Mercury dips as pre-monsoon rain finally lashes Mangaluru; will it continue?

[email protected] (By Pavithra Prakash | CD Network)

May 11, 2016

Mangaluru, May 11: Giving respite to people from summer heat, the pre-monsoon rains lashed the coastal city of Mangaluru and other parts of Dakshina Kannada district on Wednesday evening.

It was relatively a cloudy day since morning and moderate to heavy rains occurred after 5 p.m. in the city. The entire city was drenched by 6.30 p.m.

Roads in low lying areas including Derebail, Yeyyadi, Jeppinamogaru were flooded for some time. Mercury plummeted by more than five degree C during day hours giving respite from the heat.

However, this rain is not likely to address the water scarcity of Mangaluru immediately unless it continues to pour and increases the water level at Thumbe vented dam.

Due to lack of pre-monsoon rains most of the rivers in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts including Nethravati, Phalguni (Gurupura), Nandini, Swarna, Varahi, Sharavati, Aghanashini, and Kali, have almost dried up and groundwater level depleted considerably.

The region used to get normal pre-monsoon showers of up to 60 mm between January and April, but this year it got just 8 mm rainfall — a deficit of 87 per cent.

While groundwater has considerably depleted in the coastal region, farmers, with no other recourse, have become hapless to witness dying crops, including arecanut and coconut plantations.

Comments

Mashallah,

NICE TO SEE RAIN IN MANGALORE

Masha Allah

Keep praying Allah....he is merciful and beneficent....

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Elusive bamboo shrimp resurfaces in Mangaluru estuary after 70 years

News Network

December 7,2025

Mangaluru, Dec 7: A rare bamboo shrimp has been rediscovered on mainland India more than 70 years after it was last reported, confirming for the first time the presence of Atyopsis spinipes in the country. The find was made by researchers from the Centre for Climate Change Studies at Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai, during surveys in Karnataka and Odisha.

The team — shrimp expert Dr S Prakash, PhD scholar K Kunjulakshmi, and Mangaluru-based researcher Maclean Antony Santos — combined field surveys, ecological assessments and DNA analysis to identify the elusive species. Their findings, published in Zootaxa, resolve decades of taxonomic confusion stemming from a 1951 report that misidentified the species as Atyopsis moluccensis without strong evidence.

The shrimp has now been confirmed at two locations: the Mulki–Pavanje estuary near Mangaluru and the Kuakhai River in Bhubaneswar. Historical specimens from the Andaman Islands, previously labelled as A. moluccensis, were also found to be misidentified and actually belong to A. spinipes.

The rediscovery began after an aquarium hobbyist in Odisha spotted a shrimp in 2022, prompting systematic surveys across Udupi, Karwar and Mangaluru. Four female specimens were collected in Mulki and one in Odisha, all genetically matching.

Researchers warn the species may exist in very small, vulnerable populations as freshwater habitats face increasing pressure from pollution, sand mining and infrastructure development. All verified specimens have been deposited with the Zoological Survey of India for future reference.

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