Coral paradise down South

AS you float on the crystal-clear water and look at life in the sea through your snorkel glass boat, an amazing world, shimmering with life, unfolds in the corals below. There is the clown fish among stag-horn coral, crabs and throbbing sea anemones, all set in the backdrop of the white coral seabed. This is the lagoon - the placid sea between the reef and the shore of the island - off Musal Theevu near Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu.

The wealth of marine life in this part of the country has gone largely unnoticed. But for decades, cement manufacturers have ruthlessly plundered the coral reefs. The drag nets of the fishing trade have killed the turtles. Trawler fishing, introduced recently, has taken a heavy toll of dolphins and dugongs. Students also come from all over to "collect" specimens. The lagoons have taken a severe beating. Now the signs of degeneration can be seen clearly off Krusadi island where much of the reef here is dead or deteriorating.

It is only recently, with awareness spreading around the world that the need to conserve the sea has been felt. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF-N) have notified the Gulf of Mannar to be a habitat of importance. In 1986, The Government of Tamil Nadu decided to set up a marine preserve and designated the area around the 21 islands in the Gulf as "protected". In 1989, the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve was set up. Of these islands, the Musal Theevu, on an enormous coral reef, 129 hectares, is the largest, while the smallest, Poovarasanpatti, is only 0.25 hectares.

The bio-diversity of a coral reef is often compared to that of the rain forest. Both are vast biological repositories - rich in life forms, sustained by a complicated food chain. In the Gulf of Mannar, there are many types of coral. The 147 varieties of such formations are actually masses of limestone, the skeletons of polyps, tiny marine animals that flourish in the tropical sea.

Colonies of corals build up reefs. The varieties of fish found in the lagoons are colourful. At the bottom of the lagoon live certain unique creatures - known as benthic fauna - such as sea cucumbers, sea anemones and starfish. The reefs sustain an immense variety of underwater flora. At the edge of reefs grow varieties of sea grass on which the dugongs feed.

The sea off these islands is rich in marine life - fish, turtles and sea mammals. This is particularly so in the lagoons. Once, at the edge of the water we sighted a sting ray, gliding along; it looked like a miniature replica of a stealth-bomber aircraft.

The walrus-like dugong, a large mammal, is more than two and a half metres long and weighs nearly 300 kg. It is popular in the Gulf of Mannar, known to fisherfolk as Aavuliya. Once numerous, it is hunted for its meat. Its slow rate of reproduction is another problem and its very survival is now in question. There are only a few hundred thousands of these creatures around the world.

Dolphins (Oongil in Tamil) are fairly numerous. We saw a number of them. Though they all look alike to the untrained eye, there are many varieties of dolphins here - the common dolphin, the bottle-nosed dolphin and the finless porpoise.

The islands also offer protection to sea turtles to breed. Three varieties, the Hawksbill, Green and Olive Ridley breed here.

Birdlife around the islands is equally impressive. We often saw white-bellied sea eagles and osprey. Curlews, Brahminy kites, Caspian terns, shanks and sandpipers are common. In the mud flats we saw a large flock of flamingoes feeding noisily, with the gopuram of the Rameswaram temple on the horizon beyond.

Even with protection, threats to the islands and the reefs persist. On the day we were on Kurusadi island, 180 students came ashore and began collecting plants and shells. Their professor told us that they had come specially to collect Balanoglossus, an earthworm like creature that is a link between vertebra and non- vertebra. This rare organism is endemic to the Gulf of Mannar. The point is that collection of any kind on the island is prohibited. But interdepartmental squabbles, the bane of governmental management in our country, over the control of the island has created loopholes in protection. Illicit dynamiting of coral formations goes on. In the last year, 42 dolphins have fallen victim to such explosions. There have been disturbing reports of dugongs being poached for meat.

But crucial questions remain. What kind of fishing can be encouraged? How do you strike a balance between harvesting fish and taking care not to deplete the capital? How do fisherfolk view the issue of conservation of marine life in the Gulf, traditionally their fishing ground? What steps are we taking to win the goodwill of the Mannar fisherfolk? In Malaysia it has been demonstrated that by setting up a marine reserve the harvest of fish has increased considerably. Will different government departments ever cooperate and get their act together?

M. Krishnan wrote about the physical identity of India - its rivers, mountains and islands. The Gulf of Mannar is a significant part of this physical heritage and it has to be preserved for its own sake and for the sake of the bustling underwater habitat it sustains. We have the lessons of destruction around the world to forewarn us and to save what is left.

S. THEODORE BASKARAN

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