scholarly journals Ethnobotany of three sea grass species from Port Blair, a step towards its conservation in Andaman Islands

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-16
Author(s):  
Mohammed Naufal ◽  
◽  
Gadi Padmavati ◽  

Ethno-phycology is the study of the relationships of human society to flora and its ecosystem. In the marine world, ethno-biology is a thriving area of research which have yielded valuable ethno-biological knowledge. The main goal of the present study was to understand the effect of abiotic factors as well as the natural and anthropogenic disturbances that shape seagrass community in Andaman Island and to reveal the knowledge of the local people, about the significance of seagrass habitat and its conservation. The qualitative study on distribution of seagrasses in Chidiyatapu (11° 29' 30" to 11° 30' 34" N and 92° 35' 10" to 92° 42' 30" E) was carried out during December2012 to February 2013. A total of three seagrass species such as Thalassia hempirichi (Ehrenberg) Ascherson, 1871, Halodule uninervis (R.Brown) J.D.Hooker 1858, Halophila ovalis (Forsskål) Ascherson 1882, where identified. Among them, T. hempirichi, and H. ovalis found in this study was reported to have the ethno-medicinal value from west coast of India. As a part of the study, the semi-structured survey was carried out among the local coastal people to analyse the Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK). The survey has revealed the unawareness of coastal residents about the medicinal, nutritional as well as conservational values of seagrasses. An effective implementation has to be taken to make them aware that seagrasses are fundamental components of healthy marine ecosystems and the local livelihoods that rely on them. The present findings provide the first report on the ethno-phycology of seagrasses from South Andaman Island.

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paskalina Th. Lefaan

<em>Seagrasses habitats have both physical and ecological functions that support adjacent waters qualities and its dwelling organisms. There are varies of pressure on seagrass environmental, especially due to people activities that could decrease its function and habitat stabilities. The study aimed to determine about seagrass habitat stabilities from its species composition and/or densities. Line transect-plots and exploration methods were used in five locations of Manokwari coastal waters, that were, Andai, Rendani, Wosi, Briosi, and Tanjung Manggewa. There are five pioneer species (Cymodocea rotundata, Halodule pinifolia, H. uninervis, Syringodium isoetifolium, Halophila ovalis) and 3 climax species (Cymodocea serrulata, Enhalus acoroides, Thalassia hemprichii). The pioneer only found in Andai and Wosi, however both pioneer and climax encountered in three other locations. In Rendani and Tanjung Manggewa higher density of climax species (T. hemprichii) were 617.7 and 828.0 stands m-2, respectively, although in Briosi the higher pioneer (C. rotundata) of 570.7 stands m-2. These conditions showed that seagrass habitat in Rendani and Tanjung Manggewa are more stable compared to Briosi, as well as Andai and Wosi. It concluded that pioneer species found in newly formed habitat or disturbed, on the other hand, climax in more stable habitat.</em>


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manob Das ◽  
Arijit Das ◽  
Selim Seikh ◽  
Rajiv Pandey

Abstract The well-being of the human society cannot be ensured and sustainable unless the flow of Ecosystem Services (ESs) would be matching with their consistent demand. The consistent flow of ESs required sustainable management of ecological resources of the ecosystem. The management of ecosystem can be ensured with variety of approaches. Integration of indigenous ecological knowledge (IEK) in management prescription with the view that IEK based extraction of ESs ensures removal of resources from the ecosystem within the limit thereby ensuring the sustainability of ecosystem. Present study is an evaluation to understand the nexus between ESs and IEK for sustainable environmental management. The focus of the study was a tribal dominated socio-ecological patch of Barind Region of Malda district, Eastern India. The assessment of ESs and IEK was based on the data collected from the randomly selected tribal households following the pre-tested questionnaire containing questions on ESs as per millennium ecosystem assessment. The data were analyzed following social preference approach, and statistical tests (Krushkal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney). General linear model (GLM) has also been used to examine the impact of socio-demographic attributes on the perceived valuation of ESs. The results revealed that the provisioning ESs (such as water, fuel wood, medical plants) was most preferred followed by cultural and regulating ESs by tribal. Differential importance of ESs was observed among tribal and accounted by gender, education as well as age of the tribe. A gap between the actual accessibility and evaluation of ESs by the tribal communities was also apparent. The socio-demographic attributes have an immense impact on the valuation of ecosystem services and also governed based on the IEK. Various types of indigenous ecological belief systems were closely linked with conservation of ecosystem and sustainable supply of ESs. Present study can contribute to understand socio-ecological nexus with the lens of IEK in tribal dominated ecological landscapes for improved ecosystem and environmental management besides ensuring sustainability of flow of ecosystem services.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle S. Koo ◽  
Vance T. Vredenburg ◽  
John B. Deck ◽  
Deanna H. Olson ◽  
Kathryn L. Ronnenberg ◽  
...  

Emerging infectious diseases have been especially devastating to amphibians, the most endangered class of vertebrates. For amphibians, the greatest disease threat is chytridiomycosis, caused by one of two chytridiomycete fungal pathogens Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) and Batrachochytrium salamandrivorans (Bsal). Research over the last two decades has shown that susceptibility to this disease varies greatly with respect to a suite of host and pathogen factors such as phylogeny, geography (including abiotic factors), host community composition, and historical exposure to pathogens; yet, despite a growing body of research, a comprehensive understanding of global chytridiomycosis incidence remains elusive. In a large collaborative effort, Bd-Maps was launched in 2007 to increase multidisciplinary investigations and understanding using compiled global Bd occurrence data (Bsal was not discovered until 2013). As its database functions aged and became unsustainable, we sought to address critical needs utilizing new technologies to meet the challenges of aggregating data to facilitate research on both Bd and Bsal. Here, we introduce an advanced central online repository to archive, aggregate, and share Bd and Bsal data collected from around the world. The Amphibian Disease Portal (https://amphibiandisease.org) addresses several critical community needs while also helping to build basic biological knowledge of chytridiomycosis. This portal could be useful for other amphibian diseases and could also be replicated for uses with other wildlife diseases. We show how the Amphibian Disease Portal provides: (1) a new repository for the legacy Bd-Maps data; (2) a repository for sample-level data to archive datasets and host published data with permanent DOIs; (3) a flexible framework to adapt to advances in field, laboratory, and informatics technologies; and (4) a global aggregation of Bd and Bsal infection data to enable and accelerate research and conservation. The new framework for this project is built using biodiversity informatics best practices and metadata standards to ensure scientific reproducibility and linkages across other biological and biodiversity repositories.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Ismail ◽  
Abu Hena Mustafa Kamal ◽  
Mohd Hanafi Idris ◽  
S. M. Nurul Amin ◽  
Hadi Hamli ◽  
...  

Seagrass habitats are considered to be some of the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet and safeguard some ecologically and economically important fauna, amongst which are some globally threatened species, including dugong. Malaysian seagrass ecosystems are not widespread, but their existence supports some significant marine fauna. A rigorous zooplankton study was conducted from May 2016 to February 2017, in the seagrass habitat of Lawas, Sarawak, Malaysia, to examine their temporal composition and diversity, together with their ecological influences. A total of 45 zooplankton species from 13 significant groups were recorded in the seagrass habitat. The population density of zooplankton ranged between 2,482 ind/m³ and 22,670 ind/m³ over three different seasons. A single zooplankton copepod was found to be dominant (47.40%), while bivalves were the second largest (31.8%) group in terms of total abundance. It was also noticed that the average relative abundance (0.62) and important species index (62.08) of copepods were higher than for other groups that exist in the seagrass meadow, whereas copepod Parvocalanus crassirostris showed both the highest average relative abundance (0.41) and the highest important species index (41.15). The diversity (H') and richness index of the intermediate season were found to be highest due to favourable physico-chemical conditions. Within the referred seasonal cluster, the wet and dry seasons were almost similar in terms of species abundance, while the intermediate season was distinct, with high species diversity backed by ANOSIM analysis results. Copepod and bivalves formed one group with a common similarity level of 0.80. The CCA (Canonical Correspondence Analysis) model established that abiotic factors, especially turbidity, NO2, rainfall, dissolved oxygen and pH were significantly correlated with abundance of individual groups of zooplankton. Zooplankton assemblage and abundance in Lawas were found to be very rich in multiple seasons, indicating that the productivity of uninterrupted seagrass habitat might be high and the system rich in biodiversity.


2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 97-103
Author(s):  
Sarah Haumahu ◽  
Frijona F Lokollo ◽  
Reni Ambon

Seagrass communities play an important role in marine environments and estuary area, supporting communities of fish, snails and shellfish and other invertebrates. The diversity of seagrass species in the world is very low (<60 species). The coastal waters of Ori Village have a seagrass community that has never been studied. The purpose of this study was to estimate the structure of the seagrass community in the coastal waters of Ori Village, Central Maluku which includes the composition of type, density, frequency of occurence and percent of coverage. Seagrass sampling uses the line transect method. Five species of seagrass were found during the study grouped into two families: Cymodoceaceae and Hydrocharitaceae. The seagrass species found were Cymodocea rotundata, Halodule pinifolia, Enhalus acoroides Halophila ovalis and Thalassia hemprichii. T. hemprichii and E. acoroides have the highest densities (157 shoots/m2 and 137 shoots/m2, respectively). E. acoroides and T. hemprichii also have the highest frequency of occurence and relative coverage percent compared to other seagrass species found in the waters of Ori Village. Seagrass community in the waters of Ori Village is classified in a tight condition until dense.   ABSTRAK Komunitas lamun memegang peranan penting di lingkungan laut dan daerah estuari, menyokong komunitas ikan, siput dan kerang-kerangan serta invertebrata lainnya. Keragaman spesies lamun di dunia sangat rendah (<60 spesies). Perairan pantai Desa Ori memiliki komunitas lamun yang belum pernah diteliti. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengestimasi struktur komunitas lamun di perairan pantai Desa Ori, Maluku Tengah yang meliputi komposisi jenis, kerapatan, frekuensi kehadiran dan persen penutupan. Pengambilan sampel lamun menggunakan metode transek garis. Lima spesies lamun ditemukan selama penelitian yang dikelompokan dalam dua famili yaitu famili Cymodoceaceae dan Hydrocharitaceae. Spesies-spesies lamun yang ditemukan adalah Cymodocea rotundata, Halodule pinifolia, Enhalus acoroides Halophila ovalis danThalassia hemprichii. T. hemprichii dan E. acoroides memiliki kerapatan tertinggi (masing-masing 157 tegakan/m2 dan 137 tegakan/m2). E. acoroides dan T. hemprichii juga memiliki frekuensi kehadiran serta persen penutupan relatif tertinggi dibanding spesies-spesies lamun lainnya yang ditemukan di perairan Desa Ori. Komunitas lamun di perairan Desa Ori tergolong dalam kondisi rapat sampai padat.   Kata Kunci: Lamun, komunitas, kerapatan, penutupan, Maluku Tengah      


2013 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 273 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Patrick Bixler

Political ecology seeks to address notable weaknesses in the social sciences that consider how human society and the environment shape each other over time.   Considering questions of ideology and scientific discourse, power and knowledge, and issues of conservation and environmental history, political ecology offers an alternative to technocratic approaches to policy prescriptions and environmental assessment.  Integrating these insights into the science-policy interface is crucial for discerning and articulating the role of local resource users in environmental conservation. This paper applies political ecology to addresses a gap in the literature that exists at the interface of narratives of local environmental change and local ecological knowledge and doing so builds a nuanced critique of the rationality of local ecological knowledge.  The ways that we view nature and generate, interpret, communicate, and understand the "science" of environmental problems is deeply embedded in particular economic, political, and ecological contexts.  In interior British Columbia, Canada, these dynamics unfold in one of the most rigorously documented examples of the negative effect of anthropogenic disturbance on an endangered species – declining mountain caribou population.  Science notwithstanding, resource users tell narratives of population decline that clearly reflect historical regularities deeply embedded in particular economic, political, and ideological constructions situated in local practices. This research assesses these narratives, discusses the implications, and explores pathways for integrating local knowledge and narratives into conservation science and policy. A more informed understanding of the subjectivities and rationalities of local knowledges can and should inform conservation science and policy.Keywords: Political ecology, local ecological knowledge, narrative, environmental change, environmental management, British Columbia, Rangifer tarandus caribou. 


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex B. Carter ◽  
Catherine Collier ◽  
Emma Lawrence ◽  
Michael A. Rasheed ◽  
Barbara J. Robson ◽  
...  

AbstractThe Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area (GBRWHA) in north eastern Australia spans 2500 km of coastline and covers an area of ~ 350,000 km2. It includes one of the world’s largest seagrass resources. To provide a foundation to monitor, establish trends and manage the protection of seagrass meadows in the GBRWHA we quantified potential seagrass community extent using six random forest models that include environmental data and seagrass sampling history. We identified 88,331 km2 of potential seagrass habitat in intertidal and subtidal areas: 1111 km2 in estuaries, 16,276 km2 in coastal areas, and 70,934 km2 in reef areas. Thirty-six seagrass community types were defined by species assemblages within these habitat types using multivariate regression tree models. We show that the structure, location and distribution of the seagrass communities is the result of complex environmental interactions. These environmental conditions include depth, tidal exposure, latitude, current speed, benthic light, proportion of mud in the sediment, water type, water temperature, salinity, and wind speed. Our analysis will underpin spatial planning, can be used in the design of monitoring programs to represent the diversity of seagrass communities and will facilitate our understanding of environmental risk to these habitats.


Author(s):  
Vusale Hajiyeva Vusale Hajiyeva

The main purpose of the research is to coordinate biological and ecological knowledge in the learning process, to show the importance of the formation of ecological culture. Scientific - technical progress, daily increase of the population size create a number of discrepancies between nature and society. The using of nature has been increased to meet the growing demands of overpopulation, which leads to environmental degradation and ecological problems. Such an incorrect use required change and rebuilding of the relation to the nature. The humanity is to be ready for it both psychologically and socially. Rebuilding of the future, change of the relation to the nature will be started namely with the forming environmental culture of future generations. The formation of ecological culture is possible as a result of school and family social upbringing from childhood. Pedagogical process has special importance in the forming environmental culture. Pedagogical teaching aids used in the teaching process will play indispensable role in the producing namely environmental knowledge. Topics, especially knowledge producing during the teaching of the sciences related to the nature, habits and skills created for the pupils will create the base for the forming environmental education. In the settlement of this problem the teachers are to follow certain way, the process must be built correctly. At present, the amount of environmental problems existing on Earth is increased to such an extent that the learning of the ways of the settlement of this problem within one science will not help in the settlement of the matter. That is why transition to integrative training is especially important for the creation of environmental culture and education. Taking into consideration these facts, the teaching at the schools of ecology together with biology and other natural disciplines will give great benefits. Biology as a nature science has great mutual connection with ecology. And the opportunities for creation of this relation is wide enough. When there is a connection between the natural sciences, this must be done in a systematic way. In the form of set of words, the connection based on theoretical knowledge will lead to mental fatigue of students. Because the natural sciences, no matter how interesting and related to life and nature, are difficult subjects. This article examines the process of imparting environmental knowledge in the teaching of biology and examples and suggestions were given to establish a connection, and schemes were used. At the same time, their negative impact on the lives of living things was highlighted, addressing global environmental issues. Significance application: Ecology in biology classes in secondary schools and higher education institutions can be used to impart knowledge and shape environmental culture. Key words: biological, ecological, teaching methods, natural sciences


Author(s):  
Pavel Knot

The objective of this contribution is to interpret the impact of some abiotic factors on the germinability. Primarily was observed the stress that they cause on germinability and also on the energy of other perennial grass caryopsis' germinability. Withal there were considered differences in germinability of some perennial grass species, variances of strains and the influence of today`s seeds dressing technologies, which are used to improve the germination. The light factor has the biggest influence of all factors on germination of Agrostis stolonifera (Penn G-2, Providence), Poa supina (Supranova) and Poa pratensis (Julius, Julius PreGerm). All these species had germination evidential higher in the light, than in the dark. With species Poa pratensis (Coctail, Coctail Headstart) and Poa annua were not observed any essential variations between the dark and the light variants. Only with Poa annua there were reached noticeably lower values with variant in the light, where was used polyethyleneglycol, than in the dark. The analysis of variance demonstrated, that the biggest influence had the factor of stratification together with the light factor with Agrostis capilaris (Bardot) and Agrostis stolonifera Providence. With Poa annua there was established the biggest influence of the light factor together with the factor of the used medium. The factor of stratification noticeably affected only the germination of Agrostis capillaris Bardot. The germination of Agrostis stolonifera Providence, Poa pratensis Cocktail, Cocktail Headstart, Julius and Poa annua was not noticeably affected by stratification. The reaction on the factor of stratification was with Agrostis capillaris Bardot in the dark adverse and in the light minimal. Poa pratensis Julius PreGerm germination was negative in the dark as well as in the light. With Poa supina Supranova it was not the most important factor, but still affected the germination significiantly. The nitrogen nutrition, as the next factor, had positive affect with all variants. This could be explained with existence of the „gap detection“ mechanism. Especially variants in the dark and with used stratification had affected theirs germination positively, when combinated with H2O and potassium nitrate. The addition of potassium nitrate positively affected also the energy of germination.With the lack of water factor was affected amount of germinated caryopsis and their energy of germination. Especially with higher water tonus was energy of germination and germination itself decreased. The only exceptions were these variants in the dark with the stratification factor. With these conditions was achieved the same or even higher quality of germination of variants, where PEG was added than was achieved with H2O variants.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chanelle L. Webster ◽  
Kieryn L. Kilminster ◽  
Marta Sánchez Alarcón ◽  
Katherine Bennett ◽  
Simone Strydom ◽  
...  

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