Gulf of Mannar

The Gulf of Mannar is a large shallow bay forming part of the Laccadive Sea in the Indian Ocean. 

• It lies between the southeastern tip of India and the west coast of Sri Lanka, in the Coromandel Coast region.
• A species known as dugong (sea cow) is found here.
• The chain of low islands and reefs known as Ramsethu, also called Adam's Bridge, which includes Mannar Island, separates the Gulf of Mannar from Palk Bay, which lies to the north between India and Sri Lanka. 

• The estuaries of Thamirabarani River of South India and the Malvathu Oya (Malvathu River) of Sri Lanka drain into the Gulf.
• The Gulf of Mannar is the biologically richest coastal region in India with 3,600 species of plants and animals known to live within its boundaries. 
• The Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve is the first marine biosphere reserve in Asia, located in the Southern part of the Bay of Bengal. 
• The reserve was created by the Indian Government in 1989 when the IUCN Commission on National Parks and Protected Areas, with the assistance of UNEP, UNESCO and WWF, identified the Reserve as being an area of "particular concern" given its biological diversity.
• The reserve covers 10,500 sq. km and has 21 islands with continuous stretches of coral reef.
•  In the Gulf of Mannar you can still see the globally endangered dugong, several species of dolphins and whales and three species of endangered sea turtles. 
• Furthermore, the Reserve is home to sea horses, 450 species of fish, hundreds of species of sea cucumbers, sponges, all kinds of corals and species of sea grass found nowhere else. In addition more than 150 species of bird are found on islands in the reserve. 
• Vital to the ecology of the reserve are the 17 species of mangrove which act as important fish nurseries.