M Sheik Ali

Mangrove ecosystems play a key role in coastal ecology. This research paper estimates the aerobic bacterial load in soils taken from mangroves on the southern bank of the Adyar river in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

Mangroves are key to coastal protection, coastal ecology and are key spawning areas for aquatic life, and are under threat from man's increasing economic activities.

To understand the role of mangroves in a community living near a mangrove, the authors of this paper published in the Journal of Human Ecology, interviewed 125 people, in one such mangrove area located in Urrur Kuppam in the Adyar estuary in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.