Laccadive Sea

Coordinates: 08°N 75°E / 8°N 75°E / 8; 75 (Laccadive Sea)
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Laccadive Sea
Lakshadweep Sea
Location of Laccadive Sea
Location of Laccadive Sea
Location of Laccadive Sea
Location of Laccadive Sea
Laccadive Sea
Coordinates08°N 75°E / 8°N 75°E / 8; 75 (Laccadive Sea)
TypeSea
Basin countriesIndia, Sri Lanka, Maldives
Surface area786,000 km2 (303,500 sq mi)
Average depth1,929 m (6,329 ft)
Max. depth4,131 m (13,553 ft)
References[1]

The Laccadive Sea, also known as the Lakshadweep Sea, is a body of water bordering

Mangaluru, Kasaragod, Kannur, Kozhikode, Ponnani, Kochi, Alappuzha, Kollam
,
Tuticorin, Colombo, and Malé are the major cities on the shore of the Laccadive Sea. Kanyakumari, the southernmost tip of peninsular India, also borders this sea.[2]

Extent

Villingili

The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Laccadive Sea as follows:[3]

Muzhappilangad, where also the longest Drive-in beach of Asia
locates
Laccadive sea shore at Kollam Beach

On the West. A line running from

Laccadive and Maldive Archipelagos to the most Southerly point of Addu Atoll
in the Maldives.

On the South. A line running from

Dondra Head
in Sri Lanka to the most Southerly point of Addu Atoll.

On the East. The West coasts of Sri Lanka and India.

On the Northeast. Adams Bridge (between India and Sri Lanka).

Hydrology

Water temperature is rather constant through the year, averaging 26–28 °C in summer and 25°C in winter. Salinity is 34‰ (parts per thousand) in the center and northern part and up to 35.5‰ in the south. The coasts are sandy and the deeper parts covered in silt. There are numerous coral reefs in the sea, such as the Lakshadweep islands which are made up of atolls and contain 105 coral species.[1][4][5]

Fauna and human activities

Pearl fishing in the Gulf of Mannar, ca. 1926

The

Pinctada radiata and Pinctada fucata for at least two thousand years. Pliny the Elder (23–79) praised the pearl fishery of the gulf as the most productive in the world.[6][7] Although extraction of natural pearls is considered too expensive in most parts of the world, it is still conducted in the gulf.[8][9] Also collected in large numbers are Shankha mollusks (Xancus pyrum)[8] whose shells are used as a ritual and religious object. Other mollusks of the sea[10] are either too scarce or not popular in Indian society and therefore have no commercial value.[11]

Another traditional occupation in the Laccadive Sea is fishing. The annual fish catch is 2,000 to 5,000 tonnes from the Lakshadweep islands, which is mostly constituted by tuna (about 70%) and shark. Perches, halfbeaks, Carangidae, needlefish and rays are also caught near the reefs. Shrimp, Achelata[1] and small fish, such as Sprattus, Pomacentridae and Apogonidae are widely used as a bait by the Laccadive islanders.[12]

With about 3,600 species of flora and fauna, the Gulf of Mannar is regarded as one of the richest

sting rays.[11][17] The seaweed collection aims at shallow-water species Gelidiella acerosa (marikozhundu passi), Gracilaria edulis (Agarophytes, Kanchi passi), Sargassum spp. (kattakorai), Turbinaria (Alginophyte, Pakoda passi) and Ulva lactuca, and is conducted between October and March. Because of National Park related restrictions, the production of seaweeds declined from 5,800 tonnes (dry weight) in 1978 to 3,250 tonnes in 2003.[18]

References

  1. ^ a b c V. M. Kotlyakov, ed. (2006). Dictionary of modern geographical names: Laccadive Sea (in Russian). Archived from the original on 10 June 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2010.
  2. ^ "Laccadive Sea". World Atlas.
  3. ^ "Limits of Oceans and Seas, 3rd edition" (PDF). International Hydrographic Organization. 1953. p. 21. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 October 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  4. ^ Coral Reefs of India: Review of Their Extent, Condition, Research and Management Status by Vineeta Hoon, Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations
  5. ^ Status of Coral Reefs of India. Envfor.nic.in. Retrieved on 2013-03-22. Archived 10 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ISBN 978-81-206-1335-5
    .
  7. ISBN 978-1-110-87096-7
    .
  8. ^ a b ICSF p. 27
  9. ISBN 978-0-7506-5856-0
    .
  10. ^ Taxa reported from regions in Indo-Arabia – see Maldives, Laccadive islands
  11. ^ a b R. Raghu Prasad; P. V. Ramachandran Nair (1973). "India and the Indian Ocean Fisheries" (PDF). Journal of the Marine Biological Association of India. 15: 1–19.
  12. ISBN 978-0-19-512596-2
    .
  13. ^ ICSF p.25
  14. ^ ICSF pp. 27–30
  15. ^ ICSF pp. 1–2, 21, 24, 30
  16. ISBN 978-81-313-0407-5
    .
  17. ^ ICSF p. 26
  18. ^ ICSF pp. 42–43

Bibliography

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