New Records of Testate Amoebae from the Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary, Bihar, India

The occurrence of testate amoebae from the moss habitats was not recorded in the Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary, Bihar earlier. Therefore, this is the first report of the presence of testate amoebae diversity in the Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary. Testate amoebae are protists with protective external shells, unicellular free-living and regarded as good bioindicators of environmental alteration. In this preliminary study, the samples of moss were taken out on the banks of the soil around Vikramshila Gangetic Dolphin Sanctuary. There were 9 different species of testate amoebae found based on analysis which included 4 genera and 4 families. Testate amoebae species are known to be ecologically sensitive and are very useful in monitoring the environment, as they can provide indications on the health and quality of their immediate habitats. In general, the results can substantiate the usefulness of testate amoebae as bioindicators, the study also represented an important source of base data that can be used in future to comprehend the distribution and richness of testate amoebae in India and can demonstrating their importance in monitoring the ecosystem in understudied regions, especially the only designated Dolphin sanctuary in India.