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Fish community structure of two adjacent poorly known permanently open tropical estuaries Valapattanam and Dharmadam from the western coast of India

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Abstract

The estuaries along the west coast of India provide fishery resources to sustain the livelihood of many traditional fishermen along the coast. However, the knowledge of the fish communities of these estuaries is very limited. In this context, fish communities in Valapattanam (VAL) (moderate size) and Dharmadam (DHA) (small size) located along the west coast of India were investigated by employing monthly field surveys from 2021 to 2022. A total of 172 species (135 finfishes (95 demersal and 40 pelagic) and 37 shellfishes (19 crustaceans, 18 mollusks)) were recorded from both estuaries. Acanthuriformes was the richest order (32 species), representing 23.7% of the total finfish count. Carangidae (11 species), Cynoglossidae (6), Mugilidae (6), Lutjanidae (5), Leiognathidae (5), Cyprinidae (5) Clupeidae (5), and Engraulidae (5) were the major finfish families. Among the shellfishes, Penaeidae (21.6%, 8 species) and Portunidae (18.9%, 7 species) contributed major shares to the species count. The number of finfish and shellfish taxa recorded from the estuaries was as follows: VAL, 114 and 30, and DHA, 111 and 35, respectively. Marine estuarine opportunist (MMO) was the major estuarine use fish guild in both the estuaries (VAL: 52%, DHA: 53%). The group carnivores were the most dominant feeding mode guild (63 species (37%)). Based on the IUCN criteria, 88 species were “least concern,” 66 “not evaluated,” nine “data deficient,” six “vulnerable,” and one each in “endangered” and “near threatened” categories. Nearly 94% of finfish, as well as shellfish, are of commercial importance both for consumption and as ornamental fish. Information on estuarine fishery resources is essential for their conservation and sustainable utilization as well as for planning management strategies for the future. The management of the estuaries is also discussed based on the fish community data gathered during this study. This dataset adds fish community data to the local, regional, and global datasets for estuarine fisheries. The management of the estuaries is also discussed based on the fish community data gathered during this study.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are thankful to the editor and the three reviewers for their competence and accuracy in revising and improving the manuscript. The authors express their sincere gratitude to the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies for funding this research work. The authors also express their gratitude towards the Dean of Faculty of Ocean Science and Technology, KUFOS, Kochi. The technical support from Dr. Chandrasekhar V is duly acknowledged. The fishermen of both the estuaries and local communities are greatly acknowledged for their active participation during sampling and data collection.

Funding

The research is supported by the Faculty of Ocean Science and Technology, Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies (KUFOS), Kochi, India

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  1. Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, Panangad, Kochi, Kerala, 682506, India

    Swetha Keezhedathu Chandroth, Jayalakshmi Kalarikkal Jayakesan & Sreekanth Giri Bhavan

  2. ICAR-Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute, Old Goa, Goa, 403402, India

    Sreekanth Giri Bhavan

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  1. Swetha Keezhedathu Chandroth
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Correspondence to Swetha Keezhedathu Chandroth.

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Not applicable. No animal testing was performed during this study.

Sampling and field studies

All necessary permits for sampling and observational field studies have been obtained by the authors from the competent authorities and are mentioned in the acknowledgements, if applicable. The study is compliant with CBD and Nagoya protocols.

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All the data generated/analysed during the study are included in the article’s main files and supporting documents.

Author contributions

SKC conducted sampling, data collection, and analysis and drafted the manuscript. JKJ has provided overall supervision, guidance, conceptualization, methodology, and manuscript correction. SGB contributed in survey design, data compilation, analysis, reviewing, and editing. All authors read and approved the manuscript and have given consent for the article to be communicated to the journal.

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Table S1 Description of each guild included in the study according to Elliott et al. 2007. Table S2 Checklist of fishes recorded from Valapattanam and Dharmadam estuary. Table S3 Comparison of fish communities with other Indo-pacific estuaries. (XLSX 42 kb)

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Keezhedathu Chandroth, S., Kalarikkal Jayakesan, J. & Giri Bhavan, S. Fish community structure of two adjacent poorly known permanently open tropical estuaries Valapattanam and Dharmadam from the western coast of India. Mar. Biodivers. 53, 56 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-023-01365-w

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