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<p>The Sunderban Biosphere Reserve, one of the world’s largest mangrove ecosystems, supports diverse and underexplored marine fauna. The present study documents a rare occurrence of the heart sea urchin <i>Maretia planulata</i> (Lamarck, 1816) (Echinoidea: Spatangoida) from the estuarine mangrove ecosystem of the Sunderbans, India. Echinoderms are exclusively marine invertebrates, with Echinoidea being a well-represented class in Indian waters; however, <i>M. planulata</i> is the only species of the genus reported from India. Previously, its occurrence was restricted to deeper marine habitats of the Gulf of Mannar. A single specimen (length 30&#xa0;mm; width 26&#xa0;mm) was collected during surveys conducted between 2024 and 2025 near Balir Island, Bidhyadhari River, as a trash and identified based on diagnostic morphological features. This record represents the second report of <i>M. planulata</i> from India and the first from the Sunderban Biosphere Reserve. Its presence in a mangrove-associated estuarine habitat suggests possible ecological flexibility or distributional shifts, highlighting the need for further benthic biodiversity assessments in this dynamic region.</p>

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Rare Occurrence of Maretia planulata (Lamarck, 1816) from Sunderban Biosphere Reserve, India

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年3月30日

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  • J. S. Yogesh Kumar,
  • Arya Sen,
  • Prabhakar Rai,
  • C. Raghunathan

摘要

The Sunderban Biosphere Reserve, one of the world’s largest mangrove ecosystems, supports diverse and underexplored marine fauna. The present study documents a rare occurrence of the heart sea urchin Maretia planulata (Lamarck, 1816) (Echinoidea: Spatangoida) from the estuarine mangrove ecosystem of the Sunderbans, India. Echinoderms are exclusively marine invertebrates, with Echinoidea being a well-represented class in Indian waters; however, M. planulata is the only species of the genus reported from India. Previously, its occurrence was restricted to deeper marine habitats of the Gulf of Mannar. A single specimen (length 30 mm; width 26 mm) was collected during surveys conducted between 2024 and 2025 near Balir Island, Bidhyadhari River, as a trash and identified based on diagnostic morphological features. This record represents the second report of M. planulata from India and the first from the Sunderban Biosphere Reserve. Its presence in a mangrove-associated estuarine habitat suggests possible ecological flexibility or distributional shifts, highlighting the need for further benthic biodiversity assessments in this dynamic region.