Patterns of macrofaunal distribution were studied along the western Indian continental margin to distinguish the role of habitat heterogeneity in generating and maintaining community structure. A transect perpendicular to the coast at 14°N latitude was selected for seabed sampling. Eight stations were sampled in the depth range 34–2546 m and characterized with respect to macrofaunal composition, abundance, biomass, diversity and feeding type. The sediments in the shelf region (34, 48, 100 m) and upper slope (525 m) were characterized by silty and sandy facies, whereas the mid slope (1001 m), lower slope (1524 m) and basin (2001, 2546 m) consisted of clayey silts. The highest value of sediment chlorophyll‐a (Chl‐a) and total organic carbon (Corg) were recorded from the mid slope areas. Faunal abundance and biomass increased from the shallow to deeper depths in the shelf region, and decreased in the slope region (525–1001 m) due to the reduced bottom‐water oxygen. The community parameters showed an overall increase in both the lower slope and basin areas. A total of 81 macro‐invertebrate species belonging to five major groups represented the macrofauna of the area. Polychaeta was the major group at all depths. Among polychaete families, species of the Spionidae, particularly Prionospio pinnata, predominated at the oxygen minimum zone (OMZ) core and Cossuridae dominated in the lower part of the OMZ in sediments of the mid slope region (1001 m depth). Species diversity was higher in the basin than in the slope region. Fluctuations in diversity appear to be partly due to the bottom‐water dissolved oxygen (DO) gradient which includes values that are below the oxygen tolerance of many benthic species. Further, Margalef’s index (d) and Shannon–Wiener index (H′) showed a significant negative (P < 0.01) relationship between sediment Chl‐a and Corg, suggesting food availability as a critical factor in species dominance. Results of multivariate analyses suggest that for continental margin fauna, different physiographic provinces and an oxygen gradient have a higher influence on the species composition and diversity than other oceanographic conditions.

Harbours are heavily stressed coastal habitats characterised by high concentration of contaminant and low diversity of benthic community. The west coast of India harbours most of the major harbours compared to the east coast. Very few studies have compared the macrobenthic community between different Indian harbours. The present study was therefore conducted in three important harbour (Ratnagiri, Goa, Karwar) along the central west coast of India. The paper discusses the health status of the three harbours diagnosed using various biotic indices. Sediment samples were collected using van Veen grab (0.11 m(2)) on board CRV Sagar Sukti. A total of 55 macrobenthic taxa were identified and were numerically dominated by polychaete. Biomass was high (0.14-145.7 g m(-2)) and was made largely by echiurans (>80%). Overall, polychaete dominated the macrobenthic diversity. Opportunistic P.pinnata, Notomastus sp. and Mediomastus sp., dominated the macrobenthic community responding to the increased in the harbour. Biotic indices (Polychaete:Amphipod ratio, ABC curve and geometric class abundance) and the dominance of opportunistic species indicate that, the three harbours are under stress from anthropogenic activities.

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