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Title: Benthic quality assessment in a naturally- and human-stressed tropical estuary
Authors: Feebarani, J.; Joydas, T. V.; Damodaran, R.; Borja, Angel
Citation: ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS, 2016, 67, 380-390
Abstract: Cochin estuary, one of the largest tropical estuaries of India, supports high levels of human pressure throughout the year and natural stress during monsoon season. Six stations were monitored between 2002 and 2004 covering the pre-monsoon, monsoon, and post-monsoon seasons. Ecological status of macrobenthos was assessed using the AZTI's Marine Biotic Index (AMBI) and the multivariate-AMBI (M-AMBI). The overall `moderate' disturbance classification (according to AMBI) and `moderate-poor' ecological status (according to M-AMBI) indicate that the macrobenthos in the estuary experiences stress. There was a gradient of increasing quality from the most degraded northern site to the main estuary, downstream. Monsoon caused further reductions in quality of macrobenthos in the main estuary, while the degraded northern station showed improvement in 2003, when the monsoon was strong. The assessment of the Cochin Estuary using AMBI and M-AMBI indicates where this water body stands in comparison to European and other water bodies, which may be useful for developing required protective measures in tropical systems and to design monitoring strategies. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Benthic invertebrate community; Quality assessment; AMBI; M-AMBI; Cochin Estuary; Arabian Sea; MARINE BIOTIC INDEX; M-AMBI; ECOLOGICAL QUALITY; COCHIN BACKWATERS; MACROBENTHIC COMMUNITY; PROFESSIONAL JUDGMENT; EUROPEAN COASTS; HABITAT QUALITY; VELLAR ESTUARY; CHESAPEAKE BAY
Issue Date: 2016
Publisher: ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV
Type: Article
Language: English
DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolind.2016.03.005
URI: http://dspace.azti.es/handle/24689/139
ISSN: 1470-160X
E-ISSN: 1872-7034
Funder: Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi, India
Research Institute, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabia
Appears in Publication types:Artículos científicos



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