Zooplankton production in coastal waters

Abstract

A review of the earlier works on zooplankton of Andaman and Nicobar waters indicates paucity of information. Tsuruta (1963) discussed the representa tive composition and the distribution of plankton of the fish grounds for tuna in the Bay of Bengal based on samples collected in the deeper waters off these islands. Chiba (1956) and Jones (1966) have given accounts on systematic studies of copepods, Pillai (1970) and Roy (1977) described the occurrence of new species of calanoid copepods in the coastal waters of Andaman Sea. Rangarajan and Marichamy (1972) made a brief mention on the seasonal fluctuations in the biomass of plankton. Recently, Paulinose and George (1976) have recorded the occurrence of larvae of penaeid prawns in large numbers in the waters around Andaman and Nicobar Islands. No published account is available on the seasonal distribution of zooplankton from the coastal regions of these islands. The present accoimt is an effort .to provide preliminary information on zooplankton and a general treatment of the distribution of planktonic larvae along the coast.