Indian mackerel
Rastrelliger kanagurta
Bangude. The mainstay of the Uttara Kannada coast fishery and of local fish curries.
Photo: Si Gam, CC BY-SA 4.0Biodiversity · River
Fish & fisheries
Honavar has lived from the water for centuries. Here is what swims in the sea, the estuary and the river. Learn how dams and the seasons shape the catch.
43kinds of fish in the Sharavathi River estuary
112fish species in the whole river basin
64species in the upper Sharavathi River
61 daysmonsoon fishing ban, 1 June to 31 July
Fish of the sea
The Arabian Sea off Uttara Kannada is one of India's richest fishing grounds. The Indian mackerel (bangude) is the mainstay of the catch, along with the oil sardine (bhutai). Prawns, ladyfish, pomfret, seer fish, crabs and squid make up much of the rest.
Each year mechanised boats and those with engines of 10 HP or more stay in harbour for 61 days, from 1 June to 31 July, while fish breed. Small traditional boats can still go out. The season reopens in August with pujas on the boats.
Fish of the estuary
IISc researchers recorded 43 kinds of fish in the Sharavathi River estuary, about half the 90 found in the neighbouring Aghanashini estuary. Another IISc survey lists 44 species, including the Asian seabass (Lates calcarifer), grey mullet (Mugil cephalus), pearlspot (Etroplus suratensis), spotted scat (Scatophagus argus), silver sillago (Sillago sihama) and mudskippers.
Because the estuary stays fresh almost all year, marine fish such as sharks, rays, kingfishes and anchovies largely stay away. The fish that remain are those that tolerate low or changing salinity. Per hectare, the estuary's fishery is worth only about a fortieth of the Aghanashini's.
The lost clam beds
Clams were once collected here in large numbers. In 1973 about 100 people gathered clams, mainly Meretrix meretrix, from the estuary. Shell deposits yielded 75 to 100 tonnes a year.
By a CMFRI survey in February 1984 there were no live clams and no clam fishery. Local people said there had been none for about ten years. In 2011 and 2012 IISc found only one species, the mud clam Polymesoda erosa, in small numbers near the mouth. The researchers link the loss to the steady flow of fresh water from upstream power stations.
In the undammed Aghanashini estuary, about 2,300 harvesters (many of them women) still collect around 22,000 tonnes of clams, oysters and mussels each year.
Fish of the river
Upstream, the Sharavathi River and its tributaries hold 64 fish species, 18 of them found only in the Western Ghats. Carps and barbs (Cyprinidae) are the largest family. The Linganamakki reservoir alone has 51 species.
Three fish were described as new to science from this river: the loaches Schistura nagodiensis and Schistura sharavathiensis plus the catfish Batasio sharavatiensis.
Fish you may see
Pearlspot
Etroplus suratensis
A brackish-water fish of estuaries and backwaters.
Photo: Vengolis, CC BY-SA 4.0
Mudskipper
Periophthalmus spp.
A fish that spends much of its life out of water on the mudflats.
Photo: Tisha Mukherjee, CC BY-SA 4.0People of the water
Fishing families of Kasarkod, Tonka, Pavinakurve and Manki fish both the sea and the river. Women run the fish-drying trade on the beach commons at Kasarkod. Read about the communities of the coast and watch the dawn landing at the harbour. When eating fish, choose what is in season.
Research behind this page (10)
- Bhat M., Nayak V.N., Subash Chandran M.D. & Ramachandra T.V. (2012). Impact of hydroelectric dams on fisheries in the Sharavathi estuary of Uttara Kannada district, south-west India. LAKE 2012 conference, Kottayam.
- Bhat M., Nayak V.N., Subash Chandran M.D. & Ramachandra T.V. (2014). Impact of hydroelectric projects on finfish diversity in the Sharavathi River estuary of Uttara Kannada district, central west coast of India. International Journal of Environmental Sciences 5(1): 58–66.
- Ramachandra T.V., Subash Chandran M.D., Joshi N.V. et al. (2012). Ecological profile of Sharavathi River basin. Sahyadri Conservation Series 22, ENVIS Technical Report 52, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.
- Boominathan M., Ravikumar G., Subash Chandran M.D. & Ramachandra T.V. (2014). Impact of hydroelectric projects on bivalve clams in the Sharavathi estuary of Indian west coast. The Open Ecology Journal 7: 52–58.
- Rao G.S., Kuriakose P.S., Ramachandran N. et al. (1989). Atlas of clam resources of Karnataka. CMFRI Special Publication 46, Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi.
- Boominathan M., Subash Chandran M.D. & Ramachandra T.V. (2008). Economic valuation of bivalves in the Aghanashini estuary, west coast, Karnataka. ENVIS Technical Report 30, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.
- Bhat M., Nayak V.N., Subash Chandran M.D. & Ramachandra T.V. (2014). Fish distribution dynamics in the Aghanashini estuary of Uttara Kannada, west coast of India. Current Science 106(12): 1739–1744.
- Sreekantha M.D., Subash Chandran M.D., Mesta D.K., Rao G.R., Gururaja K.V. & Ramachandra T.V. (2007). Fish diversity in relation to landscape and vegetation in central Western Ghats, India. Current Science 92(11): 1592–1603.
- Sreekantha et al. (2006). Two new fish species of the genus Schistura from the Western Ghats, India. Zoos' Print Journal 21(4): 2211–2216.
- Energy & Wetlands Research Group (2012). Exploring biodiversity and ecology of Central Western Ghats. ENVIS Technical Report 39, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru.
More biodiversity
Western Ghats forests
Evergreen hills just behind the coast.
Read more →
Lion-tailed macaque
Their northernmost population lives near Honavar.
Read more →
Protected areas
Sanctuaries, reserves and a Ramsar wetland nearby.
Read more →
Myristica swamps & sacred groves
Ancient swamp forests and temple groves.
Read more →Plan your trip
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