Fig. 1

Map showing the four districts of the Union Territory of Puducherry. A shows the location of the four districts that make up the Union Territory of Puducherry, namely Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam, spread out on either side of the coast of India. B Focuses on Puducherry district which is nestled within the state of Tamil Nadu with Andra Pradesh to the north (inlaid map). The shaded area in panel C highlights the non-continuous geographical area of Puducherry district