An account of the wild collection of polychaete (Annelida) from the intertidal zones of Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

The study was planned to examine polychaete fishing activity along the coast of Mumbai city. Random sampling was performed for a period of six months and conducted interviews with bait diggers, traders and local fishers (n=30). Polychaete annelids were found to be the most extensively harvested taxa in the intertidal areas due to market demand from the aquaculture industry. The collected polychaetes were identified as Marphysa spp. During the survey, each pair (two partners) on a typical day is reported to collect around 1-2 kilogram of live worms, which earns them ` 1000 per kg. It is recorded that the average collection of worms from various locations in intertidal areas of Mumbai city is around 150-200 kg/day. Last decade, the annual consumption of polychaetes by shrimp hatcheries ranged from 16 to 20 tonnes. Shrimp farming in India is intensified and currently, there are 315 hatcheries registered with the Government of India for seed production of Litopenaeus vannamei. The demand for polychaete worms has therefore increased many folds and could be estimated in the range of 252 to 337 tonnes annually and nowadays, this demand is being met by an unreported wild-caught polychaete resource as well as import of Specific Pathogen Free (SPF) polychaete from overseas suppliers. There is scope for polychaete culture to satisfy the country’s growing market demand. Moreover, polychaete fishing in coastal areas removes substantial biomass and hence can cause major impacts on coastal habitats. There is a need for regulation of its mass collection from the wild.