Priority Research Location

Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay (Tamil Nadu, Southeast coast of India), 658 km long coastline
Geographic features & other Importance of research Location:

• Marine ecosystem with coral reefs and seagrass beds
• Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park
• Gulf of Mannar Marine Biosphere Reserve

Key issues

• High dependence of coastal community on fishery resources
• Loss / damage of key coastal habitats and biodiversity due to anthropogenic impacts and elevated sea surface temperature…Read more

Reef and Seagrass Research

Coral survey and monitoring

• The comprehensive baseline data on coral reefs in Gulf of Mannar has been collected. The collected data from Gulf of Mannar was also published in the form of…Read more

Coral reproductive biology

• Understanding the reproductive behavior of corals is an important factor in helping to preserve coral reef ecosystems. In India, the study on coral reproductive…Read more

Coral recruitment

• The coral recruitment study is being carried out in Gulf of Mannar on both natural and artificial substrates since 2006…Readmore

Coastal Ecosystem Rehabilitation

Coral Rehabilitation

• Coral rehabilitation is one of the viable management tools to restore the services of degraded reef areas due to climatic and non-climatic In India, coral rehabilitation was firstRead more …

Artificial reefs

• A community based Artificial Reef (AR) programme was initiated in the Tuticorin coastal area, by the Suganthi Devadason Marine Research Institute (SDMRI), Tuticorin in collaboration…Read more

Seagrass Rehabilitation

• SDMRI initiated pilot scale seagrass rehabilitation activities both in Gulf of Mannar and Palk Bay, covering 200 m2 degraded area each since May 2008…Readmore

Conservation Issues

Shore Seine and Inshore Trawling

• The operation of shore seine is a common scene in Gulf of Mannar coast especially in Islands and Palk Bay. As the reefs and seagrass beds are close to the shore…Read more

Trap fishing

• Fishermen set indigenous fish traps in the reef areas or along the outer reef mainly for marine ornamental fishes. About 6–10 fishermen carry 20-25 traps in one vallam…Read more

Seaweed Collection

• Seaweed collection is one of the a major threats to reef areas. Fisher folk, mostly women,collect tonnes of seaweeds every day around the islands, damaging the coral…Readmore