Sachinandan Dutta

The cause and consequences of road mortality of herpetofauna in durgapur, West Bengal, India

The mortality rate of herpetofauna due to road accidents in one of the busiest tarmacked metalled roads of Durgapur, an industrial town of West Bengal, India was studied. Road survey for 27 days covering a total distance of 94.5 km was conducted. Within this span of time and the total stretch of road, 354 amphibians belonging to 6 species and 133 reptiles belonging to 11 species were observed to be killed in road-accidents. Among amphibians, Duttaphrynus melanostictus and amongst the reptiles Hemidactylus spp. were killed in highest numbers. The stretch of road under survey passed through different habitat patches like’s agricultural land, human habitation, dumping area, fragmented forest and wetland. On an average, 18 herpetofauna was noted to be killed daily. It was difficult to identify the species as the key characters were missing in the remains in a few cases of road casualties. High road mortality of herpetofauna would surely affect the balance of adjoining ecosystems as well as may be crucial for the local herpetofaunal population attributes.

BLACKSPOTTED CROAKER, Protonibea diacanthus (Lacepède, 1802): A NEW DIMENSION TO THE FISHING PATTERN IN WEST BENGAL, INDIA

Blackspotted Croaker ( Protonibea diacanthus ) is one of the most commer- cially important croakers which migrate along West Bengal coast during winter season. This paper deals with the importance of the species along with its market value and the cause of its popularity in West Bengal. This species is gaining prime importance among the fishermen due to the high market price of its swim bladder. The dried swim bladders are sold in local markets for Rs. 40,000-50,000 per kg. There is a risk factor involved as the fishermen do not get the catch at a time and, moreover, they often lose common pelagic fishes due to the usage of larger mesh nets. In spite of this risk, a shift from pelagic to demersal fishing across the northern Bay of Bengal marks an important emerging trend of winter fishing in this area.

Estimation of Air-Sea CO 2 Exchange and Decadal Change of Surface Water f CO 2 in a Shallow Continental Shelf Using in Situ and Remote Sensing Data During Winter

The air-sea CO2 exchange (fCO2) was estimated in the outer estuary to offshore transition zone of the northern Bay of Bengal using in situ measurements and remote sensing data obtained from moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) and advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR). The in situ measurements were done during winter months (December, January and February) of the year 2011–12. Sea surface CO2 fugacity (fCO2), sea surface temperature (SST) and chlorophyll-a were measured in situ to develop an empirical relationship with fCO2 but only the SST showed a significant correlation (r 2 = 0.55, n = 64, p < 0.05). This relationship was used to assess fCO2 (water) and its temporal change in decadal scale from the year 2002–2003 to 2011–2012 of the winter months using remotely sensed SST data. The study area acted as a mild sink for atmospheric CO2 at the mean rate of −28 µmol m−2 h−1 (MODIS derived) to −40 µmol m−2 h−1 (AVHRR derived). An overall winter-to-winter increasing trend of fCO2 was observed in the last decade which is accompanied by a similar decrease in the chlorophyll-a concentrations.