Abstract
The Lakshadweep archipelago comprises 12 coral atolls with 36 islands and five submerged banks. The total area of the islands is 32 square kilometers, and is surrounded by 4,200 km of lagoon, raised reefs and banks. The natural habitat of coral reefs near the junction of land, sea and air is both varied and variable and is a potentially stressful environment. Reefs are geologic formations constructed from the accumulated skeletons of limestone secreting animals and plants. The intimately linked plant-animal communities that create them are representative of an ecosystem that occurs in tropical and subtropical waters across the planet, most commonly in shallow oceanic water and often close to land. Coral reefs have the greatest bio-diversity of all marine of ecosystems. Coral reefs have declined over the course of human history, culmination in the dramatic increase in coral mortality and reef degradation of the past 20-50 years. The causes of this crisis are a complex mixture of direct human imposed and climate-related stresses, and include factors such as outbreaks of disease, which have suspected but unproven connections to both human activities and climate factors. The coral reefs of Lakshadweep are home to a wide variety of organisms including crabs, sponges, turtles, tuna and other fishes and birds. These are in delicate equilibrium with human beings and their related activities. Any plan for development of these islands needs to take into account the fallout on the biodiversity too. The strategy for this purpose would consist mainly of protection of corals and documenting this diversity and the impact of any developmental activities on the corals.
[1],2 Assistant Professor, College of Education, Lakshadweep, Kavaratti.