Impacts of faulty grey infrastructures on the bathymetry and salinity of Vembanad Lake, a tropical estuary along the south west coast of India.

The fast degradation in bathymetry, floodwater retention capacity, and changes in salinity regimes of Vembanad-the largest wetland system in South India-and its impacts on the ecosystem services are assessed using high-resolution data sets on bathymetry and hydrography. Strengthening the outer banks of Kuttanad polders to promote paddy cultivation led to a sharp decline in its sediment (suspended) filtration potential, promoting heavy siltation and depth shrinkage of Vembanad Lake. With an area of 315 sq.

Differential response of Bay of Bengal during deficit and normal monsoons.

Present study explains the disparity in biological production (primary and secondary) with respect to two distinct monsoonal regimes in the western Bay of Bengal, viz., deficit monsoon (DM) and normal monsoon (NM). A combination of in situ and satellite data during the years 2002 (DM) and 2003 (NM) was used to address the physico-chemical and biological responses.

Role of mesoscale eddies in the sustenance of high biological productivity in North Eastern Arabian Sea during the winter-spring transition period.

Convective mixing, mesoscale eddies and regenerated production sustain an above-average biological productivity in the North East Arabian Sea (NEAS) during the winter-spring transition period. Satellite-derived long-term data sets on Chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), Sea Surface Height Anomaly (SSHA), Sea Surface Temperature (SST) and Okubo-Weiss parameterization show existence of number of mesoscale eddies, propagating and non-propagating, that contribute to the regional production. The dominance of Eddy Kinetic Energy (EKE) over the Available Potential Energy (APE) in the core depth and the diameter (120km) of the observed eddy being wider than the Rossby Radius of Deformation (RRD, 55 km), it is suggested that the baroclinic instability is a possible mechanism for the eddy formation.

Response of macrozoobenthic communities to summer monsoon upwelling and related hypoxia in the south eastern Arabian Sea shelf.

Coastal upwelling in the south eastern Arabian Sea (SEAS) leads to oxygen depletion over the continental shelf during the summer monsoon season (June-September), with latitudinal gradients in intensity. Based on two surveys in the onset (June) and peak (August) phases of the summer monsoon, the present study evaluates the response of macrozoobenthic communities (size >500 μm) to upwelling and consequent hypoxia (dissolved oxygen <0.2 ml/l) in the central sector of the SEAS shelf (10-12°N, 30-200 m).

A new species of white-spotted moray eel, Gymnothorax smithi (Muraenidae: Muraeninae) from deep waters of Arabian Sea, India.

A new species of white-spotted moray eel Gymnothorax smithi sp. nov. is described based on three specimens collected from the southeastern Arabian Sea, India.

Redescription and sexual dimorphism of Andaman leg-skate Cruriraja andamanica (Chondrichthyes: Rajiformes) with comments on the zoogeography of the genus Cruriraja.

This paper redescribes sexually dimorphic Cruriraja andamanica based on five juvenile (four males, one female) and four adult specimens (three males, one female) collected from Andaman waters. Morphometric comparison of the present specimens with a female specimen collected off the coast of Tanzania reveals considerable dissimilarities between them. These findings, along with the wide geographical distance between collection locations, support a need for revision of the Tanzanian specimen, which, in all probability, represents a new species in the genus.

Response of micro- and mesozooplankton in the southwestern Bay of Bengal to a cyclonic eddy during the winter monsoon, 2005.

A cyclonic eddy (CE) in the southwestern Bay of Bengal (SWBoB; 10-15° N; 81-87° E) during winter monsoon 2005 and associated changes in the open ocean hydrography and productivity patterns were studied using satellite observations and in situ measurements. Analysis of the satellite-derived sea surface height anomaly (SSHA) indicated the existence of a large eddy (10-15° N; 81-87° E) from November to January, with its core centered at 13° N and 82° E. The large positive wind stress curl (~1.

Characteristics of a cyclonic eddy and its influence on mesozooplankton community in the northern Bay of Bengal during early winter monsoon.

Characteristics of a cold-core eddy and its influence on the mesozooplankton community were studied along the central (87° E) Bay of Bengal during winter monsoon (November 2008) based on in situ data. The thermo-haline structure and the satellite-derived sea level anomaly maps showed the presence of a cyclonic eddy between 16° N and 20° N. The nutrient enhancement due to the eddy pumping in the euphotic column (∼ 50 m) had resulted in high chlorophyll a concentration, a factor of 8 times higher than that outside the eddy, which led to higher mesozooplankton biovolume (0.

Species identification of mixed algal bloom in the Northern Arabian Sea using remote sensing techniques.

Oceanic waters of the Northern Arabian Sea experience massive algal blooms during winter-spring (mid Feb-end Mar), which prevail for at least for 3 months covering the entire northern half of the basin from east to west. Ship cruises were conducted during winter-spring of 2001-2012 covering different stages of the bloom to study the biogeochemistry of the region. Phytoplankton analysis indicated the presence of green tides of dinoflagellate, Noctiluca scintillans (=N.

A Novel Isoform of the Hepatic Antimicrobial Peptide, Hepcidin (Hepc-CB1), from a Deep-Sea Fish, the Spinyjaw Greeneye Chlorophthalmus bicornis (Norman, 1939): Molecular Characterisation and Phylogeny.

Hepcidin is cysteine-rich short peptide of innate immune system of fishes, equipped to perform prevention and proliferation of invading pathogens like bacteria and viruses by limiting iron availability and activating intracellular cascades. Hepcidins are diverse in teleost fishes, due to the varied aquatic environments including exposure to pathogens, oxygenation and iron concentration. In the present study, we report a 87-amino acid (aa) preprohepcidin (Hepc-CB1) with a signal peptide of 24 aa, a prodomain of 39 aa and a bioactive mature peptide of 24 aa from the gill mRNA transcripts of the deep-sea fish spinyjaw greeneye, Chlorophthalmus bicornis.

Characterization of Histone H2A Derived Antimicrobial Peptides, Harriottins, from Sicklefin Chimaera Neoharriotta pinnata (Schnakenbeck, 1931) and Its Evolutionary Divergence with respect to CO1 and Histone H2A.

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are humoral innate immune components of fishes that provide protection against pathogenic infections. Histone derived antimicrobial peptides are reported to actively participate in the immune defenses of fishes. Present study deals with identification of putative antimicrobial sequences from the histone H2A of sicklefin chimaera, Neoharriotta pinnata.

Hydrographic characterization of southeast Arabian Sea during the wane of southwest monsoon and spring intermonsoon.

Seasonal variation of the hydrography along the southeast Arabian Sea is described using data collected onboard FORV Sagar Sampada in September--October 2003 (later phase of Southwest monsoon, SWM) and March--April 2004 (Spring inter monsoon, SIM). During the later phase of the SWM, upwelling was in the withdrawal phase and the frontal structure was clearer in the northern sections (13 and 15 degrees N lat) indicating strong upwelling in the area. The driving force of upwelling is identified as the combination of alongshore wind stress and remote forcing with a latitudinal variability.