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Benthic Biocoenosis in the Tropical Mangrove Stands of Kerala

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Benthic Biocoenosis in the Tropical Mangrove Stands of Kerala Benthic Biocoenosis in the Tropical Mangrove Stands of Kerala Thesis submitted to the Cochin University of Science and Technology in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY Under the Faculty of Marine Sciences By Philomina Joseph Reg. No. 4393 Department of Marine Biology, Microbiology and Biochemistry Cochin University of Science and Technology Kochi - 682016 JANUARY 2019 Benthic Biocoenosis in the Tropical Mangrove Stands of Kerala Ph.D. Thesis under the Faculty of Marine Sciences Author Philomina Joseph Department of Marine Biology, Microbiology & Biochemistry School of Marine Sciences Cochin University of Science and Technology Kochi-682016, Kerala, India Email: [email protected] Supervising Guide Dr. S. Bijoy Nandan Professor and Head Department of Marine Biology, Microbiology & Biochemistry Cochin University of Science and Technology Kochi-682016, Kerala, India E-mail: [email protected] January 2019 Department of Marine Biology, Microbiology & Biochemistry School of Marine Sciences Cochin University of Science and Technology Dr. S. Bijoy Nandan E-mail: [email protected] Professor [email protected] This is to certify that the thesis “Benthic biocoenosis in the tropical mangrove stands of Kerala” is an authentic record of research work carried out by Mrs. Philomina Joseph (Reg. No. 4393) under my supervision and guidance in the Department of Marine Biology, Microbiology and Biochemistry, Cochin University of Science and Technology, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Marine Biology, Cochin University of Science and Technology under the faculty of Marine sciences. There is no plagiarism in the thesis and that the work has not been submitted for the award of any degree/diploma of the same Institution where the work was carried out, or to any other Institution. It is also certified that all the relevant corrections and modifications suggested by the audience during the pre-synopsis seminar and recommended by the doctoral committee has been incorporated in the thesis. Kochi-16 Dr. S. Bijoy Nandan January 2019 (Supervisin Guide) Declaration I hereby declare that the thesis entitled “Benthic biocoenosis in the tropical mangrove stands of Kerala” is an authentic record of research work carried out by me under the supervision and guidance of Dr. S. Bijoy Nandan, Professor, Department of Marine Biology, Microbiology and Biochemistry, Cochin University of Science and Technology, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Marine Biology, Cochin University of Science and Technology under the faculty of Marine sciences and that no part of this has been presented before for the award of any other degree, diploma or associateship in any university. Kochi - 682 016 Philomina Joseph January 2019 In loving memory of……. My parents in Heaven I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Psalm 32:8 Dedication To all those who lighted my path with prayers and deeds to achieve my goal…. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever…….…(Psalm 118:1) I bow in reverence before God Almighty for his tremendous love and blessings bestowed upon me throughout my endeavor. This endeavor would not have been completed without the sincere help and support of many people. Foremost, I would like to express my deep sense of gratitude to my guide Prof. (Dr.) S. Bijoy Nandan, Head, Dept. of Marine Biology, Microbiology and Biochemistry for his expert guidance, encouragement, motivation, immense knowledge and also his support in various difficulties in my life. He is critical in his decision and is always for the best. His suggestions are always innovative and lead me always to success. I express my gratitude to Prof. (Dr.) K.J Joseph for his support, guidance and his great advice and insightful comments during my research program. Special thanks to his family members for their love and prayers. I am thankful to Prof. Aneykutty Joseph, Director, School of Marine Sciences, Prof. Rosamma Phillip, Dean, School of marine sciences for the facilities provided and also express thanks to other faculty members Prof. Mohamed Hatha, Prof. A V Saramma (Retd.), Prof. C.K Radhakrishnan (Retd.), Dr. K. B. Padmakumar, Dr. P. Priyaja and Dr. Swapna P. Antony for their constant inspiration and suggestions.Gratitude to Dr.Valsmma Joseph, Associate professor,NCAAH for her support during my tenure. I am greatly indebted to University Grants Commission for Maulana Azad National fellowship for my research program and also Directorate of Environment and Climate Change, Govt of Kerala for the financial assistance under the scientific research project entitled “Studies on Mangrove Ecosystems of South-West Coast of India in the Context of Sustainable Livelihood Objectives” I am really grateful to my institution, CUSAT for accommodating me to accomplish the Ph.D program. I also thank the administrative and technical staffs especially to Mrs. Laly, Mrs.Lakshmi, Department of Marine Biology, Microbiology and Biochemistry, the School of Marine Sciences for their services throughout the research period. A token of gratitude to Mr. P J Manuel, former Librarian for his inspiring and encouraging suggestions and also to other staff members of library, School of Marine Sciences, Cochin University of Science and Technology for their kind co-operation and help. I am thankful to Dr. Gordon S. Karaman (Academy of Science and Arts of Montenegro), Dr. Shibu Eappen and Mr.Adarsh K.J (Sophisticated Test and Instrumentation Centre, CUSAT), Dr. P. Muhamed Ashraf (Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, Kochi) Special mention has to be given to Mr. Stephen, Mr. Raveendran, Mr. Suresh and Mr. Paveesh for their care and whole hearted help during our laborious and tedious field trips throughout Kerala. I remember the enjoyable experience and beautiful memories with my dear mangrovers Dr. S. Sreelekshmi, Preethy C.M, Rani Varghese and my dear friends Dr. Asha C.V, Dr.Jayachandran P.R, Dr.Ambily.V, Sajna. N and Mr.Suson P.S. I also recall the heart-to-hearts with my dear colleagues Dr. Sreedevi , Dr. Vineetha, Dr.Rakhi, Dr.Retina, Anu, Santu, Don, Radhika, Aravind, Hari, Mithun, Sanu, Akhilesh, Geetha, Regina, Jima, Krishnapriya, Neelima, Sruthy, Ashwathy,Suhana and Rajani. I convey my gratitude to senior researchers in the department Dr. Mangala Kumari, Dr. Shameeda, Dr.Shyam, Dr.Naveen, Dr.Anu, Dr.Chaithanya, Dr Lekshmi and Dr.Lathika. Words fail me when I think of my parents Late Mrs.Victoria Joy and Late Mr.P.A Joseph and also Mr.K.X Joy and Mrs.Kochurani Joseph, their love and prayers always helped me to fulfill my dreams. Every success in my life is only through my better half Adarsh, who strengthened me in my difficulties and directs me to achieve this goal. His care and support made it easy for me to furnish my thesis. My sweet little kids Deon and Fina, always keep me cheered up, their enthusiasm in collecting and planting mangroves inspired me a lot. I am greatful to my brother Bony and family and sister Ashitha and family and my uncle K.X Antony and family and my grandmother Treesa Joseph and family and words of gratitude to all my family members. I sincerely thank each and every person who helped me in various ways to complete this thesis in time. Philomina Joseph CONTENTS List of Figures i-iv List of Tables v-vi List of Abbreviations and Acronyms vii-viii Chapter 1 GENERAL INTRODUCTION…………………………………………. 1-14 1.1 Indian Mangroves 5 1.2 Benthic biocoenosis in mangroves – ecological services and 6 challenges 1.3 Significance and Objectives 11 Chapter 2 STUDY AREA AND GENERAL METHODS………………..……… 15-38 2.1 Introduction 15 2.2 Study area and Sampling Design 16 2.2.1 Mangrove study sites in Kerala 18 2.2.2 Mangrove sites in Cochin 19 2.3 Analytical methods 22 2.3.1 Mangrove density 22 2.3.2 Hydrographic parameters 23 2.3.3 Sediment parameters 23 2.3.4 Benthic fauna – collection, preservation and identification 24 2.3.5 Marine biotic indices 26 2.3.6 Heavy metal analysis in the sediment 28 2.3.7 Heavy metal in macrofauna 31 2.3.8 Statistical analysis 31 Chapter 3 FLORAL DIVERSITY AND PHYSICO-CHEMICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF SELECTED MANGROVE HABITATS………………………………………………………………… 39-74 3.1 Introduction 39 3.1.1 Mangrove floral diversity 39 3.1.2 Physico-chemical parameters in relation to benthic fauna 42 3.2 Results 45 3.2.1 Mangrove floral diversity and spatio-temporal variation in 45 Cochin 3.2.2 Physico-chemical parameters structuring mangrove ecosystem 47 3.3 Discussion 62 Chapter 4 STANDING STOCK OF BENTHIC FAUNA IN MANGROVE HABITATS………………………………..…………….. 75-108 4.1 Introduction 75 4.2 Results 82 4.2.1 Macrofauna in mangrove stands of Kerala 82 4.2.2 Macrobenthic standing stock in mangrove stands of Cochin 84 4.2.2.1 Spatio-temporal variation in macrobenthic fauna in Cochin 85 4.2.2.2 Macrofaunal communities 88 4.2.3 Meiobenthic standing stock in mangrove stands of Cochin 93 4.3 Discussion 95 4.3.1 Macrobenthic stock in Kerala mangroves 95 4.3.2 Benthic stock in Cochin mangroves-environmental and 96 vegetational influence Chapter 5 COMMUNITY ORGANISATION OF BENTHOS FROM COCHIN MANGROVES………………………………………………… 109-150 5.1 Introduction 109 5.2 Results 113 5.2.1 Community composition of macrobenthic fauna 113 5.2.2 Statistical and Graphical methods of community analysis 121 5.2.3 Influence of environmental factors on macrobenthic species 136 assemblages 5.3 Discussion
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