SOUTH EAST INDIAN MARINE ECOSYSTEM – A REVIEW

Abstract

The first living organism has appeared in the sea more than 3500 million years. The marine environment is filled with a variety of organism ranging from the unicellular organism to warm blooded creatures. India is one of the biggest peninsular in the world. The coastline is about 7,516 km of which the mainland part measures 5,422 km and that around the two major island groups measure 2,094 km. These organisms live in complex communities and in close association with other macro and micro-organisms. The functioning of an ecosystem may not be high by conserving or giving importance to any single species, but protection of habitats will certainly preserve the ecosystem along with the species to be conserved. Tamil Nadu is enriched with various habitats and endowed with a rich biodiversity from marine coastal systems in the Gulf of Mannar to the Western Ghats landed with terrestrial evergreen forests. There are nearly 527 species of fish dominant taxa in the nekton of Tamil Nadu, other species belonging to various families like crustaceans are 419 species, 336 species of molluscs, 15 species of reptiles and 29 species of mammals. The Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve is enriched with a huge variety of species exhibiting various habitats. The current review describes about the marine ecosystem in the south east India and also provides a picture of the biodiversity in the Gulf of Mannar.