ABSTRACT
In present investigation, oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and ammonia excretion rate (AER) of estuarine clam Soletellina diphos was estimated seasonally. The OCR in clams was higher in all size groups during winter season, while in summer lowest OCR was observed. Smaller clams consumed more oxygen than medium and large sized groups, respectively. AER was maximum during winter season, while minimum during summer season. The OCR and AER in small size clams were higher than medium and large sized clams. The maximum O: N ratio value (5.16) was observed in small size clams during summer followed by medium (3.27) and large size (2.66) clams, while minimum O:N ratio value was recorded in post-monsoon for small (3.23), medium (2.01) and large size (1.77) clams respectively. The smaller clams showed higher O:N ratio than medium and large size groups respectively. In present study, the O: N ratio was used as a tool to identify the stress or impact of seasonal variation on the natural population of clams from Bhatye estuary at Ratnagiri.