Fauna of the Arabian Sea

A marginal sea in the northern Indian Ocean. Bordered by the Arabian Peninsula to the west and the Indian Peninsula to the east. The total area of the sea is 3,862,000 km². The maximum width is 2,400 kilometres. The maximum depth is 5803 metres. The climate of the sea is tropical, monsoonal. In winter, the winds blow from the northeast, bringing clear, cool weather; in summer, the winds blow from the southwest, bringing cloudy, humid weather. Typhoons are common in spring, summer and autumn. The air temperature is +20-25°C in winter and +25-29°C in summer. Rainfall ranges from 25-125 mm per year in the west to 3000 mm in the east, with a maximum in the summer months. Tides are irregular, semi-diurnal, up to 5.1 m high. Surface currents are westerly in winter and easterly in summer. Surface water temperature is +22-27 °C in winter and +23-28 °C in summer, with a maximum of +29 °C in May. Salinity is less than 35 ‰ during the southwest monsoon and more than 36 ‰ during the northeast monsoon. Under the influence of the deep waters of the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf in the sea at a depth of up to 1500 m, the temperature is above +5 °C, the salinity exceeds 35 ‰. 

Common inhabitants of the Arabian Sea

Thousands of marine animals and plants live in the warm waters of the sea. The plant life is mainly represented by kelp, brown and red algae. The sea is one of the ten deepest and cleanest seas in the world, providing a comfortable life for fish and mammals of all sizes. In the shallow zone, corals have built whole islands of white sand. Due to the stepped architecture of coral reefs, numerous species of tropical fish and invertebrates coexist in a small space. Clownfish, angelfish, butterflyfish, triggerfish, lionfish and gobies can be found in the coral thickets. Salmon, unusual for these locations, live here. 

Commercial fish species in the Arabian Sea

The Arabian Sea is one of the most productive places in the world's oceans. There are nearly 100 species of commercial fish alone. These include tuna, marlin, sardine, mackerel, sardinella and herring. Fishing for crustaceans - prawns, crabs and lobsters - is also very important. Despite the wide variety of species, the majority of the fishery involves only a few. These include goldsilk seabream, brushtooth lizardfish, epaulet grouper and Arabian scad. The main commercial fish stocks, particularly off the east coast, are fished very intensively and some commercial species are already depleted. The fauna is also affected by oil pollution (particularly in the northern part of the sea). 

Fishing in the Arabian Sea

The Arabian Sea hosts fishing competitions and fishermen from all over the world are eager to come here. The mahi-mahi is a real trophy and a coveted catch for any fisherman. A popular sport and almost elusive fish is the swordfish. In the waters of the sea there are such tempting large predators for fishermen as the great barracuda, giant grouper, dorab wolf-herring, red emperor, bigeye trevally, half-mourning croaker, largespotted dart and many other fish. Bottom-dwelling fish are less common, but some are of great interest to fishermen, including Serranidae, Siluridae and Cynoglossidae. 

Exotic Fishes of the Arabian Sea

Exotic Sohal surgeonfish, yellowbar angelfish and Oman butterflyfish can be seen on the outer slopes of coral reefs. Indo-Pacific sailfish with their impressive dorsal fins, bright daisy parrotfish and spotted parrotfish with their colourful scales complete this rich palette of marine life. Sea perch, with their variety of species and colours, are also frequent visitors to these waters. The pond is home to some of the most fascinating animals in the marine world - leopard torpedo, reticulated whipray, giant oceanic manta ray, brown guitarfish. It is home to the unusual and poisonous Long-spined Porcupinefish. 

Sharks in the Arabian Sea

Hundreds of species of sharks live in the sea's waters. There are giant sharks in the cool depths: Whale shark, basking shark, megamouth shark. Despite their enormous size, these fish are not dangerous to humans. But there are species that are life-threatening to humans, such as Great white shark, Bull shark, Blue shark, Tiger shark, Hammerhead shark, Blacktip shark. Numerous attacks by these predators on underwater hunters have been recorded. They were provoked by their prey: wounded, bleeding fish.

Mammals of the Arabian Sea

The Arabian Sea is home to many large whales - blue whales, Bryde's whales, minke whales, humpback whales, sperm whales and killer whales. They come to the sea for the season, from cold seas, and gather in small groups. Dugong inhabit coastal waters, shallow bays and lagoons. They sometimes kykyty orkachayutsya to the open sea, enter the estuaries and mouths of rivers. Dolphins are not uncommon.

Turtles of the Arabian Sea

Off the northern border of the Arabian Sea, in the territorial waters of Pakistan, is a small uninhabited island called Astola Island. It is a popular ecotourism destination for observing sea turtle colonies. It is home to rare species such as the green turtle and the hawksbill turtle, which lay their eggs directly on the beaches.