Coral reefs at Lakshadweep bounce back

KAVARATTI: Lakshadweep is slowly moving back to its leisurely pace after cyclone Ockhi left a trail of destruction in its wake. Coral reefs have started to recover after surviving the onslaught of the cyclone and tourists are trickling in.
“Our detailed survey showed that cyclone Ockhi did not inflict much damage on living corals. We were lucky that dead coral reefs were mostly uprooted and thrown into the islands during the cyclone.The reefs have survived,” said administrator of the Union territory Farooq Khan, adding that the reefs are becoming healthier once again.

“On two previous occasions, El Nino had a bad impact on the health of the reefs. Some of our coral species were badly affected then. In the process, however, some hardy strains developed. Some new species too developed. The species, which were badly affected, have started to regenerate,” Khan said.
Right before cyclone Ockhi, the islands witnessed a massive coral spawning, which for islanders was an ‘out-of-theworld’ experience. “Coral spawning is the external reproduction process of corals. Egg and sperm are released by the corals at the same time and the water starts to turn red, it’s an amazing sight,” said range forest officer, Kavaratti, Abdul Raheem.
He added that Ockhi did have a bad effect on them. “Parrot fishes scratch the surfaces of underwater rocks readying it for encrusting corals to attach and grow. It was during this fragile time Ockhi hit,” said Raheem adding the corals are recovering. He added that people often wonder why a forest department is necessary in Lakshadweep. “The biggest forest is underwater. There are multitudes of animals called corals. We record their life and conserve this underwater forests,” he said.
Lakshadweep has over 114 species of corals and over 101 species of lagoon fishes. Butterfly fish, parrot fish, groupers et al are among the fish species while Acropora, Goniopora, Galaxea, Porites, Platygyra et al are the coral varieties in the islands, he said.
“Consider the islands as a hill top with the rest of the hill underwater. At a depth of 40m, corals can be seen on the sides of hills while on the other side it is deep sea,” said Raheem.
Long-term reef monitoring programme is one of the preservation projects. “We do thorough survey of corals. Photographs are clicked at various locations and more photos are taken a few months later from the same spot. By analysing these photographs, we calculate the coverage of corals, there resilient capacity, etc. We can cordon off an area if damages to corals are found, asking people to not go there. There is nothing much we can do to assist corals if they are damaged,” said Raheem.
He said people should see the corals here. “Corals are something that people should see and responsible tourism should be promoted. People studying corals should be allowed visits,” said Raheem.
He said that snorkelling is the best activity for a nature enthusiast. “When you are visiting a forest area, 90% of what you see would be the same during all your visits. However, when you snorkel, you’ll see different action and life at the same spot,” he said.