Flora of Western Ghats

Introduction

The Western Ghats are a chain of highlands running along the western edge of the Indian subcontinent, from Bombay south to the southern tip of the peninsula, through the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

159,000 km²

Estimated Area

UNESCO

World Heritage Site

Hotspot

Biodiversity Priority

Covering an estimated area of 159,000 sq. km, the Western Ghats are an area of exceptional biological diversity and conservation interest, and are "one of the major Tropical Evergreen Forest regions in India" (Rodgers and Panwar, 1988).

Conservation Concern

Critical Status

As the zone has already lost a large part of its original forest cover (although timber extraction from the evergreen reserve forests in Kerala and Karnataka has now been halted) it must rank as a region of great conservation concern.

The small remaining extent of natural forest, coupled with exceptional biological richness and ever increasing levels of threat (agriculture, reservoir flooding, plantations, logging and over exploitation), are factors which necessitate major conservation inputs.

National Parks

7

Total Area: 2,073 sq. km

Equivalent to 1.3% of the region

Wildlife Sanctuaries

39

Total Area: 13,862 sq. km

Equivalent to 8.1% of the region

The management status of the wildlife sanctuaries in this part of India varies enormously. Tamil Nadu's Nilgiri wildlife sanctuary, for example, has no human inhabitants, small abandoned plantation areas and no produce exploitation, while the Parambikulam wildlife sanctuary in Kerala includes considerable areas of commercial plantations and privately owned estates with heavy resource exploitation.

Plant Gallery

The aim of this Gallery is to provide a sampling of the magnificent floral wealth of the Western Ghats. Since this is a first attempt there are going to be lot of omissions and errors. I would be happy to have your comments and suggestions about this page.

Gloriosa superba

Conservation Status: This magnificent shrub which was common in the Northern parts of the Western Ghats is now becoming increasingly rare because of its value in commercial medicine.

Medicinal Value

The root of this plant grows a bulb which is a source for a potent steroid.

Sanskrit Name

Agnishikha - meaning "Fire peaked"

Poet Kalidas referred to it in ancient Sanskrit literature

Photographed in August 1995 in the precincts of the Torna Fort in Pune district of Maharashtra State

Raan Terda

Balsam impatiens

The Raan Terda (Balsam impatiens) is a commonly encountered monsoon plant all over the Western Ghats of Maharashtra.

Sunflower

Habitat Loss

Most of the biodiversity of the Western Ghats is threatened today. Myriad human pressures exist, demand for agricultural land and forest produce far outstripping the capability of the forest.

Large tracts of land have now been diverted to cultivation like this sunflower field near Lonavla in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra.

References

Rodgers, W.A. and Panwar, H.S. (1988). Planning a wildlife protected area network in India. 2 vols. Project FO: IND/82/003. FAO, Dehra Dun. 339, 267 pp.