2. Flora
India has quite a rich treasure of India's treasures of flora and fauna
are fast dwindling, and if measures are not taken to check
deforestation, it wont be long before barren stretches replace
jungles.
3. Himalayan Vegetation
The Himalayan belt is a botanists delight. The thick tropical forests in the
eastern region of India are in sharp contrast to the pine and coniferous
woodlands of the western Himalayas.
Natural cover varies with altitude; evergreen forests with mainly high
alpine meadows nearer the snowline have more of temperate forests in
the lower elevations.
The chir pine (Pinus roxburghii) grows throughout the northwest
Himalayas, with the exception of Kashmir. Chilgoza (pine nut), oak, maple,
ash (Fraxinus xanthoxyloides) grow abundantly in the Inner Himalayas.
The rain-soaked foothills are covered with deciduous trees, shrubs, fern
and grass. The Brahmaputra Valley also wears patches of tea plantations
and fluorescent-green rice fields, while mulberry trees on which tussar
silk worms are bred, abound on the slopes.
4. Rain Forest of Southern India
The most luxuriant rain forests, however, lie on the southwestern coast, in
Kerala where the lagoons are canopied by coconut trees, leading to the
longest uninterrupted stretch of rain forests in the country. The andaman
Islands and Arunachal Pradesh are other regions with well preserved rain
forests.
Dense sandal, teak and sisoo (Dalbergia sissoo) forests, where elephants
roam wild and free, flourish on the wet Karnataka plateau. Nudging this is the
dry Telengana plateau in Andhra Pradesh, which offers only thorny scrub and
wild Indian date palm
5. The Desert Region
The Thar Desert presents a very different picture. The trees are short and
stout, stunted by the scorching sun. Apart from cacti, there are the
reunjha (Acacia leucophloea), khejra (Prosopis spicigera), kanju
(Holoptelea integrifolia) and oak (Calotropis gigantea).
Tropical moist deciduous forests that cover most of the heartland are
interspersed with tropical dry deciduous trees. The species include sal
(Shorea robusta), teak (Tectona grandis), semul(Bombax ceiba), Laurel,
rosewood, mahua (Madhuca indica), amla (Emblica officinalis), khair
(Acacia catechu), common bamboo, to name just a few.
6. Forest Cover of India
The total geographical
area of the country is
32,87,263 sq km out of
which an area of
6,75,538 sq km or 20.5
per cent was under
forests in 2001 . This is
much below the average
of 30.4 per cent for the
world.
7. Fauna
The plant kingdom is not the only endangered species. India's rich fauna is
known the world over, but sadly many species either live in very restricted
habitats, or are on the verge of extinction. The threats to Indian wildlife are
legion.
8. Diverse Variety of Wildlife
Even though India is known for its tigers, elephants and rhinoceros, it is
home to over 500 mammal species. Antelopes and deer like the chinkaras
(Indian Gazelle), barasinghas (swamp deer),chitals (spotted deer),
muntjacs (barking deer) and sambars (Indias largest deer) can easily be
spotted in forests and wildlife reserves.
Other animals that are easy to spot include buffaloes, massive Indian bisons
(gaurs), striped hyenas, wild pigs, jackals, Indian foxes and wild dogs.
Among the smaller mammals are mongooses and giant squirrels. Big cats
include leopards and panthers, short-tailed jungle cats, and the beautiful
leopard cats. Monkeys are a very common sight, especially around temples.
9. Aerial Population
The country also has about 2000 species and subspecies of birds. The
numerous sanctuaries across the country are not only breeding colonies for
these feathered creatures, but serve as resorts for migratory birds from higher
altitudes, as well.
Add to all this over 500 species of reptiles and amphibians. King cobras,
pythons, crocodiles, large freshwater tortoises and monitor lizards are only
some of them.
There are also some 30,000 insect species, including some very stunning
butterflies. Look around a bit on a bright summer morning, and you'll know what
we mean
10. Establishment of Wildlife Parks and
Sanctuaries
Many of the wildlife sanctuaries and a few national parks have been established
in erstwhile private hunting reserves of the British Raj and Indian aristocracy.
often, a park is better known for a particular animal. Thus Gir (Gujarat) is
famous for its Asiatic lions, the Indian rhinoceros is the pride of Kaziranga
(Assam), elephants steal the show in Periyar (Kerala), and tigers are
synonymous with Kanha (Madhya Pradesh) and Bandavgarh (Madhya
Pradesh). The mangrove forests of Sunderbans are the unique habitat of the
Royal Bengal Tiger.
All told, India has about 80 National Parks and 441 sanctuaries
