Mudskipper: A biological indicator for environmental monitoring and assessment of coastal waters

Abstract

Mudskippers are important for their biological and eco-toxicological studies and recognized as potential bio-indicator in environmental monitoring and assessments of coastal waters and tropical or subtropical soft bottom intertidal systems. Mudskippers are very sensitive to ambient environment and this potential would be beneficial for new researches on this species especially its ecological importance in detecting pollution levels in coastal water ecosystems. Using these organisms as bio-indicator of pollution, environmental quality programme could be established. Regularly discharged pollutants have imminent detrimental effect on the flora and fauna of coastal ecosystems especially mangrove ecosystems and tropical mudflats. Abundance and distribution of mudskippers on land as well as in coastal waters could be considered as a direct indicator of habitat health. Protecting and improving the state of coastal waters and mangrove forests ecosystems which are the natural habitat for mudskippers, mudskipper populations can be protected. Controlling garbage, untreated waste waters, pollutants, nutrients directly into the coastal waters will definitely help in protecting mudskippers. The review contains an update on our knowledge of mudskipper species and its related research fields in special reference to their potential use as an ecological indicator in coastal waters. The contents of this review will leads to new researches, methodologies, discussions and efforts to overcome the global problem of coastal water pollution and degradation of coastal ecosystems.