A Review on the Distribution and Diversity of Pleuronectiformes From Maritime States Within the Exclusive Economic Zone of India

Flatfishes (Pleuronectiformes) occupy a significant position among the demersal marine fisheries in the Exclusive Economic Zone of India. The limited studies on Indian flatfishes hinder their diversity conservation. Intended to fill this knowledge gap, an attempt was made to analyze the species diversity of Pleuronectiformes from the Indian waters by comprehensive review with statistical support. One hundred and nine species of flatfishes in 35 genera under eight families have been documented so far in various studies from the maritime states of India. Diversity Indices such as Margalef’s species richness (d), and Shannon-Weiner Diversity Index (H’) highlighted species richness and diversity in the Tamil Nadu coast to be the maximum. Bothidae was the most diverse family, with 12 genera containing 31 species, and Cynoglossuss (Hamilton 1822) being the most common genus from Indian waters (17 species). ANOSIM test verifies that there exhibits an even distribution of species with more similarity. Bray- Curtis similarity index and nMDS revealed Lakshadweep as the least similar among all other regions. The present review on flatfishes and statistical analysis provides an overview of Pleuronectiform diversity from Indian waters which can be baseline data for future research and implementation of conservation policies.