Nature Vegetation
Natural Vegetation in India
Tropical Wet Evergreen Forests
In areas over 250cm rainfall. In Western Ghats, hilly areas in N.E. India and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Trees are rosewood, shisham, ebony, ironwood, etc.
Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests
In areas having rainfall between 100 – 200 cm. In peninsular region and along the foothills of Himalayas in Shivaliks, Bhabhar and Tarai.
The trees of these forests drop their leaves for about 6-8 weeks during the spring and early summer when sufficient moisture isn’t available.
Trees are teak, sal, bamboo, sandalwood, rosewood, etc.
Thorn Forests
- In areas having rainfall between 25 and 80cm. In arid regions of Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and Gujarat.
- Trees are palm, acacia, etc.
Hill Forests
- In hills of S.India and the Himalayas.
- The type of trees depends upon the height of the mountain : Sal and bamboo below 1000 m; oaks, chestnuts and other fruit trees, and chir forests between 1000 and 2000 m; pine, deodar, silver fern and spruce between 1600 and 3300 m; above 3600 m alpine forests with trees like silver firs, pines, birches, etc. Alpine forests give way to Alpine grasslands and scrubs as we move up further.
Tidal or Mangrove Forests
- Also known as Littoral or Swamp Forests.
- Occur along the sea coast and in the estuaries of rivers, especially in Sunderbans and the Andamans.
- Most important tree is Sundari. It provides hard and durable timber which is used for construction and building purposes as well as for making boats.
Important points
- According to the National Forest Policy, the minimum desired area which is considered safe for a tropical country like India is about 33%.
- Madhya Pradesh has the largest area under forests followed by Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Arunachal Pradesh.
- As per percentage of forest area to total area, first is Andaman and Nicobar Islands, followed by Mizoram, Manipur, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura and Nagaland. They are in a very comfortable position as more than half of their area is under forests.
- Arunachal Pradesh has the highest per capita forest area.
- In Mangrove forests, West Bengal holds the first position, followed by Gujarat and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
- The lowest forest percentage is in Haryana and Punjab, because of the extensive agriculture.
Biosphere Reserves in India
- The biosphere reserve program was launched by the UNESCO in 1971 under the aegis of its Man and Biosphere (MAB) Program, to provide a global network of protected areas for conserving natural communities.
- In India, the first biosphere reserve – Nilgiri biosphere reserve – came into being in 1986. So far, 14 biosphere reserves have been set up in the country.
| Nilgiri (Western Ghats) | Similipal (Orissa) |
| Nanda Devi (Uttarakhand) | Dibru-Daikhowa (Asom) |
| Nokrek (Meghalaya) | Dehong Dabang (Arunachal Pradesh) |
| Manas (Asom) | Panchmarhi (MP) |
| Sunderbans (West Bengal) | Kanchanjunga (Sikkim) |
| Gulf of Mannar (Tamil Nadu) | Agastyamalai (Kerala) |
| Great Nicobar (Andaman and Nicobar Islands) | Achaanak maar-Amarkantak (Madhya Pradesh) |
Note :
- Out of these 14, Nilgiri, Sunderbans, Manas and Gulf of Mannar have been recognized on World Network of Biosphere Reserves by UNESCO.
Project Tiger
- It was launched on April 1, 1973 to ensure maintenance of viable population of the tigers in India.
- There are 29 tiger reserves in the country:
| Name of Tiger Reserve | State |
| Bandipur | Karnataka |
| Corbett | Uttarakhand |
| Kanha | Madhya Pradesh |
| Manas | Asom |
| Melghat | Maharashtra |
| Palamau | Jharkhand |
| Ranthambhore | Rajasthan |
| Similipal | Orissa |
| Sunderbans | West Bengal |
| Periyar | Kerala |
| Sariska | Rajasthan |
| Buxa | West Bengal |
| Indravati | Chattisgarh |
National Parks and Wild life Sanctuaries
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There are 96 National Parks and 510 Wildlife Sanctuaries in India.
- Madhya Pradesh and Andaman and Nicobar Islands have the maximum number of National Parks (9 each) while Andaman and Nicobar Islands has 96 and Maharashtra has 36 Wildlife Sanctuaries (maximum in India).
| Gir Forests | Home of Asiatic lion. In Gujarat |
| Kaziranga Sanctuary | One horned rhino. In Asom |
| Manas Sanctuary | One horned rhino. In Asom |
| Ghana or Keoladeo Bird Sanctuary | In Bharatpur, Rajasthan |
| Dachigam Sanctuary | For Hangul. In Kashmir |
| Corbett National Park (formerly Hailey National Park) | In Uttarakhand. Home of tiger |
| Chandraprabha Sanctuary | II home of Asiatic lion. In UP |
| Kanha National Park | In MP |
| Shiv Puri National Park | In MP |
| Hazaribagh National Park | In Jharkhand |
| Periyar Game Sanctuary | In Kerala. For elephants |
| Dudhwa National Park | In UP |
| Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary | In Tamil Nadu |
| Nokrek National Park | In Meghalaya |
| Sariska Sanctuary | In Rajasthan |
| Ranthambhor National Park | In Rajasthan |
| Namdapha National Park | In Arunachal Pradesh |
| Keibul Lamjo Floating National Park | In Manipur |
| Palamau Tiger Project | In Bihar |
| Simlipal National Park | In Orissa |
| Ranganthittoo Bird Sanctuary | In Mysore, Karnataka |
| Nagarhole National Park | In Karnataka |
| Mudumalai Sanctuary | In Tamil Nadu |
| Balpakram Sanctuary | In Meghalaya |
| Bandipur Sanctuary | Along the Kamataka-Tamil Nadu border |
| Jaldapara Sanctuary | In West Bengal. For rhinos |
| Wild Ass Sanctuary | In Rann of Kutch, Gujarat. For Wild ass |
