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| WETLANDS OF INDIA | |
S. N. Prasad, T. Sengupta, Alok Kumar, V. S. Vijayan and Lalita Vijayan
Salim Ali Center for Ornithology and Natural History,Coimbatore-641 108.
T. V. Ramachandra and N. Ahalya
Center for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-560 012.
A. K. Tiwari
Regional Remote Sensing Service Center, Dehradun, Uttarachal-248 001. CONTENTS | Introduction | Distribution of wet lands in India | Diversity of aquatic vegitation and avifauna in wetlands | Diversity of fishes in wetlands | Threat to wetlands is a threat to ecological balance | Acute wetland losses | Chronic wetland losses | The most seriously threatened wetlands in India | Wetland management - Current status | Protection laws and government initiatives | National wetland strategies | Use of Remote Sensing and GIS in wetland management | Interconnectivity of wetlands | Classification scheme of inland wetlands | Criteria for identifying wetlands of international importance( Ramsar Convention) | Classification of wetlands in the Indian subcontinent (Gopal et at., 1995) | Proposed classification of Inland wetlands in the Indian subcontinent(Anon, 2000) | Conclusion |
INTRODUCTION |
Wetlands are defined as lands transitional between terrestrial and aquatic eco-systems where the water table is usually at or near the surface or the land is covered by shallow water (Mitch and Gosselink, 1986). The value of the world's wetlands is increasingly receiving due attention as they contribute to a healthy environment in many ways. They retain water during dry periods, thus keeping the water table high and relatively stable. During periods of flooding, they mitigate floods and trap suspended solids and attached nutrients. Thus, streams flowing into lakes by way of wetland areas will transport fewer suspended solids and nutrients to the lakes than if they flow directly into the lakes. The removal of such wetland systems because of
S. N. Prasad, T. Sengupta, Alok Kumar, V. S. Vijayan and Lalita Vijayan
Salim Ali Center for Ornithology and Natural History,Coimbatore-641 108.
T. V. Ramachandra and N. Ahalya
Center for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore-560 012.
A. K. Tiwari
Regional Remote Sensing Service Center, Dehradun, Uttarachal-248 001. CONTENTS | Introduction | Distribution of wet lands in India | Diversity of aquatic vegitation and avifauna in wetlands | Diversity of fishes in wetlands | Threat to wetlands is a threat to ecological balance | Acute wetland losses | Chronic wetland losses | The most seriously threatened wetlands in India | Wetland management - Current status | Protection laws and government initiatives | National wetland strategies | Use of Remote Sensing and GIS in wetland management | Interconnectivity of wetlands | Classification scheme of inland wetlands | Criteria for identifying wetlands of international importance( Ramsar Convention) | Classification of wetlands in the Indian subcontinent (Gopal et at., 1995) | Proposed classification of Inland wetlands in the Indian subcontinent(Anon, 2000) | Conclusion |
INTRODUCTION |
Wetlands are defined as lands transitional between terrestrial and aquatic eco-systems where the water table is usually at or near the surface or the land is covered by shallow water (Mitch and Gosselink, 1986). The value of the world's wetlands is increasingly receiving due attention as they contribute to a healthy environment in many ways. They retain water during dry periods, thus keeping the water table high and relatively stable. During periods of flooding, they mitigate floods and trap suspended solids and attached nutrients. Thus, streams flowing into lakes by way of wetland areas will transport fewer suspended solids and nutrients to the lakes than if they flow directly into the lakes. The removal of such wetland systems because of