[vishaw]

Estuary
Where River Meets the Sea


An estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water. It is here that the river meets the sea in shallow, protected bays. The estuary serves a banquet of decaying plants, tiny floating plants and animals called plankton, and little fishes. Millions of sea animals get their start in life feeding in the quiet waters of the estuary. They can find shelter in salt marshes, beds of slender eelgrass, or wide mudflats. A range of coastal landforms fit this description, including bays, lagoons, harbours, inlets, sounds, fiords and swamps.
An estuary has very little wave action, so it provides a calm refuge from the open sea. Some of the animals, such as flounder, eels, and striped bass are just visitors to the estuary. Small fishes such as stickleback and mummichogs, mud snails, and oysters may spend their entire lives there. Flush with nutrients and inhabited by resilient organisms, estuaries are among the most productive ecosystems on earth. They provide rich feeding grounds for coastal fish and migratory birds, and spawning areas for fish and shellfish. They are also important in maintaining the quality of coastal waters.

The estuary ecosystem
Estuary mudflats seem an unlikely setting for some of the most productive habitats in the world, but here at the interface of land and sea life abounds – for the select few. Certain plants, seaweeds and photosynthetic micro-organisms (phytoplankton) absorb nutrients at a fast rate, grow rapidly and produce lots of food.

Estuaries are termed ‘open’ ecosystems because they are vitally linked to the wider environment. Nutrients are carried in from the land via rivers, and from the sea by the tides. Some of these nutrients are then taken out again when animals such as fish and birds leave the estuary. Some are also flushed out to sea on outgoing tides.

ESTUARIES OF INDIA

EAST COAST ESTUARIES
1. Hooghly estuary
2. Rushikulya estuary
3. Bahuda estuary
4. Mahanadi estuary
5. Godavari and Krishna estuaries
6. Gosthani estuary
7. Kandaleru estuary
8. Swarnamukhi and Konderu estuaries
9. Araniar estuary
10. Ennore estuary
11. Cooum estuary
12. Adyar estuary
13. Muttukadu backwaters
14. Edaiyur - Sadras estuarine complex
15. Uppanar estuary
16. Vellar estuary
17. Kollidam (Coleroon) estuary
18. Kaveri (Cauvery) estuary
19. Agniar estuary
20. Kallar estuary
21. Pinnakayal and Pullavazhi estuaries
22. Athankarai and Kanjirangudi estuaries
23. Kottakkarai, Uppar, Vaigai, Kottakkudy
and Thengapattanam estuaries

WEST COAST ESTUARIES
24. Ashtamudi estuary
25. Kadinamkulam estuar4
26. Estuaries of Kochi
27. Korapuzha estuary
28. Beypore estuary
29. Olipuram Kadavu backwaters
30. Edava-Nadayara and Paravur backwaters
31. Poonthura estuary
32. Puthuponnani and Chandragiri estuaries
33. Shiriya, Thotapally and Pozhikara estuaries
34. Netravathi and Gurupur estuaries
35. Mulki estuary
36. Pavenje estuary
37. Gangolli estuary
38. Kali estuary
39. Mandovi - Zuari estuarine complex
40. Estuaries of Mumbai
41. Waghotana estuary
42. Vashishti estuary
43. Purna estuary
44. Mahi estuary
45. Damaganga - Kolak river estuaries
46. Par river estuary
47. Ambika-Kaveri-Kareira estuarine complex
48. Mindola river estuary
49. Tapti and Narmada river estuaries
50. Auranga estuary

Besides this Chilika Lagoon (Orissa), is a part freshwater lake and part saltwater estuary, with an area of 1000 sq. km is one of the hotspots of biodiversity in India.. Its high productivity and the presence of a variety of habitats in and around the lake allow the proliferation of an amazing number of wildlife species, including birds