The oil sardine fishery along northern Tamil Nadu coast with a note on unusually heavy landings at Cuddalore,Pazhayar and Kaveripattinam

The Indian Oil sardine, Sardinella longiceps is one of the important exploited fishery resources along the Tamil Nadu. The bulk of oil sardine were landed along the coast by the bag-net, Eda valai while lesser quantities were caught by the gill nets, Kavala valai and Thattakavala valai. Unusually heavy landings of oil sardine by the Eda valai units have been recorded at Cuddalore and Pazhayar fisheries harbours and Kaveripattinam during certain months of the period, 1989-'90. Abundance of juvenile oil sardines of the size group 110 - 114 mm was noticed during May - June, '90 at Pazhayar and in July at Kaveripattinam. Larger size groups of 175 - 179 mm predominated in September, '89 whereas in the same period of the succeeding year, 165 – 169 mm length groups supported the fishery. The unprecedented heavy landings of the oil sardine in most of the centers did not benefit the fishermen monetarily to any significant extent. Due to lack of demand for fresh fish, the bulk of catches was sun dried. Oil sardine catches are obtained along the east coast of India in areas close to harbours, backwaters and river mouths and this discontinuous distribution of fish appears to indicate its affinity, particularly juvenile phase, to areas where there is admixture of fresh and brackish water.