New distributional record of the endemic estuarine sand whiting, <em>Sillago vincenti</em> McKay, 1980 from the Pichavaram mangrove ecosystem, southeast coast of India

Abstract

The Sillaginids, commonly known as sand whiting are one among the common fishes caught by the traditional fishers in estuarine ecosystems all along the Tamil Nadu coast. The present study records the new distributional range extension for <em>Sillago vincenti</em> from the waters of Pichavaram mangrove, whereas earlier reports were restricted to only the Palk Bay and Gulf of Mannar regions of the Tamil Nadu coast, whereas it enjoys a wide range of distribution both in the east and west coast of India. This study marks the additional extension of the distributional record for <em>S. vincenti</em> in the east coast of India. Biological information on these fishes will have ecological applications particularly on account on their extreme abundance in the mangrove waters. The present study is based on the collection of specimens from handline fishing practices undertaken in the shallow waters of Pichavaram mangroves, on the southeast coast of India.