INTRODUCTION

WESTERN GHATS

A BIODIVERSITY HOTSPOT !!

Along the south-western coast of India lies the western ghats mountain range. These ranges are known for their rich bio-diveristy and natural heritage. The mountains intercept the rain-bearing westerly monsoon winds, and are consequently an area of high rainfall, hence known also as monsoon mountains.

It covers an approximate area of 160,000 square km.

 





• It consist of 25% of the India's biodiversity.
• Consist of 140 mammal species, 510 birds, 260 reptiles, 180 amphibian species.
• The western ghats are home to more than 5000 species of plants and about 35% of these are endemic to this area. Some plants have been discovered very recently in the last decade. The Semecarpus Kathalekanensis is among them. The ghats are also home to special kind of fresh water swamps known as Myristica swamps. An indicator of these swamps is an endemic palm found along the stream.
• A large number of herbivores also make the ghats their home due to this abundant vegetation. And the Nilgiri Tahr (Nilgiritragus hylocrius) is one of them. It is a high altitude dweller and is found mostly in grasslands above 1,200 meters.
• One flagship bird of the western-ghats, the Malabar pied hornbill (Anthracoceros coronatus) is found motly on treetops of fruiting trees. Though figs form a major part of their diet, they do sometimes feed on fish and small mammals.
•  A group of frogs known as bush frogs are mostly found on sitting on leaves and calling for their mates. 9 bush frogs have been discovered in the year 2011 alone.

 

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Fauna at Western Ghats

1. Lion Tailed Macaque (Macaca silenus)-

IUCN STATUS- ENDANGERED

• Morphology:  The growth of hairs on the temples and cheeks to form a long thick dark grey or brownish grey rough or mane, which hangs down on each side of the face like long whiskers and passes on to the throat as a shorter, paler beard, and by the shining, black hue of the rest of the head, body, limbs, and tail, although the underside, at least in the young, may be dark brown or greyish brown. The coat is in general long and full, and the hairs of the greater part of the tail are short and the terminal tuft is apparently always present and larger. The tail is long typically, apparently about two-thirds the length of the head and body and about twice as long as the foot.
• Behaviour: It inhabits the most dense and unfrequented forests of the hills near the Malabar coast in herds of from twelve to twenty or more. It is shy and wary. In captivity it is sulky and savage, and not easily taught. The call of the male is said to resemble the voice of a man.

2.  Rufous Woodpecker (Celeus brachyurus)-

IUCN STATUS- THREATENED

• Morphology: This bird has a dark eye patch, a red iris, throat feathers with pale edges, and brown feet. Sexes are similar in appearance except that females have a slightly lighter colour around the eyes in contrast to the red patch found just below and behind the eye of male. The bill of the bird is black in colour, short and slightly curved. This is perfectly suited to the repetitive drumming action that is distinctive of the bird. Pairs are often sighted in thin deciduous forests.
• Behaviour: The Rufous Woodpecker is a shy bird, usually found in pairs. It seems to prefer open forest, but seeks shaded areas. These birds are very vocal, with a short, hurried, high pitched laughing call 'kwee-kwee-kwee-kwee...' of 5-10 notes on a descending scale. Drums in short accelerating bursts.

3. Grey Francolin (Francolinus pondicerianus)-

IUCN STATUS- LEAST CONCERN

• Morphology: Gray Francolins are fast runners and prefer to run when approached or disturbed. They take to wing only when surprised in the bushes or when persistently chased. Flight is swift and direct, attained by rapid vibrating wing strokes. Bird drops into grass again after flying a couple of hundred metres.
• Behaviour: These birds are usually seen in small groups. Even while foraging for food, the birds usually keep in pairs, but large numbers may concentrate in fields where food is plentiful. On disturbance, the entire flock does not rise at the same time. Usually birds rise in twos and threes – making them easy targets for hunters. They usually roost in groups in low thorny trees. Stays on ground in daytime, but roosts on trees like Babul and Shisham. They are weak fliers and fly short distances, escaping into undergrowth. Calls: Loud, commonly heard early in the mornings, with pairs engaging in duet calls.

4 Agate Snail (Achatina fulica)-

IUCN STATUS-

• Morphology: Conical shell, twice as high as it is broad. Dextral coiling more commonly seen than sinistral coiling. Shell colouration highly variable and dependent on diet. Typically, brown bands running across the spirals.
• Behaviour: Buried underground throughout the day, these snails emerge from their damp hideouts at dusk and feed throughout the night. Most active during the rainy season.

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FLORA AT WESTERN GHATS

1. Baheda (Terminalia bellerica)-

IUCN STATUS:

• Description:Deciduous trees, to 35 m high, bole often buttressed; bark 10-20 mm thick, surface blackish-grey, smooth, vertically shallowly fissured, exfoliations small, semi-fibrous; blaze yellow; branches sympodial; branchlets terete, thinly fulvous-hairy, leaf scars prominent. Leaves simple, opposite or alternate, clustered at the tip of branchlets, estipulate; petiole 15-80 mm, stout, slightly grooved above, glabrous; lamina 9-35 x 5-16 cm, obovate, elliptic or obovate-elliptic; base obliquely cuneate, attenuate or acute; apex obtusely acuminate, margin entire, both surface pubescent when young, glabrous at maturity, coriaceous, eglandular; lateral nerves 7-10 pairs, pinnate, prominent; intercostae reticulate. Flowers bisexual, greenish-yellow, 5-6 mm across, in axillary spikes; peduncle puberulous; bracteoles 0.5-2 mm long, linear-lanceolate, caducous; calyx tube 2-2.5 ×1.3-2 mm, rusty pubescent, constricted above the ovary; lobes 5, cream, triangular, tomentose; disc 5-lobed, villous; petals absent; ovary 1.5 mm, inferior, tomentose, 1-celled; ovules 2 or 3, pendulous; style 4 mm, subulate; stigma small. Fruit a drupe 2-2.5 x 1.8 cm, obovoid, obscurely 5-ridged, yellowish-brown, honed, not winged, softly tomentose; seed one, ellipsoid.
• Ecology: Emergent in the openings of evergreen to semi-evergreen forests up to 1400 m.

2. Kapsi (Debregeasia longifolia)-

IUCN STATUS:

• Description: Shrubs; branchlets slender, densely shaggy-pubescent. Leaves to 16 x 5 cm, ovate to oblong-lanceolate, acuminate, base acute or obtuse, serrulate, 3-ribbed, midrib with 4 pairs of lateral nerves, nervules reticulate, densely white tomentose below, scabrous above; petiole 3 cm long; stipules linear-lanceolate. Spike 4 mm across; peduncles 5 mm long; bracts and bracteoles ovate, ciliate; male perianth lobes 4, free, 1 mm long, ovate, densely woolly; stamens 4, free.
• Ecology: Along margin of evergreen and secondary forests up to 1800 m.

3. Brown Woolly Fig (Ficus drupacea)-

IUCN STATUS:

• Description: Trees to 25 m high; aerial roots numerous, arising in tufts from the stout branches; bark surface greyish-brown, smooth; exudation milky; young shoots brown pubescent. Leaves simple, alternate, spiral, subdistichous; stipule 10-25 mm long, lateral, broadly lanceolate, tomentose; petiole 1.2-3.5 cm long, stout, grooved above, glandular at apex below, tomentose; lamina 10-22 x 6-15 cm, ovate or elliptic-ovate, base round or subcordate, apex abruptly acuminate, margin entire, tender leaves tomentose below, glabrous above and scurfy tomentose beneath when mature, coriaceous; 3-5-ribbed from base, lateral nerves 9-13 pairs, parallel, prominent beneath, intercostae reticulate, prominent. Flowers unisexual; inflorescence a syconia, sessile, in axillary pairs, ellipsoid-globose, thick walled, tomentose without, at first covered by stout conical tomentose stipule; basal bracts 3, 2-6 mm, orbicular, concave, brown-pilose without, obtuse, orifice umbonate, closed by 3-4 apical bracts, not forming a flat disc; internal bristles a few; flowers of 4 kinds; male flowers disperse, numerous; pedicel to 4 mm long; tepals 2-3, free, brown, acute; stamen 1, exserted; filament sessile; tepals 3-4, free, brown, acute, ovary superior, obovoid, 0.7 mm, brown; style filiform 2 mm; gall flowers pedicellate; pedicel 0.2-3.5 mm; tepals 3, free; ovary obovoid; style short, subterminal. Syconium 1.5-2 cm across, orange red when ripe; achene smooth.
• Ecology: Canopy trees in disturbed evergreen to semi-evergreen forests up to 1000 m.

4. Indian Oak (Tectona grandis)-

IUCN STATUS:

• Description: Deciduous trees, to 30 m high, bark 10-20 mm thick, yellowish-brown, rough, shallowly vertically fissured, fibrous; blaze pale yellowish concentrically lamellate; bole often fluted at base; branchlets 5-10 mm thick, 4-angled, puberulous. Leaves simple, opposite, estipulate; petiole 10-50 mm long, stout, tomentose; lamina 30-60 x 15-30 cm, ovate, obovate, base attenuate, apex acute or obtuse, margin entire, wavy, glabrous above and pubescent below with minute red glands, coriaceous; lateral nerves 8-10 pairs, pinnate, prominent, raised beneath, puberulent beneath; intercostae scalariform, prominent. Flowers bisexual, white, 7 mm across, in terminal cymose panicles, 10-30 cm across, puberulus; calyx 5 mm long, campanulate, lobes 5-6, subequal, ovate, tomentose; corolla 6 mm long, lobes 5-6, oblong, spreading; stamens 5-6, equal, erect, inserted at the throat, exserted; filaments 3 mm; anthers oblong; ovary globose, superior, densely hairy, 4-celled, 1 ovule in each cell; style slender, 4 mm; stigma linearly bifid. Fruit a drupe, 1.5-2 cm across, globose, brown, densely floccose hairy, covered by the inflated calyx, epicarp spongy, endocarp stony; seeds 1-4, oblong.
• Ecology: Less successfully raised in plains generally by river banks. Hills above 600m. In most parts of western ghats and parts of eastern ghats.

 

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