| Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park | |
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  Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park Location in Tamil Nadu, India Show map of Tamil Nadu Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park (India) Show map of India | |
 Interactive map of Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park | |
| Location | Coastal regions ofThoothukkudi andRamanathapuram District,Tamil Nadu,India |
| Nearest city | Rameswaram |
| Coordinates | 09°08′15″N79°28′21″E / 9.13750°N 79.47250°E /9.13750; 79.47250 |
| Area | 560 km2 (220 sq mi) |
| Established | 1986 |
| Governing body | Tamil Nadu Ministry of Environment and Forests |
| forests | |
TheGulf of Mannar Marine National Park is aprotected area of India consisting of 21 small islands (islets) and adjacentcoral reefs in theGulf of Mannar in theIndian Ocean. It lies 1 to 10 km away from the east coast ofTamil Nadu, India for 160 km betweenThoothukudi (Tuticorin) andDhanushkodi. It is the core area of theGulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve which includes a 10 km buffer zone around the park, including the populated coastal area.[1] The park has a highdiversity of plants and animals in itsmarine,intertidal and nearshorehabitats. Public access inside the park is limited toglass-bottom boat rides.[2] It was established as a National Park in 1986.[3]
The 560 km2 (220 sq mi) park is part of the 140 km long and 25 km wide Mannarbarrier reef. It lies between 8° 47' to 9° 15' N latitude and 78° 12' to 79° 14' E longitude. The 21 islands vary from 0.25 hectares (0.62 acres) to 130 ha. (321.2 acres). The total area of the islands is 6.23 km2 (2.41 sq mi).[4]
The islands (listed southwest to northeast)
Tuticorin group: (4 islands)
Vaan (Vhan), 16.0 ha[5]8°50′11″N78°12′38″E / 8.83639°N 78.21047°E /8.83639; 78.21047
Koswari, 19.50 ha8°52′08″N78°13′30″E / 8.86879°N 78.22506°E /8.86879; 78.22506
Vilanguchalli, 0.95 ha8°56′17″N78°16′11″E / 8.93815°N 78.26969°E /8.93815; 78.26969, now 1 m below mean low tide level as a result of excessive coral mining.
Kariyachalli, 16.46 ha8°57′15″N78°15′08″E / 8.95409°N 78.25235°E /8.95409; 78.25235
Vembar group: (3 islands)
Uppu Thanni, 22.94 ha, elevation 4 m9°05′21″N78°29′29″E / 9.08921°N 78.49148°E /9.08921; 78.49148
Puluvini Challi, 6.12 ha, elevation 5.5 m9°06′12″N78°32′13″E / 9.10320°N 78.53688°E /9.10320; 78.53688
Nalla Thanni, 101.00 ha, elevation 11.9 m (recently populated)9°06′24″N78°34′44″E / 9.10667°N 78.57885°E /9.10667; 78.57885
Kilakarai group: (7 islands)
Anaipar, 11.00 ha, elevation 2.1 m9°09′11″N78°41′41″E / 9.15294°N 78.69481°E /9.15294; 78.69481
Vali Munai, 6.72 ha, elevation 1.2 m9°09′13″N78°43′50″E / 9.15354°N 78.73052°E /9.15354; 78.73052
Poovarasan Patti, 0.50 ha, elevation 1.2 m9°09′15″N78°46′01″E / 9.15413°N 78.76695°E /9.15413; 78.76695
Appa, 28.63 ha, elevation 6.4 m9°09′57″N78°49′33″E / 9.16582°N 78.82596°E /9.16582; 78.82596
Talairi, 75.15 ha, elevation 2.7 m9°10′53″N78°54′24″E / 9.18133°N 78.90673°E /9.18133; 78.90673
Valai 10.10 ha, elevation 3.0 m9°11′03″N78°56′19″E / 9.18421°N 78.93866°E /9.18421; 78.93866
Mulli, 10.20 ha, elevation 1.2 m9°11′11″N78°58′05″E / 9.18641°N 78.96810°E /9.18641; 78.96810
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Mandapam group:(7 islands)
Musal, 124.00 ha, elevation 0.9 m9°11′57″N79°04′31″E / 9.19912°N 79.07530°E /9.19912; 79.07530 (recently populated)
Manoli, 25.90 ha9°12′56″N79°07′42″E / 9.21564°N 79.12834°E /9.21564; 79.12834
Manoli-Putti 2.34 ha9°12′57″N79°07′41″E / 9.21581°N 79.12800°E /9.21581; 79.12800
Poomarichan 16.58 ha9°14′43″N79°10′48″E / 9.24538°N 79.17993°E /9.24538; 79.17993
Pullivasal, 29.95 ha9°14′13″N79°11′28″E / 9.23699°N 79.19100°E /9.23699; 79.19100
Kurusadai, 65.80 ha9°14′49″N79°12′34″E / 9.24690°N 79.20945°E /9.24690; 79.20945 was recently populated.[6] Its surrounding shallow waters harbour three species of seagrass that are found nowhere else in India. Representatives of every animal phylum known (except amphibians) are found on this island.[7]
Shingle, 12.69 ha, elevation .6m9°14′30″N79°14′08″E / 9.24174°N 79.23563°E /9.24174; 79.23563
Tidal amplitude in the area is about .5m.[5]
There were two more islands named Pandayan and Punnaiyadi at8°46′51″N78°11′43″E / 8.78075°N 78.19536°E /8.78075; 78.19536 that were destroyed for construction of the newTuticorn Port facilities.
The park includes marine components such ascoral reefs,seaweed communities,sea grasses, andmangroves.[8]
Mangroves dominate the intertidal zones of the park islands. They consist of species of the generaRhizophora,Avicennia,Bruguiera,Ceriops andLumnitzera.[9] The introduced tree genusProsopis is dominant on land in all the islands. The flowering herbPemphis acidula (familyLythraceae) is the only endemic plant species.[10] 12 species of sea grass and 147 species of seaweeds were recorded. This vegetation provides important feeding grounds for vulnerable marine mammals such as thedugong,[6]endangeredgreen turtles andolive ridley turtles.[11]
Vertebrates
Thedugong, avulnerablemarine mammal, is the flagship mammal of the park. It is an important habitat for thecetaceans:Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin,finless porpoise,spinner dolphin,[12]common dolphin,[13]Risso's dolphin,melon-headed whale, anddwarf sperm whale.[14] Larger whales includesperm whale,[15]minke whale,Bryde's whale,[16]sei whale,[17] and critically endangered species includinghumpback whale,fin whale,[18] andblue whale.[19]
About 510 (23%) of the 2,200 fin fish species in Indian waters are found in the Gulf, making it the most highly diverse fish habitat in India. Coral associated ornamental fishes of the family Chaetodontidae (butterfly fish),parrotfish,Amphiprion spp. (clown fish),Holocentrus spp. (squirrel fish),Scarus spp. (parrot fish),Lutjanus spp. (snappers) andAbudefduf saxatilis (sergeant major) are abundant.[20]
A unique endemic species ofBalanoglossus –Ptychodera fluva, a living fossil that links invertebrates and vertebrates, has been recorded only at Kurusadai.[7]
Invertebrates
Four species each ofshrimp andlobster, 106 species ofcrab, 17 species ofsea cucumber, and 466 species ofmollusc including 271gastropods, 174bivalves, 5polyplacophorans, 16cephalopods and 5scaphopods,[21] 108 species ofsponge, and 100 species ofechinoderm occur in the Gulf.[22]
The coral fauna includes 106 species from 30 genus ofhermatypes and 11 species from 10 genus ofahermatypes, including 13 new species, giving a total of 117 species from 14 families and 40 genus. The reefs in this area are narrowfringing reefs located 150 to 300 m. from the shore of the islands andpatch reefs rising up from depths of 2 to 9 m. and extending up to 2 km. long and 50 m. wide. Large areas of these reefs are in generally poor condition due to destructive human activities of the 150,000 persons living along the coast. Nutrient and other pollution loads are high due to agriculture, deforestation, industry, urbanization and septic pollution. It appears that the coral reefs of the Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park seem to be healthy and in good condition, despite high rates of sedimentation and other threats.[23] However, live coral cover is only about 35%. Various algae cover much of the dead coral.[24]
Stony coral species of familiesPoritidae andFaviidae constitute the dominant reef builders here. Coral reefs near some of the islands have been heavily damaged by exploitation as raw materials for industrial ventures such as cement industries, brick manufacture, masonry work and lime kilns. Though legal quarrying of the reefs is now stopped, up to 250 m3/day of reef were destroyed for many years.[9]
The islands are uninhabited except for Krusadai, Musal and Nallathanni islands where antipoaching sheds are operating.[25] Along the coast near the park there are about 125 villages which support about 100,000 people who are mainlyMarakeyars, a local community principally engaged in fishing.[4][9]
Experts say thatVaan Island, one of the four islands of the Tuticorn group, has split in two and if immediate efforts are not taken then the island would soon vanish under the sea. Vaan Island, which is the southernmost of the 21 islands in the Gulf of Mannar, was initially spread across 16 hectares, but had shrunk alarmingly by around 10.3 hectares to its current 5.7 hectares in less than three decades. According to J K Patterson Edward, director of Suganthi Devadasan Marine Research Institute (SDMRI), Tuticorin,"Rampant coral mining by people of the fishing villages along the coast is the main cause of the devastation to the island. Coral mining was banned in 2005, but the damage had already been done." Two of the 21 islands have already submerged around a decade ago.[26]
