ABSTRACT
World over, small scale fisheries contribute considerably in ensuring food and livelihood security of rural populations. In developing countries like India, contributions from such fisheries remain poorly understood owing to lack of fundamental data which ultimately lead to managing such fisheries sustainably by conserving fishery resources, regulating exploitation and ameliorating impacts on local livelihoods. The state of Kerala is renowned for plentiful water resources such as rivers and estuaries. Ashtamudi Lake the second largest tropical backwater habitat on the southwest coast of India, in the Kollam district of Kerala, is renowned for its fin fish and shell fish resources which played a major role in protecting the livelihood, employment and food security for the population living in the vicinity of this backwater. O. tentacularis found in Ashtamudi Lake contribute sustenance fishery in the rural areas of the Lake.
