Ganesh Thiruchitrambalam
Affiliation:
Department of Ocean Studies and Marine Biology, Pondicherry University, Brookshabad Campus, Port Blair, Andaman Islands 744112, India
Raj Kiran Lakra
Affiliation:
Department of Ocean Studies and Marine Biology, Pondicherry University, Brookshabad Campus, Port Blair, Andaman Islands 744112, India
M. Savurirajan
Affiliation:
Department of Ocean Studies and Marine Biology, Pondicherry University, Brookshabad Campus, Port Blair, Andaman Islands 744112, India
Kunal Satyam
Affiliation:
Department of Ocean Studies and Marine Biology, Pondicherry University, Brookshabad Campus, Port Blair, Andaman Islands 744112, India
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: J. Equbal, Department of Ocean Studies and Marine Biology, Pondicherry University, Brookshabad Campus, Port Blair, Andaman Islands 744112, India email: bangedarkhudi@gmail.com
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Abstract

Six benthic biotic indices (Shannon–Wiener H′log2, W-statistics, BOPA, BENTIX, AMBI and M-AMBI), based on different ecological principles, were applied to assess the health of variously disturbed tropical intertidal habitats of the Port Blair coastline. A total of 243 replicate samples were collected during the dry period (January, February and March) of 2014–2016. Temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, sediment pH, total organic matter content and texture were analysed. A high mean abundance of opportunistic species (Orbinia sp. 748, Capitella singularis 237 and Armandia sp. 114 ind. m−2) was observed at Phoenix Bay, a gradual decline in diversity at Junglighat and a comparatively high diversity and moderate biomass at Wandoor, reflecting a human pressure gradient. Results showed an annual decline of benthic quality from 2014 to 2016 (good to moderate). Overall BOPA failed to distinguish the magnitude of disturbances, while the rest of the indices classified the benthic quality from undisturbed/high (WD), slightly disturbed/good (JG), to moderately disturbed/moderate to poor (PB). The subjective analysis demonstrated that the urban centres corresponded to disturbed benthic communities of dominant first and second order opportunistic species, while sensitive (EGI) and indifferent (EGII) were associated with the least disturbed or undisturbed site. The study successfully demonstrated the performance of temperate indices in intertidal habitats against the mild organic enrichment. However, for an effective assessment, setting natural reference conditions and sampling in stable dry periods (strong seasonality in tropics) is desirable. In order to test the performance of biotic indices, a long-term monitoring approach of taking abiotic and biotic descriptors into account is recommended.

Keywords

Andaman Islandsintertidalorganic matterecological groupsbiotic indicesbenthic assessment
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 97 , Special Issue 5: Proceedings of the 12th International Polychaete Conference Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales Cardiff, Wales, UK, 1-5 August 2016 , August 2017 , pp. 1007 - 1021
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2017 

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