• Roma Pattnaik
• Lipika Tarafdar
• Madhusmita Mohapatra
• Pratiksha Behera
• Priyanka Mohanty

Chilika is the largest brackish water lagoon located on the east coast of India in Odisha. The lagoon is a biodiversity hotspot and is one of the Ramsar sites of India. Many new species of flora and fauna have been documented from this lagoon. The lagoon also supports a rich diversity of seagrasses and so far six species of seagrasses have been reported from this lagoon. In this study, we aim to test the utility of foldscope as an on-site portable microscope to analyze the biodiversity of Chilka. We specifically targeted the seagrass meadows for the sampling of microalgae, zooplankton, polychaetes, and other benthic organisms. Our continuous long-term monitoring in combination with foldscopy showed that on board microscopic observation reduces the observational time lag between sample collection and observation. Samples were mounted on board without preservation and many live biological processes were captured and recorded using foldscope. Foldscope was proved to be an efficient cheap portable microscope for carrying out on-site assessment of biodiversity in Chilika Lagoon.

Chilika, Foldscope, Seagrass, Epiphytic Community, Planktons, Benthos.

"BIODIVERSITY OF CHILIKA THROUGH THE LENS OF FOLDSCOPE", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 6, page no.865-874, June 2019, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1907881.pdf

"BIODIVERSITY OF CHILIKA THROUGH THE LENS OF FOLDSCOPE", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 6, page no. pp865-874, June 2019, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1907881.pdf