Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
5
Diversity and Distribution
of Polychaetes (Annelida:
Polychaeta) Along Maharashtra
Coast, India
S. K. Pati , D. Swain , K. C. Sahu , and R. M. Sharma
Abstract
Polychaetes are an important component in marine benthic communities
having high ecological and economical signifi cance. The scientifi c infor-
mation on this group in Indian waters is scanty particularly with reference
to costal region of Maharashtra. There are many polychaete records pub-
lished from different localities of Maharashtra, but comprehensive report
is still lacking. Hence, a systematic list of all the valid polychaete species
along with their distribution is provided in this paper. A total of 180
species and seven subspecies of polychaetes in 113 genera in 21 subfamilies
under 41 families and six orders have been recorded so far from
Maharashtra coast. Suggestions are given for further biosystematic studies
on the group in the state and the country as a whole.
Keywords
Annelida • Polychaeta • Diversity • Distribution • Maharashtra Coast
Introduction
Polychaetes are generally benthic organisms
occurring in a wide range of marine habitat
including estuaries, lagoons, backwaters,
coastal and inshore waters, etc. They belong to
the phylum Annelida and mainly characterised
by segmented soft body with parapodia and
bristles. Many of the polychaetes are sedentary
and some groups are also common in fouling
(Gobin
2010
). Due to their enigmatic presence
in burrows of sandy and muddy bottoms and
small size, they can easily be overlooked by
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