Ichthyofaunal Diversity of Kangsabati River at Paschim Medinipur District,West Bengal,India

Fish faunal diversity and their abundance vary to a great extent in respect to physical, chemical and biological parameters of the water body. The present study deals with the fish biodiversity and distribution with respect to several physicochemical characters of the habitat, from August-2013 to January-2015 in the Kangsabati River, Paschim Medinipur District of West Bengal. Occurrence of 45 fish species belonging to 8 orders, 17 families and 29 genera have been noted during the study period. It is evident that the members belonging to Cyprinifomes constitute 41 % of the total fish fauna of the river. Fluctuation in occurrence and abundance of the species are influenced by a number of physicochemical parameters viz. pH, dissolved oxygen, salinity, conductivity and suspended solids.     

Length–weight relationships of three freshwater fish species from Rupnaryan and Kangsabati River,West Bengal,India

The length–weight relationships (LWRs) of three freshwater fish species from the Kangsabati and Rupnaryan river in West Bengal, India are presented, namely as Amblypharyngodon microlepis (Bleeker, 1853), Parambassis lala (Hamilton, 1822) and Macrognathus aculeatus (Bloch, 1786). Gill‐nets (mesh sizes with 0.5 cm–4 cm), cast‐nets (up to 1 × 1 cm mesh size with up to 4.0 m² area) and scoop‐nets (0.3 × 0.3 cm and 0.5 × 0.5 cm mesh size) were used from January, 2017 to April, 2018. Sampling was done every 15 days during this period. The value of parameter “b” ranged from 2.751 to 2.895 with highly significant correlations (r² > 0.95).     

On the Record of a Spot-Fin Porcupine Fish,Diodon hystrix (Linnaeus, 1758) from Mandarmani,Bay of Bengal Coast of West Bengal,India

A dead specimen of a spot-fin porcupine fish Diodon hystrix was observed on the sea shore in Mandarmani, West Bengal, India. The fish weighed 2.7 kg, 76.5 cm in length and 2.54 cm in eye diameter. Although distributed circumtropically and recorded from Indian coastal waters, D. hystrix is not harvested at present, as a part of commercial capture fishery. Scars and symptoms ensuring trawler net trap caused death of the specimen. This incident warrants for a strict vigil on fishing gear used in this part of Bay of Bengal so as to ensure death escape of non-target marine resources.     

Indoor and outdoor aeromycological survey in Burdwan, West Bengal, India

A comparative survey of airborne fungal spores in fiveindoor and five outdoor environments in Burdwan, WestBengal, India, was carried out for a period of twoyears using rotorod samplers and sedimentation plates(culture plate). A total of 29 spore types wereidentified, of which three were Phycomycetous (Mucor, Rhizopus, Syncephalastrum), one Ascomycetous(Chaetomium), one Basidiomycetous (Ganoderma) and the remainder were Fungi Imperfecti. The results revealed lowest count during summer andmaximum during the rainy season. Aspergilluswas quite abundant in all the environments surveyed. The predominance of Aspergillus, Curvularia,Alternaria, Cladosporium, Drechslera, Fusarium in allthe surveyed environments has been attributed to theirability to grow in various substrata. The occurrenceof Cladosporium in the winter months suggestthat it is sensitive to high temperature. Allspore types were common in both environmentsexcept Bispora, Cercospora, Papularia, Spegazzinia, Trichothecium in the outdoor sites. Acorrelation has been made between the volumetriccomposition of airspora and the incidence of seasonalmold allergy.     

Genetics of dermatoglyphic asymmetry in Vaidyas of West Bengal, India

In this study of the genetics of dermatoglyphic asymmetry, we collected bilateral finger and palm prints of 824 individuals from 200 families including 2 generations from an endogamous caste (Vaidya) in Barasat, North 24-Parganas District, West Bengal. Two main types of asymmetry (fluctuating asymmetry and directional asymmetry) were calculated between the two hands. The study includes familial correlation between first-degree relatives, principal-components analysis, and maximum-likelihood-based heritabilities (by pedigree analysis). We found, first, that familial correlations in all possible pairs of relationships (except spouse correlation) were weak but positive; some were even statistically significant. No indication of assortative mating was observed, but the influence of maternal environment could not be discarded. The results also showed that X-chromosome linkage does not seem to be involved. A second major finding is that five principal factors could be extracted from all these asymmetric traits, explaining 74.207% of the overall cumulative variance. Asymmetry of finger and palmar areas were clearly separated by factor. In addition, the heritabilities of the extracted five factors were in the range of 8-24%. These estimates are in agreement with some previously published data. The heritabilities of the factors describing palmar asymmetry are slightly lower than those describing finger asymmetry. The present results support the hypothesis that both types of asymmetry have a genetic basis and are influenced by the intrauterine environment.     

Gene differentiation among ten endogamous groups of West Bengal, India

Ten endogamous populations of West Bengal, India have been surveyed for genetic variation in 12 systems. These populations encompass all social ranks in the caste hierarchy and cover almost the entire geographic area of the state. Gene diversity analysis suggests that these groups exhibit significant allele frequency variation at all but three loci. The overall genetic difference is not, however, in accord with the classification based on caste. Two low-ranking scheduled caste groups are, in fact, in close proximity with the high-caste ones, suggesting evidence of past generations of gene flow among them. Three different clusters of groups emerge from the present data, providing support for the anthropologic assertion that in Bengal Proto-Australoid, Caucasoid, and Mongoloid racial elements generally coexist. However, these three components are not uniformly present in all groups. Geographic separation of the groups is a strong determinant of the gene differentiation that exists among these populations.     

Reproductive behaviour of free-ranging rural dogs in West Bengal,India

Reproductive behaviour of free-ranging dogsCanis familiaris Linnaeus, 1758 was studied in a village in the state of West Bengal, India. Increased synchronized breeding was the most striking feature of this study. October (late monsoon) represented the peak period of mating for the feral dogs. Of all courting males, only 41% were observed to mount and copulate. On average, each male mounted 5.47 ± 2.49 (mean ± SD) times per hour. Of all mountings, only 10% were successful matings, ie copulatory ties. There was a negative correlation between the number of courting males and the number of successful copulations. The average duration of copulatory tie was 15.73 ± 7.75 min. Several factors interrupting the duration of copulatory ties were identified. December was the peak period of pup rearing. Mean litter size was 5.70 ± 2.03 with a male-biased sex ratio 1.41:1. Only a single annual breeding cycle recorded here differed from the previous studies on European and American dogs. Mothers spent most of the time with their pups at the dens during the early stage of rearing. The duration of time spent at dens by mothers was minimum when the pups were highly mobile at the age of 10 weeks. The lactating mothers were observed to be more aggressive immediately following litter production. Typically, an old adult male remained near the den as a ‘guard’.     

Population ecology of free-ranging urban dogs in West Bengal, India

A population of urban free-ranging dogsCanis familiaris Linnaeus, 1758 was studied in Katwa, West Bengal, India. The analysis of changes in the density of the dog population over a period of 4 years revealed a considerable stability of this population. Mean (±SD)₂ seasonal population density was 185±19 dogs/km², ranging from 156 to 214 dogs/km². A sex ratio of 1.37∶1 in favour of male was recorded in this study. High mortality (67%) occurred under the age of 4 months, and 82% mortality occurred within the age of 1 year. Among the adults, 24% mortality under the age of 2.6 year was recorded. Only a single breeding cycle and synchronization of breeding was observed. Immigration was observed as a crucial factor affecting the stability of this population.     

Notes on Lodha medicine in Midnapur District,West Bengal,India

This paper provides a brief account of 40 plants associated with herbal remedies among the Lodhas, a tribe of Midnapur district, West Bengal, India. Reports from informants were obtained during field studies between 1977 and 1982. The data are compared with information obtained from some other tribal societies like the Santals and the Oraons inhabiting neighbouring regions. The Lodhas have had a rich herbal folklore, but this is fading due to increasing acculturation and depletion of plant cover.     

Taxonomic notes on some freshwater Gastrotricha from West Bengal,India

The present paper is a taxanomic account of seven species of gastrotrichs (Gastrotricha: Chaetonotidae) collected from Calcutta and its adjacent areas (Lower Bengal). All the reported species represent new records from the north-eastern region of this subcontinent and three of them are new records from India.     

Airspora Measured in a Paddy Field in West Bengal,India

Aeromycoflora studies above an “Aman” variety of paddy (Oryza saliva L.) were carried out for two consecutive seasons, in 1990 and 1991, in the vicinity of Barrackpore, West Bengal, by means of the culture plate exposure technique. A more or less uniform spore concentration was observed during the early part of the vegetative stages in 1990 with an abrupt increase and peak during the maximum vegetative growth period. In 1991, a uniform spore count was found up until the flowering stages. A gradual increase in spore count after flowering was recorded in both seasons with the highest peaks during harvesting, followed by a sudden decrease after the harvest. The dominant genera isolated were Aspergillus, Currularia, Cladosporium and Penicillium. Aspergillus appeared in high concentrations from the very beginning of the crop season up to the flowering stages, with a gradual fall after flowering, while Cladosporium showed the reverse pattern. Currularia and Penicillium occurred regularly throughout the crop season.

Phytopathogenic types were represented by Helminthosporium oryzae, Fusarium, Altemaria and Nigrospora. Helminthosporium oryzae appeared in the air when the plants attained appreciable vegetative growth, being seen as “brown spots” on the foliage, and reaching peak concentration during harvesting. Fusarium in contrast to Altemaria appeared regularly in the air except during the later part of vegetative growth. Nigrospora was recorded only occasionally. A considerable number of “Sterile Forms” were present throughout both seasons.     

Prevalence of hard tick infestations in cattle of West Bengal,India

The present study was conducted to determine the prevalence of hard tick infestations in cattle of West Bengal from July 2015 to June 2016. The prevalence of hard tick infestations was studied in relation to sex and age of animals and seasonal changes in a year. Cattle of selected places were examined carefully for the presence of ticks and in positive cases ticks were collected manually and identified on the basis of morphological characters. A total of 310 cattle were examined and out of which, 130 (41.93%) cattle were found to be infested with hard ticks and the prevalent species were Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) sp., Hyalomma sp. and Haemaphysalis sp. of ticks. A significantly (p < 0.01) higher infestation was observed in female cattle (43.30%) than males (35.71%). Age-wise highest prevalence of tick infestations was found in <1 year (65%) age group followed by >3 years age group (36.8%) and 1–3 years (35.63%) age group, respectively. Seasonally, the prevalence of hard ticks was highest (p < 0.01) in monsoon (59.25%) and lowest in winter (27.09%). The study revealed that the prevalence of Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) sp. (32.25%) was significantly (p < 0.01) higher compared to Hyalomma (12.58%) and Haemaphysalis sp. (3.22%). The observations of the present study would provide a basis for evolving effective control strategy for the management of ticks in bovines of West Bengal.     

Fossil wood of Euphorbiaceae from the Tertiary of West Bengal,India

The paper describes a new species of fossil wood of Euphorbiaceae, Mallotoxylon cleidionoides sp. nov. from the Tertiary Laterites near Santiniketan, Birbhum District of West Bengal. The structure of the fossil wood closely resembles the wood anatomy of the extant genus Mallotus Lour. This is the first record of the occurrence of an euphorbiaceous wood from the Tertiary of West Bengal.     

Population genetic study in ten endogamous groups of West Bengal, India

Ten endogamous population groups of West Bengal (India)--Rabhas, Garos, Mechs, Rajbanshis, Jalia Kaibartas, Bagdis, Lodhas, Mundas, Brahmins, Vaidyas--have been typed for twelve polymorphic systems: ABO, Gm, Km, Hp, Cp, Tf, Alb, Hb, aP, EsD, AK and PGM1. The results are compared with those obtained on other Indian populations. Serological and anthropometric data, which have been included into population comparisons, reveal a considerable genetic variability of the groups under study. This variability is obviously connected with the population history of West Bengal.     

The plankton ecology of some thermal springs in West Bengal,India

Estimates of planktonic growth kinetics in relation to the thermal environment were made over a two year period in three hot springs and one cold one located in West Bengal, India. A very characteristic feature of the Saubhagya Kund (43–49°C) and Papahara (46–51°C) was the abundance of phytoplankton, always dominated by blue-green algae. This situation changed in the other two springs where zooplankton was an essential component. The determination of the species diversity index indicated that the graph of cumulative species of plankton versus logarithm of individuals was roughly linear in Saubhagya Kund and Papahara, whereas in the other two a logistic curve was the result. The seasonal distribution of Myxophyceae/Phytoplankton was dependant upon the annual phosphorous cycle (P < 0.0001) in all the thermal waters studied. That the population dynamics of diatoms responded inversely to the level of phosphate (P < 0.05) has been clearly manifested in Swetganga (37–46°C). The variation in the silicate content of the water throughout the year has been found responsible for the seasonal succession of diatoms in some of the waters (P < 0.001). The multiple correlation between phosphate, silicate, dissolved oxygen and pH and Myxophyceae/Phytoplankton was significant in the case of Papahara (P < 0.01) and Swetganga (P < 0.05). Similarly, the multiple correlation between these factors and Bacillariophyceae was significant in Saubhagya Kund (P < 0.01). In the non-thermal water Jibatsa Kund (22–39°C), the multiple correlation between these factors and Phytoplankton was, however, not significant (P > 0.05).     

Floristic composition and biological spectrum of a sacred grove in West Midnapore district,West Bengal,India

Traditional cultural and religious beliefs and practices in the form of sacred groves play a crucial role in environmental conservation and biodiversity. The present study was conducted to explore plant resources, their biological spectrum, leaf size spectrum, sacred grove conservation status, locally known as Kankabati Sitabala Than (KST) in the district of West Midnapore, West Bengal in India. The study's floristic list revealed that the KST vegetation was diverse and composed of 277 species of 238 genera distributed over 77 families under 36 orders according to APG IV classification, of which 87 species were aliens. Poales (23.40%) and Poaceae (15.38%) were the dominant order and family in terms of species wealth. Biological spectrum shows the study area was classified as “thero-crypto-chamaephytic” type of phytoclimate. Leptophyll (26.60%) and ovate (18.91%) were found to be high in the leaf size spectrum and lamina. The vulnerable climber and tree species are Cayratia pedata and Pterocarpus indicus. The vegetation phenology, observed during different seasons revealed that most of the species were dominant in rainy seasons (99.68%), followed by winter (69.87%) and summer (29.81%). The study area being a sacred grove remains fairly undisturbed. For the long-term conservation of germplasm of the grove some recommendations have been suggested.     

Campus Anthropology: A Case Study from West Bengal,India1

In this ethnographic account, I attempt to write an anthropological narrative of my own university located in a district town of the West Bengal state in India about 130 kilometres from Kolkata, the capital of the state. My account does not come under the sub-discipline of ‘Educational Anthropology’ in which formal education is studied by the anthropologists as yet another process of the transmission of culture. My point of departure entails viewing the physical and the cultural space named ‘university campus’ by situating the case study of Vidyasagar University in a theoretical and global context. The anthropological subjects in the cultural space labelled as ‘campus’ range from the Vice-Chancellors to the indigenous tribal people who were viewed as ‘encroachers’ by the university community, while the latter looked at the campus as part of their traditional village common land. Ironically, the aims and objectives of my university was to build up research and teaching towards the development of the tribal and the underprivileged people of the region in which the university is located. The case of my university and comparative cases of Columbia, Pennsylvania and Marquette Universities definitely differ in scale, but they also share one common point: expansion of a campus and its effect on the local community in the context of the ideals and objectives of university as a social institution. The empirical scenario demands the emergence of the new sub-discipline named ‘campus anthropology’.     

Intergenerational trend of some dermatoglyphic traits in Vaidyas of West Bengal, India

In order to investigate the intergenerational change of dermatoglyphics, fingerprints of 400 individuals were collected from an endogamous caste Vaidyas of Barasat, West Bengal. Results were compared with the data of an earlier sample of Banerjee collected in 35 years before on the same community of the same area. As it is generally known that dermatoglyphics is selectively neutral, thus if no other evolutionary forces play a role, we cannot expect any change of dermatoglyphic characters after several years. In the present study, non-significant change in the frequency of pattern and more or less same PII have been observed in both sexes. But significant quantitative differences were found between the two samples. These differences may not be due to the change of intra-uterine environment, rather due to the inter-observer error of these two studies and the small sample size of the earlier study. Because though same methods were used in both studies, inter-observer variation is much possible in ridge counting than pattern type determination.