Research Activities
Abstracts of recently published papers
Limnology/Wetland Ecology
DOI: 10.1080 /14634980290031848
http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/uaem20
Abstract: This work was initiated to study the extent of toxic metal contamination of the east Calcutta wetland ecosystem. BOD, COD, TDS, Conductivity, TSS, Total hardness, pH were recorded from six different spots on the sewage carrying canals including an industrial effluent-fed fish pond in the eastern Calcutta (lat. 22o33/ -22o 40/ N; long. 88o 25/ -88o 35/ E). Concentrations of metals such as Pb, Cu, Cr, Zn, Fe, Mg and Mn in wastewaters, and water of adjacent sewage-fed fish tank were also determined. Concentration of these hazardous metals in soil/sludge and accumulation of these metals in plant and fish tissues were also studied. A number of hazardous metals in wastewater like Pb, Zn, Cu, Mn, and Fe reduced to the extent of 25-45% while total Cr reduced over 95%, on the course of 40 km long journey of the composite wastewater from the sources to rivermouth via the wastewater carrying canal and also in stabilization pond were recorded. 99% Cr and 65% Zn reductions in soil/sediment were recorded between sources and final discharge sites.
Keywords : Wastewater, solid wastes, heavy metals, fish, plant, EIA.
Secondary Production, and Calcium-to-Tissue Ratio in the
Freshwater Limpet Septaria lineata (Archaeogastropoda: Neritidae)
© TÜB-TAK
Abstract: The distribution, secondary production, and calcium:tissue (Ca:tissue) ratio in relation to limno-chemical factors were studied in a freshwater limpet (Septaria lineata) population from the west bank of the River Hooghly, West Bengal, India, for 2 successive years. Total hardness, chloride, pH, and phosphate were shown to be significant in Pearson’s correlations in influencing the abundance of the limpet population. Annual production for the 2 successive years was 10.3 g m-2 and 9.5 g m-2, respectively. The annual turnover ratios, the ratios of annual production (P) and annual standing crop (B), ‘P/B’, were calculated to be 2.06 and 1.67, while annual turnover times were 177 days and 219 days, respectively. The ratio of whole animal shell calcium content to tissue dry weight (shell Ca:tissue ratio) changed with age and size class, but these changes were largely restricted to early growth and did not significantly affect individuals over a particular size class (shell height 40-49 mm). Total hardness and chloride were the most important limnochemical factors influencing the shell Ca:tissue ratio.
Key Words: Septaria, freshwater limpet, secondary production, population density, Ganga
Anulipi Aich and Subhra Kumar Mukhopadhyay
Key words: shola, edge species, Western Ghats, hotspot, EBA 123, Biome 10, Palearctic-Asian migrant
Full-text Available Online at www.bioline.org.br/ja
ISSN 2079-2077, © IDOSI Publications, 2010
Key words: Nanoplankton, Rotifera, Succession Rate, Phytoplankton, Artificial Substrate
Anulipi Aich, Anindita Chakraborty, Mathumal Sudarshan, Buddhadeb Chattopadhyay & Subhra Kumar Mukhopadhyay
Abstract
Fish grown in the East CalcuttaWetland (ECW) areas inWest Bengal, India amass waste elements within their body through nutritional uptake and accumulation. The present investigation had been carried out to atudy the extent of accumulation of di¡erent waste elements in tissues of Indian major carps (IMCs) commonly cultured in composite industrial wastewaterfed fishponds in ECW, India. Energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometric studies were used to estimate metals like chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn) and lead (Pb) inwater and sediment of ¢shponds, and in ¢sh tissues (gill, liver and muscle) of three economically important
IMCs, rohu (Labeo rohita), katla (Catla catla) and mrigel Cirrhinus mrigala), collected from contaminated and
control sites. It is evident from the study that mainly liver is the site of maximum accumulation of the elements,
while gill, in most cases, is the site of least metal accumulation in the three IMC species studied. Principal component analysis reveals that Fe and Cr were in the ¢rst component and thereby must be having a major in£uence in trace metals uptake and bioaccumulation. Tissue-speci¢c and species-specific patterns of metal concentration and partitioning were apparent fromour present study.
Keywords: Ramsar site, East Calcutta Wetland, trace metals, ¢sh tissue, Indian major carp
Abstract: We carried out limnological investigations in relation to anticipated effects of migratory waterbird use in an urban lake 20 km from the East Calcutta Wetlands, a Ramsar site. Twentytwos species of birds used the lake during the migration and wintering periods (Oct.-Mar.) in 3 successive years (2004-2007). The lowest Shannon diversity index value of 0.360 was found in Nov., while the highest of 0.963 was found in Oct. for the pooled data collected during the 3-yr study period. We examined correlations among 7 physical, chemical, and vegetal factors with avian densities. The addition of bird guano increased the nutrients and was rapidly utilized by higher gross primary productivity (GPP) as well as by secondary production of the lake body. Higher rates of both primary and secondary production resulted in the rapid uptake of basic nutrients like phosphate, nitrate, and silicate. We found negative correlations of major nutrients (phosphate, nitrate, and silicate) with both GPP and higher avian densities. Increased areas of open water, which were free of floating vegetation, also likely influenced bird aggregation and the limnochemistry by allowing more space for avian interactions and increased solar input for photosynthesis, respectively.
Key words: Santragachi wetland, Limnochemistry, Waterbirds, East Calcutta Wetlands, Ramsar site.
INDIRECT EVIDENCES OF WILDLIFE ACTIVITIES IN SHOLAS OF WESTERN GHATS, A BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOT
Manjari Jain, Singha Roy Utpal, S. K. Mukhopadhyay
Vestnik zoologii, 45(2): 153—159, 2011
Abstract: The presence of wildlife fauna and its activities were ascertained with the density of the scat, dung and other markings or droppings of the wildlife abode therein. Attempt was made to find out spatial differences in the activities of the wildlife populations and to comment on the abundance of different preys and predators within shola forests of Western Ghat hill forests, a Biodiversity hotspot in India. An indirect sampling method, Transect Count Method, was employed to count dung/pellet group/scat and other markings in that area. Pachyderms were found to be mostly dominant in Varagaliar and Punnumala shola patches while scats of all the three important predators, viz., tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), Indian wild dog (Cuon alpinus) and leopard (Panthera pardus) were encountered only in Varagaliar shola. Greater abundance was recorded from Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary than Silent Valley National Park may be because of the restriction of animal movements in the former due to topographical barriers and its existence as isolated shola patches that led to a greater concentration of wild fauna in a relatively segregated forest cover.
Key words: scat, shola, hotspot, topographical barriers, tribal settlements, Western Ghats.
Abhishek Roy Goswamia,b, Anulipi Aicha, Sudin Pala, Buddhadeb Chattopadhyaya,Siddhartha Dattab
and Subhra Kumar Mukhopadhyay
Toxicological & Environmental Chemistry, 2013
Vol. 95, No. 4, 627–634, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02772248.2013.801142
Abstract: The municipal sewage of Calcutta city together with industrial effluents traversed theEast Calcutta Wetlands (ECW) (Ramsar Site No. 1208) for nearly a century. The composite wastewater at the ECW, was used for pisciculture and agriculture after natural stabilization. Such uses have always been thought to be a source of contamination to biota and humans. Some water-borne pollutants generate reactive oxygen species including superoxide radical anion (O2.), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), and hydroxyl radical (.OH), which are highly reactive and potentially deleterious to biological systems. The present study was initiated to examine the antioxidant activities against oxidative stress during different seasons in body fluids of two zooplankters, Moina micrura and Mesocyclops leuckarti thriving in wastewater-fed ponds of ECW. Results showed significantly higher electrical conductivity, chloride and metal (Cr, Cu, and Pb) concentrations in contaminated wastewater-fed pond (CP) at ECW compared to the uncontaminated village pond (UP). Zooplanktons thriving in CP displayed significantly higher superoxide dismutase and catalase activities at all seasons compared to those in UP. Seasonal variations in antioxidant activities were found to be in agreement with variations in limnochemical factors. Hence, antioxidant activity was used as a biomarker against oxidative damage in plankters surviving under pollutant stress.
Keywords: East Calcutta Wetlands; zooplankton; oxidative stress; antioxidants; biomarker; cladocera; copepoda
UTPAL SINGHA ROY, ABHISHEK ROY GOSWAMI, ANULIPI AICH,
B. CHATTOPADHYAY, S. DATTA AND S. K. MUKHOPADHYAY
International Journal of Environmental Studies, 2013
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00207233.2013.774810
Abstract: Calcutta Leather Complex (CLC) near Bantala, Calcutta was constructed in the late 1990s. The ostensible purpose was to bring together the widely dispersed and haphazardly located tanning industry of Calcutta in a single location and to facilitate hazardous waste management by establishing a Common Effluent Treatment Plant. Unfortunately, for a number of reasons, the CLC is not yet ully operational. Further, the continued operation of illegal tanneries outside CLC has worsened atters. This study was undertaken to assess the physicochemical conditions of wastewater carrying anals within the East Calcutta Wetland (ECW) ecosystem (a Ramsar site) with special reference to he relocation of tanneries. Results revealed a great change in the values for physicochemical conditions; most changes were statistically significant (p < 0.05) when compared with available data, previous to tannery relocation. Moreover, the amelioration efficiency of ECW ecosystem was found to be mostly disturbed both by the illegal tannery operations and shifting of tannery agglomerates.
Keywords: East Calcutta Wetland ecosystem; Tannery agglomerates; Calcutta Leather Complex
STUDIES ON THE TOXICITY OF COMPOSITE TANNERY EFFLUENTUSING GUPPY
(Poecilia reticulata) AS A FISH MODEL
Utpal Singha Roy, Anulipi Aich, Buddhadeb Chattopadhyay, Siddhartha Datta, Subhra Kumar Mukhopadhyay
Environmental Engineering and Management Journal, March 2013, Vol.12, No. 3, 557-563
http://omicron.ch.tuiasi.ro/EEMJ/
Abstract: East Calcutta Wetland ecosystem is a Ramsar Site in India covering almost 51 km2 and is one of the largest of its type. This wetland receives a massive load of almost untreated industrial and domestic effluents every day, throughout the year, that has been effectively utilized in pisciculture for having a better yield (2.85 metric tons of fish per 0.01 km2 of water body per annum). The present investigation was carried out to study the toxicity of the untreated effluents discharged from tanneries located at the fringe of East Calcutta wetlands. Guppy (Poecilia reticulata) was chosen as a model fish and was exposed to three different sublethal concentrations (3%, 6% and 9%) of composite tannery effluents (TE) for different time periods (4 days, 7 days and 15 days). Exposed fish livers were analyzed for metallothionein (MT, a ubiquitous metal binding protein), cytochrome P4501A1+1A2 (CYP, a major family of xenobiotic metabolizing enzyme in fish biosystem) and nonspecific cytotoxic cells (NCCs, a major group of innate immune system in fish) expressions applying indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay
(ELISA) procedure. Results showed that expression of all the three chosen biomarkers were significantly dose and time dependent upon tannery effluent exposure. Major significances drawn from the present study was that fish species cultivated in east Calcutta wetland ecosystem are under potential threat of contamination and stress induced by composite tannery effluents that could lead to adverse physiological conditions. Moreover, these findings could be important in terms of designing biomarkers for early environmental warning system and also for monitoring fish health.
Key words: biomarkers, cytochrome P450, innate immunity, metallothionein, tannery effluent