Art20197913 PDF

International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR)
ISSN: 2319-7064
ResearchGate Impact Factor (2018): 0.28 | SJIF (2018): 7.426
Biodiversity of Coastal Areas of Valsad, South

Gujarat
Ayantika Das1, Jigna Desai2
1, 2
Veer Narmad South Gujarat University, Department of Biosciences, Surat, India
Abstract: The present study documents the diversity and quantitative assessment of fringing mangroves in these nine different estuarine
regions of Valsad district of South Gujarat. The most outstanding feature of our study is that we observed four species of mangrove and
sixspecies of mangrove associate namely Avicennia marina, Sonneratia apetala, Salvadora persica, Acanthus illicifolius, Ipomoea pes
caprae, Sesuviarum portulacastrum, Clerodendrum inerme, Derris heterophylla, Cressa cretica,and Aeluropus lagopoides.The dominant
mangroves in these areas are Avicennia species and Acanthus illicifolius.Earlier works included Rhizophora mucronata which was not
found during this study in any of the nine spots of mangrove forests.We have used the Jaccardian similarity index to analysis the floral
diversity of our mangrove sites. Our studyhighlighted the relation between water quality parameters, environmental and anthropogenic
stress and speciescomposition and structures of mangrove.
Keywords: Quantitative assessment, anthropogenic pressures,water quality parameter
1. Introduction indicates that mangroves can change over from C3 to C4

photosynthesis under salt stress. Mangroves are prolific seed
According to Chapman. 1976 coastal vegetation in India is producer that has higher viability as compared to other types
categorized as – (1) marine algae(seagrasses) of littoral and of plants, also they are quick to attain height and biomass
sublittoral zone, (2) algal vegetation of brackish and (Alongi. 2002).
saltwater marshes, (3) vegetation of sand dunes, (4)
vegetation of drift lines, (5) vegetation of shingle beach, (6) Though they breed sand flies and mosquitoes their benefits
vegetation of coastal cliffs, rocky shores and coral reefs exceed their few disadvantages. Mangroves and mangrove
(containing macroalgae), (7) mangrove vegetation in saline associates are rich in biodiversity and are necessary from the
intertidal soil. This zonation of vegetation in the coastal ecological and economical point of view (Untawale.2006).
andestuarine area is due to the specific environmental The advantages of having mangroves are –(1)they can
gradient(Del Moral and Watson. 1978; Disraeli and Fonda. absorb more carbon dioxide than any tropical rain forest,
1979;Armstrong, Brändle and Jackson.1994; Ukpong. (2)they are breeding spots of not only fishes but also many
1991). Based on inundation frequencies coast has three parts other arthropods,gastropods, crustaceans, mammals, birds,
– one that is mostly covered by water(subtidal), one that is reptiles andshellfishes,(3) it indirectly supports many species
inundated by tidal waters(intertidal) and one that is of birds which are secondary and tertiary consumers that
inundated by only spring and neap tides(high tidal regions). feed on these fishes and insects, (4)they act as barriers from
The high tidal region has the maximum soil damage from storms, tsunami and high tidal waves
salinity,inhabited mangroves,and mangrove associates, (Danielsen et al. 2005), (5)they also check coastal soil
beyondwhich is the ecotone containing herbs, shrubs,and erosion by accumulating colloidal soil particles,(6)
climbers on the landward side. mangroves play an important role in below ground nitrogen
cycling (Alongi et al. 2002),(7) they have a symbiotic
Mangroves are salt–tolerant estuarine forest ecosystems of association with many sulfurs reducing and iron reducing
tropical and subtropical intertidal regions of the world bacteria, (8) they prevent coral bleaching by reducing
(Banerjee and Ghosh. 1998)occupying 75% of the tropical acidification of the sea, (9)mangrove litters are solubilized
coast of the world. Over the last few decades 50 % of by fungi in soil (Prabhakaran and Gupta. 1990). This litter
original mangrove cover is lost (Spalding, Blasco,and Field. enhances the productivity of coastal water which leads to a
1997).Now, these areas are categorized under ecological huge diversity of. Decomposed leaves of mangroves are
sensitive regions and under the jurisdiction of Coastal food for prawn and larvae of fishes. The decomposed leaf
Regulation Zone (CRZ) (Jagtap, Moorthy,and Komarpanth. litter is a nutrient source which also gets exported to
2002).Mangroves are wonderful plants that have devised nearshore areas and utilized in the food web of that area
several morphological, physiological and biochemical (Sasekumar et al. 1992; Ewel, Twilley, and Ong. 1986).
adaptations.To cope with salt stress it hassalt-secreting
glands, thick leaves to prevent water loss by transpiration, or Loss of biodiversity will destabilize the ecosystem as a
stiff wiry leaves to resist sea spray,breathing roots whole (Solbrig. 1991 b). Restoration of mangroves will not
pneumatophores to cope up with the anoxic condition of the only save the associated fishes and its predators but also the
soil. They are evergreen and have viviparous germination soil microbes that decompose the leaf litter.FAO has started
technique to avoid salt stress in germinating seeds, some of several mangrove protection activities throughout the world.
them also show leaf rolling movements in response to high National Mangrove Committee has recommended areas
temperature. Under normal salinity condition, Rubisco where immediate attention is to be taken. For that, the
enzyme was extracted from the leaves andPEP carboxylase estuarine areas should be declared a reserved forest, as was
was extracted from the leaf under acute salt stress, which done by Goa Government and in Sunderban in West Bengal.
Volume 8 Issue 5, May 2019
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Paper ID: ART20197913 10.21275/ART20197913 1099
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Mangrove Society of India has started a five-year Site1 – Auranga – Wanki river estuary, Site 2 – Par – Kothar
management plan for Goa and there has been a tremendous river estuary, Site 3 – Kolak river mouth,Site4 –
increase in the wild flora and fauna in the area. According to Damanganga river mouth, Site5 – Kalu river mouth, Site6 –
NRSA (National Remote Sensing Agency, Hyderabad), Thumbi river estuary, Site 7 – Lotus pond creek, Site 8 –
India has 40 % of mangrove cover there has been an Maroli creek, Site 9 – Bhandi creek.
increase in the area of mangrove in Gujarat in 676km, which
is quite encouraging. Mangrove plantation has been carried Description of the study area
out in four districts of Gujarat namely Kutch, Baruch, Surat, Gujarat has got a long coastline of 1663 km with a
and Anand with success by GIDR (Gujarat Institute of subtropical climate. The continental shelf varies from 58 to
Developmental Research) on PPP model, (Public Private 191 miles. Sea is normally calm except during the monsoon.
Partnership model) from 2002 to 2007. This work has been Gulf of Khambhat is shallow with a water depth of 10m at
later merged with NREGA and already in action in the tidal flats. The tidal range at estuary mouth varies from the
Kutch and Jamnagar area since last few years. 5-8 meter. When we talk about mangroves in Gujarat, we
generally think of Kutch. Kutch and Jamnagar districts have
2. Methods 90 % of Gujarat mangroves. But there are many minor areas
of mangrove trees and shrub forests in the mouths of various
Location of Study area rivers and creeks of Valsad district of South Gujarat which
Our study area Valsad district lies at 20* 37’N and 72* 55’ has a coastline of 63km. The coastal wetland ecosystem of
E in Gujarat, India covering an area of 2,947 km2. Valsad Valsad includes mudflats, floodplains, tidal flats, coral reefs,
district has 5 major rivers and 4 minor rivulets that form a and beaches. Valsad has several perennial rivers that form
tributary of the main rivers or join the main rivers at their mixed estuaries, where tidal current is strong having
mouth to form a small estuarine delta. These mangroves as semidiurnal tide and there is a weak discharge of fresh
depicted in figure 1are found in estuarine regions in the water. In spite of repeated damming for agricultural
mouth of rivers Auranga and Wanki (Site 1), Par and Kothar purposes these rivers mouths still, have mangroves.
Khari (Site 2), Kolak (Site 3), Damanganga (Site 4), Kalu Mangrove trees were also observed in certain relatively
(Site 5), and Thumbi (Site 6) and in three minor creeks of inaccessible areas upstream of the mouth of the river of all
Valsad district, at their mouth namely Lotus creek (Site 7), rivers. Several creeks are also present of which we have
Maroli creek (Site 8), Bhandi creek (Site 9). The coast of mangroves in Fansa, Maroli,and Bandhni, some creeks are
Valsad district also has mangroves in the estuarine region of used in salt farming and has sparse mangroves.The estuarine
three taluks – Valsad, Pardi, and Umargaon. Our study site area of Valsad is an open mangrove region. They have high
lies in the Gulf of Khambat in the western coast of India. density and abundance during the monsoon which fluctuated
in a close range during the drier months of summer and
winter. ENVIS biodiversity data showed that the mangrove
region of Valsad district was never dense in the past also.
Field survey
A field survey was taken every fifteen days in the pre-
monsoon, monsoon, and post-monsoonfor a period of two
years.Three twin line transect method was used for trees and
three twin belt transect method was used for herbs and
shrubs (Nirmal Kumar et al. 2010).For trees,two 30 m line
transects were used(Villarreal et al. 2013 andKardani et al.
2014) with 10 m gaps between the two line transects. All
trees that touched the line were counted and their
circumference at breast height was taken and averaged.For
herbs and grasses, a 5m x 5m quadrant was used in a twin
belt transect method, along a 30 m line quadrants were
placed at regular intervals of 5 m.The anthropogenic and
environmental pressure on the mangroves observed during
field trips were noted, as well as information was also taken
by interacting with the local village fisherman folks. These
data were compared to various previous research works as
well as with the annual data of GEC on South Gujarat
wetlands and also previous papers to understand the change
in species diversity and relative abundance of species.
Chemical
Water samples were collected from the mouth of the river of
three rivers that have abundant water even the driest of the
month. Water samples were collected every fifteen days for
a year. The sample was collected from a depth of 60 cm as
subsurface water has stable water quality parameters.
Figure 1: Mangrove study sites of Valsad district Parameters that were used – heavy metal concentration

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(Chromium, Lead, Aluminum, Zinc, Boron, Iron.), pH, are most tolerant species among mangroves. Mangroves
Sulphide, Electrical conductivity (EC), Sulphate, Dissolves which have a narrow range of habitat condition such as
oxygen (DO), Biological oxygen demand (BOD), Total Rhizophora was not found in the area. No epiphytes and
hardness as CaCO3,Chemical oxygen demand (COD), Total lichens were found during our study. All this indicates
dissolved solids (TDS), Chloride. Some of the parameters anthropogenic stress.
like pH, Electrical conductivity, Dissolves oxygen (DO)
were determined in situ and others were in the laboratory by Quantitative Parameters
standard methods of IS3025- 1987. Site 1, Auranga - Wanki estuary has a monoculture of
Avicennia with a frequency of 80 and a density of 16.8.
The formula for the calculation of Frequency, Density, Since it is a monoculture the relative density is 100 and
Relative Density, and Abundance are abundance is 21. This site has monospecific strand and that
Frequency = ((Number of units in which a species occurred / too in regeneration class indicates anthropogenic pressure
Number of units studies)) ×100 induced vegetation homogeneity.
Density = (Total number of individuals of species in all the
sample units / Total number of sample units studied) Site 2, Par – Kothar estuary has four species of mangrove.
Relative Density = ((Number of individuals of species in all Avicennia has a maximum frequency of 70 among the four
the sample units / Number of individuals of all species in all species, while Acanthus has a maximum density of 5.4, the
the sampling units)) ×100 relative density of Salvadora is maximum of 75.38 and
Abundance = (Number of individuals in all sampling units / Acanthus has the maximum abundance of 27.
Number of units in which species occurred)
Site 3, Kolak river mouth has a frequency of 100 for
3. Result and Discussion Avicennia. Avicennia also has the highest density, relative
density, and abundance amongst the other two species.
Vegetation Type Other species found there wereSalvadora and Acanthus.
Mangrove vegetation found during our field study is noted Mangroves density in one bank of Kolak river mouth were
in table 1. Identification of plants was done in consultation high where the fisherfolk has created a raised platform to go
with the manual of Banerjee, Shastri, and Nayar. 1989 and to the river mouth directly. Presence of such mature trees
Blasco and Aizpuru. 1997. During our study, it was noted indicates that climatic conditions are favorable for the
that most of the mangroves plants of our study sites growth of mangroves, if not subjected to human stress.
belonged to the regeneration class (having a CBH less than
50 cm) and a few recruitment class (with CBH between 50 Site 4, Damanganga river mouth has four mangrove species
cm and 1m). Maximum CBH (the circumference at breast of which Avicennia has the maximum frequency, density,
height) indicating mature trees of recruitment class was and relative density. Acanthus has a maximum abundance of
found in Nargol mangroves and Damanganga River and 26.66.
Kolak River mouth. Minimum CBH regeneration class was
found in Par River were mainly regeneration class. Site 5, Kalu river mouth has a monoculture of Avicennia, but
its least density and since it is a single mangrove species site
There is a zonation of mangrove vegetation. Riverbank so the relative density was 100 %. The occurrence of a
mudflats harbor only Avicenna shrubs while the Avicennia single type of mangrove in Kalu and Auranga site indicates
trees are found towards the firm land intermingled with either there is stress or a secondary succession has started.
Sonneratia and Salvadora and Acanthus bordering them on But in this study site, many mature trees of Avicennia were
the landward side. On the other hand,Acanthus illicifolius found which indicated that condition for mangrove growth is
can be found on land bordering the mature trees of present and there has been denudation of land due to partial
Avecennia marina, Salvadora persica, and deforestation of the study site.
Sonneratiaspecies.
Site 6, Thumbi river estuary four mangrove species was
The environmental gradients that lead to zonation of coastal noticed, of which Avicennia has the maximum frequency
vegetation are – (1) soil texture (Bentley. 2014), (2)soil and relative density. Low abundance was observed due to
drainage (Mendelssohn and Seneca. 1980), (3) soil aeration extensive chopping of trees and the existence of vast
(Burdick and Mendelssohn. 1987), (4)inundation frequency mudflats.
(Disraeli and Fonda. 1979), (5)salinity(Snow and Vince.
1984), (7)nutrient toxicity(McKee, Mendelssohn and Table 2, shows the quantitative parameters of mangrove
Materne. 2004). Among all these factors periodic inundation diversity. Avicennia is the most frequent mangrove in all
and saline water table are most important to determine sites and Sonneratia is least frequently found. Maximum
species diversity of an area (Kim and Ihm. 1988). tree density was observed in Nargol and Damanganga
indicating less stress and maximum shrub density was
In earlier research work many species such as Rhizophora observed in Auranga river estuary. We have not considered
mucronata, Bruguiera gymnorhiza, and Ceriops tagal were the three creeks as the creeks have very sparse, low-density
found in the estuarine areas of Purna Sanctuary in Navsari mangroves so doing the line transect was not feasible. As a
district of south Gujarat, though very rare. During my recent whole mangrove species diversity is very low and
field study in Valsad district of South Gujarat, only discontinuously distributed. Though all the creeks had very
Avicennia marina, Salvadora persica, Sonneratia sparse mangrove bushes, the lowest number of shrubswere
apetala,andAcanthus illicifolius can be round all of which observed in Fansa creek.

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Paper ID: ART20197913 10.21275/ART20197913 1101
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Mangrove associate found are listed in table 3. All these chopping for firewood and to clear the ground for salt
halophytic mangrove associates occur away from the water making. This will reduce aquatic plants of the creeks and
source on hard ground and showed seasonal fluctuation. will cause salt water ingression.
Seven main associated halophytes are Clerodendrum
inerme, Sesuviarum lagopides,Ipomoea pres capre, Cressa Factors essential for the growth of mangrove
cretica, Derris trifoliata,andAeluropus lagopoides. Several Table 5 shows various climatic factors essential for
species of Cyperus such as C rotundus and C difformis mangrove sustainability and those present in our study site.
towards the landward side of the estuarine region. It is noted that all the major climatic factor that is needed for
Alternanthera philoxeriodes are quite common in these areas survival and growth of the mangroves are present in Valsad
during post-monsoon dry periods. Species diversity of the district except soil pH which is a bit more alkaline in some
mangrove associate at various sites was homogenous. sites. Table 6 shows various water quality parameters of
three major rivers that have deep water throughout the year.
All the three creeks have good fresh water inlet from minor Here we notice that water in all the three sites are slightly
streams and had submerged aquatic vegetation. Table 4, alkaline which is not a problem as mangroves tolerate
enlists the species diversity submerged macrophytic alkaline water. Electrical conductivity is a measure of the
vegetation of the creeks which contained mangrove at their salinity. Our study sites have moderate salinity, which is not
mouth. In the creek, we find a distinct zonation of a problem as mangroves are salinity tolerant. Light metals
vegetation. In the head region, we find a variety of are micronutrients for plants. Mangroves are an accumulator
submerged and floating aquatic plants. Presence of these of heavy metals and are quite resistant to it in trace
aquatic plants is an indicator that there is abundant concentration. Dissolved oxygen of water is a function of
freshwater input. These aquatic plants are not at all the level of organic material in water. Mangroves are
detrimental for mangroves present at the mouth of these tolerant of the anoxic condition. Mostly Avicenniais present
three creeks. The inflow of both fresh and brackish water in our study sites which have pneumatophores to take
makes these creeks unique in vegetation. The creeks are oxygen directly from the air. All these conditions are
surrounded on three sides by grasslands and on one side by conducive for a biodiversity-rich coastland and estuarine
mangroves. The main stress in these creeks is mangrove ecosystem.
Table 1: Mangrove found in Valsad district of South Gujarat

Study Area Scientific name Common name Family Average Average Dicot/ Phenology Flowering Shrub/
CBH, cm Density* Monocot Tree
Site 1 Avicennia marina White mangrove Acanthaceae 15.6 21 Dicot March to June Both
Site2 Avicennia marina White mangrove Acanthaceae 14.2 5 Dicot March to June Shrub
Sonneratia alba Sweet-scented apple Lythraceae 13 8 Dicot February to June Trees
Acanthus illicifolius Holly left acanthus Acanthaceae NA 27 Dicot April to December Shrub
Salvadora persica Toothbrush tree Salvadoraceae NA 11 Dicot March to June Both
Salvadora persica Tooth brush tree Salvadoraceae NA 4 Dicot March to June Tree
Acanthus illicifolius Holly-leaved Acanthus Acanthaceae NA 17 Dicot April to December Shrub
Salvadore persica Toothbrush tree Salvadoraceae NA 11 Dicot March to June Tree
Sonneratia alba Sweet-scented apple Lythraceae 19.8 14 Dicot February to June Tree
Acanthus illicifolius Holly-leaved Acanthus Acanthaceae NA 17 Dicot April to December Shrub
Site 5 Avicennia marina White mangrove Acanthaceae 34 5 Dicot March to June Both
Salvadora persica Toothbrush tree Salvadoraceae NA 12 Dicot March to June Both
Acanthus illicifolius Holly left Acanthus Acanthaceae NA 10 Dicot March to June Shrub
Site 7 Avicennia marina White mangrove Acanthaceae NA 5 Dicot March to June Shrub
* Average number of plants per transect
Table 2: Quantitative parameters indicating floral diversity

Site Species found Frequency (%) Density Relative Density Abundance (%)
Site 1 Avicennia 80 16.8 100.0 21
Site 2 Avicennia 70 3.5 24.5 5
Sonneratia 40 3.2 22.4 8
Acanthus 20 5.4 37.8 27
Salvadora 20 2.2 15.4 11
Site 3 Avicennia 100 27.0 74.6 27
Salvadora 20 0.8 2.2 4
Acanthus 50 8.5 23.4 17
Salvadora 20 2.2 11.8 11
Sonneratia 7 0.9 5.0 14
Acanthus 27 4.5 24.3 17

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Salvadora 60 7.2 21.7 12
Acanthus 20 2.0 6.0 10
Site1 - Auranga Wanki river estuary; Site 2 - Par- Kothar estuary; Site 3- Kolak river estuary; Site 4- Damanganga river
estuary; Site 5- Kalu river estuary; Site 6- Thumbi river estuary; Site7–Lotus creek; Site 8- Maroli; Site 9- Bandhni creek.
Table 3: Mangrove associate found in Valsad district of South Gujarat

Scientific Name Vernacular Name Family Site 1 Site 2 Site 3 Site 4 Site 5 Site 6 Site 7 Site 8 Site 9
Thespasea populnea Indian tulip tree + + + + + + + + +
Ipomoea pes capre Beach morning glory Convolvulaceae + + + + + + + + +
Tridex procumbens + + + + + + + + +
Sesuviarum lagopoides Sea purse lane Aizoaceae + + + + + + + + +
Clerodendrum inerme Glory bower Fabaceae - + + + + + + + +
Derris trifoliata Pan lata Fabaceae + + + + - + + + +
Ipomoea carnea - + + - - - + + -
Cressa cretica Rudravati Convolvulaceae + - + + + + - - -
Typha agustata - + + - - - - - -
Colocasia - + + - - - - - -
Aeluropus lagopoides Khariyu gah Poaceae + + + + + + + + +
Dactyloctenium aegypticum + + + + + + + + +
Echinocloa crusgallis Poaceae + - - - - - - - -
Echinocloa colona Poaceae + + + + + + + + +
Chloris barbata Poaceae + - - + - - - - -
Cynodon dactylon Poaceae + + + + + + + + +
Cyperus rotundus Nut grass Cyperaceae + + + + + + + + +
Cyperus difformis Rice sedge Cyperaceae + + + + + + + + +
Alternanthera philoxeroides Alligator weed Amaranthaceae + + + + + + + + +
Alternanthera bettzikiana Amaranthaceae + + + + + + + + +
Alternanthera ficoides Amaranthaceae - - - - - - + - -
Alternanthera pungens Amaranthaceae - - - - - - - - +
Alternanthera tenella Amaranthaceae - + + + - - - - -
Alternanthera sessilis Sessile joyweed Amaranthaceae + + + + + + + + +
Table 4: Submerged vegetation in the three creeks

Scientific name Common name Family Site 7 Site 8 Site 9
Echinocloa crassipes + - -
Potamogeton natans Broadleaf pondweed Potamogetaceae + - -
Hydrilla verticillate Water thyme Hydrocharitaceae + - -
Cyperus rotundus Nutgrass Cyperaceae + + +
Cyperus iria Tufted sedge Cyperaceae + + +
Cyperus difformis Umbrella sedge Cyperaceae + + +
Nelumbo nucifera + - -
Nymphea carulea + - -
Nymphea pubesens + - -
Nymphea alba Water lily Nympheaceae + + +
Zostera Marine eel grass Zoosteraceae + - -
Zizaniya aquaticus Wild rice Poaceae - + +
Vallisneria spiralis Tape eel grass Hydrocharitaceae + - -
Ceratophyllum demersum Coontail Ceratophyllaceae + - -
Chara Chara + - -
Ipomoeaaquatic Water spinach Convolvulaceae + + -
Alternanthera philoxeroides Alligator weed Amaranthaceae + + +
+ Present, - Absent
*Site 1 – Auranga Wanki river estuary, Site 2 – Par – Kothar Table 5: Environmental Factors essential for mangrove
river estuary, Site 3 – Kolak river mouth,Site4 – growth and regeneration
Damanganga river mouth, Site5 – Kalu river mouth, Site6 – Parameter Required by Valsad district
Thumbi river estuary, Site 7 – Lotus pond creek, Site 8 – Mangrove* Environmental Condition
Maroli creek, Site 9 – Bhandi creek Rainfall, cm 200 - 300 100 – 433
Atmospheric 60 - 90 52 – 93
humidity, %
Temperature, oC 19 - 35 15 – 35
Soil pH 5.3 - 6.9 6.2 - 9.1
*Data from Blasio, 1977; Naskar and Mandal, 1999
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Table 6: Yearly Average Water Quality of three rivers at the mangroves in our study sites. Repeated damming of several
river mouth rivers as mentioned earlier may be one of the causes of the
Water Quality Parameters
Damanganga Par Kolak disappearance of Rhizophora which was reported in earlier
river river river reports.
pH 7.24 7.1 7.11
Dissolved Oxygen(mg/l) 4.4 4.4 4.9 River pollution is also a major factor for dwindling
Electrical Conductivity (us/l) 3,060 2,877 2,013 mangrove in South Gujarat. In Valsad district, huge
Chloride(mg/l) 799 373 323 agricultural runoff occurs from the agricultural areas in
Sulphate(mg/l) 251 331 128
Dharampur and Khaprada hills during the monsoon.
Hardness(mg/l) 1536 521 453
Detergents, pesticides, and fertilizers used by the village
Heavy metals(mg/l) 0.05 <0.05 <0.05
Light metals (micronutrients)
folks are the major pollutants in the upper reaches that affect
1.73 1.5 1.82 mangroves down in the mouth of the river. Due to recent
(ppm)
rapid industrialization in Sarigam and Vapi effluent from
Land use pattern in the estuarine area CETP dumped into the rivers, which are deleterious for
In Table 7, we highlighted the area wise land use pattern so mangroves. Mangroves are hyperaccumulator of pollutants
that we can understand the critically degraded mangrove site and heavy metals are worst effect by river pollution. Stray
and area suitable for reforestation. The maximum estuarine cattle, crabs and other insects badly damage the
area is in Tumbh River but most of it is in the form of an pneumatophores of mangroves. The estuarine area is also
intertidalmudflat, so much of this area can be used for used for open defecation and most of the propagules and
afforestation with the extreme salinity tolerant Avicenna. seedlings are trampled by humans, so don’t get a chance to
Maximum area under mangrove vegetation is in Par- Kothar grow a tree. All these factorshave contributed to making the
estuary and Damanganga estuary. Maximum degradation of mangrove ecosystem of Valsad fragile.
mangroves due to deforestation was observed in site 1 where
the deforested area is replaced by mud flat with Aeluropus Jaccardian Index
lagopoides.Site 8 and 9 has much of its area under salt Jaccardian similarity cluster analysis was applied in our
farming. Site 7 has the least area under mangrove. Site 5 has floral diversity analysis to cluster our nine mangrove study
an entire area under mangrove but it receives a very low sites based on the similarity of species distribution. From
amount of fresh water from the Kalu river. table 9, we observe that river mouth plant diversity (site 1 to
6) is different from the creek plant diversity (site 7, 8 and 9).
Stress Factors Creek at site 7 is floristically different from the rest of the
A notable thing observed during the field survey was that sites. Site 7 has abundant fresh water, hence supports diverse
the estuarine mangroves are succeeded by xerophytes floating, submerged plants as well as diverse grasses and
species like Acacia, Prosopis species due to various sedges throughout the year. Such abundance absent in the
anthropogenic pressure such as the land use pattern change. other creeks. Among the creek sites, site 8 and 9 has almost
Also, the mangroves are quite thin at places with stunted 90 % similarity which can be due to the same level of
growth. Mangroves in our area are facing some salinity as both these sites are used in salt mining. Creek
anthropogenic stress. Water quality and other environmental sites are thus sub - clustered into two groups one containing
factors are not creating much plant stress. Table 8, highlights only site 7 and other containing sites 8 and 9. River mouth
the site-specific stress factors at various mangrove sites of can be sub clustered into two subgroups containing site 1, 5
Valsad district so we can find a site-specific solution for and sites 2, 3, 4, 6 due to change in land use pattern. The
mangrove preservation. first river cluster containing site 1 and 5. These sites have
massive deforestation, site 1 has been deforested long ago as
Most common stress in all sites is chopping of trees for is obvious from the new seedlings are seen to grow out in
various purpose such as clearing ground for parking of some of those places and site 5 is having recent
fishing boats and creating aquaculture ponds in all the sites. deforestation hence no regeneration of trees observed. Site
The use of dragnet, gillnet, and mechanized boats in fishing 2, 3,4 and 6 has similar species composition as these sites
ports like Maroli, Fansa, Nargol, Umargaon, Kothar, and have less deforestation but much damage is done to
Umarsadi causes the destruction of propagules of mangrove propagules by fishing trawlers in these three sites.
mangroves. Coastal and estuarine lands have been converted
to agricultural lands for plants such as rice cultivation, Jaccardian similarity index reflects that the land use pattern
coconut plantations, mango, chikoo, and Casuarina is related to plant diversity. Sites with the same type of
plantation. Salt fields were found in only three creek areas. human interference have the same type of vegetation. Our
study sites are thus clustered into three groups – site 1 to 6,
Repeated damming of the rivers and choking of plants by site 7 and site 8, 9. Reclamation of saline soil has been done
polythene are the major anthropogenic stress factors for earlier by Salvadoracan also be done in the creeks
Table 7: Land use pattern in the estuarine area (%)

Site No. Mangrove area, % Mudflat area, % Aquaculture area, % Deforested area, % Salt production area, %
Site 1 13 43 0 43 0
Site 2 74 24 2 0 0
Site 3 44 56 0 0 0
Site 4 38 62 0 0 0
Site 5 98 0 0 2 0

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Paper ID: ART20197913 10.21275/ART20197913 1104
ISSN: 2319-7064
Site 6 8 92 0 0 0
Site 7 1 99 0 0 0
Site 8 17 29 0 0 54
Site 9 8 46 0 0 46
Table 8: Stress factors at various mangrove sites at Valsad district

Sites AnthropogenicPressure
Site 1 Deforestation for parking space for trawlers and fishing boats, repeating damming of rivers, sea barriers to protect against rough
tides, dumping of industrial effluent, dumping of municipal waste, timber harvesting.
Site 2 Deforestation for parking space for trawler and fishing boats, aquaculture and prawn culture, repeating damming of rivers, sea
barriers to protect against rough tides, dumping of industrial effluent, dumping of municipal waste, timber harvesting.
Site 3 Deforestation for parking space for trawler and fishing boats, aquaculture and prawn culture, repeating damming of rivers,
dumping of industrial effluent, dumping of municipal waste, timber harvesting.
Site 4 Deforestation for parking space for trawler and fishing boats, repeating damming of rivers, dumping of industrial effluent,
dumping of municipal waste, timber harvesting
Site 5 Deforestation for parking space for trawler and fishing boats, deforestation for coconut plantation, sea barriers to protect against
rough tides, timber harvesting.
Site 6 Deforestation for parking space for trawler and fishing boats, aquaculture and prawn culture,
Site 7 Deforestation for parking space for trawler and fishing boats, deforestation for creating space for mango and chikoo plantation,
salt mining, timber harvesting.
Site 8 Deforestation for parking space for trawler and fishing boats, aquaculture and prawn culture, salt mining, timber harvesting.
Site 9 Deforestation for parking space for trawler and fishing boats, aquaculture and prawn culture, salt mining, timber harvesting.
Table 9: Jaccardian Similarity Index for mangrove sites Reforestation can be done on public-privatepartnership and
Site 1 Site 2 Site 3 Site 4 Site 5 Site 6 Site 7 Site 8 Site 9 involving the local folks by making them aware of the
Site 1 0.64 0.67 0.75 0.80 0.77 0.50 0.71 0.73 benefits of mangroves in the estuarine areas of Valsad.A
Site 2 0.64 0.96 0.85 0.69 0.81 0.51 0.69 0.64 comprehensive action plan to reduce stress factors mainly
Site 3 0.67 0.96 0.81 0.72 0.84 0.53 0.71 0.67 chopping of mangroves due to various reasons could only be
Site 4 0.75 0.85 0.81 0.74 0.87 0.49 0.67 0.68 solved by educating the local farmers and fishing folks of
Site 5 0.80 0.69 0.72 0.74 0.85 0.53 0.77 0.80 the benefits of having mangroves. Salt mining if stopped
Site 6 0.77 0.81 0.84 0.87 0.85 0.53 0.75 0.77 from site 8 and 9 can increase the mangrove density in those
Site 7 0.50 0.51 0.53 0.49 0.53 0.53 0.65 0.55
creeks.
Site 8 0.71 0.69 0.71 0.67 0.77 0.75 0.65 0.86
Site 9 0.73 0.64 0.67 0.68 0.80 0.77 0.55 0.86
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ISSN: 2319-7064
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International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR)

Biodiversity of Coastal Areas of Valsad, South

Keywords: Quantitative assessment, anthropogenic pressures,water quality parameter

1. Introduction indicates that mangroves can change over from C3 to C4

Volume 8 Issue 5, May 2019

Volume 8 Issue 5, May 2019

Table 1: Mangrove found in Valsad district of South Gujarat

Table 2: Quantitative parameters indicating floral diversity

Volume 8 Issue 5, May 2019

Table 3: Mangrove associate found in Valsad district of South Gujarat

Table 4: Submerged vegetation in the three creeks

Table 7: Land use pattern in the estuarine area (%)

Volume 8 Issue 5, May 2019

Table 8: Stress factors at various mangrove sites at Valsad district

Volume 8 Issue 5, May 2019

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