natural vegetation & wildlife natural vegetation & wild life

Natural Vegetation & Wildlife

Natural Vegetation &

Wild Life

Natural Vegetation Natural vegetation is plants that have not been

grown by humans. It doesn’t need help from humans and gets whatever it needs from its natural environment.

India has around 47000 plant species, about 15000 flowering plants & around 90000 species of animals.

Virgin vegetation is a vegetation which has grown without human intervention & it is not disturbed by humans for a relatively long period.

There is a great diversity w.r.t. flora & fauna throughout the world.

Factors affecting VegetationRelief

Land:  Land directly and indirectly affects the natural

vegetation. If the land is level and fertile, it is mainly used for

farming. If the land is uneven then grassland and woodlands

develop over it.

Soil:  Different types of soil are fit for different types of

vegetation. For example; sandy soil is fit for cactus and thorny

bushes, while wet and marshy soil is fit for mangrove

vegetation.

Factors affecting VegetationClimate

Temperature and Humidity:  An area with high temperature and high humidity

supports evergreen forest, while an area with high temperature and low humidity supports thorny bushes.

Photoperiod:  Photoperiod depends on latitude, altitude, season and

duration of the day. Trees grow faster in summer because of longer photoperiod.

Precipitation:  If an area gets heavy rainfall, it is suitable for the growth

of dense vegetation. On the other hand, an area with scanty rainfall is suitable for thorny bushes.

Ecosystem An ecosystem includes all of the living things

(plants, animals and organisms) in a given area, interacting with each other, and also with their non-living environments (weather, earth, sun, soil, climate, atmosphere).

Types of Vegetation There are five

major types of vegetation in India:

Tropical Rain Forest

Tropical Deciduous Forests

Tropical Thorn Forests & Scrubs

Montane Forests

Mangrove Forests

Tropical Rain Forests The tropical rainforests are confined to areas of

heavy rainfall.

Areas which receive more 200 cm of rainfall and have a short dry season are the best area for tropical rainforest.

The forest has a multilayered structure.

Flora - Ebony, mahogany, rosewood, rubber

Fauna - Elephants, monkey, lemur and deer, large number of birds, bats, sloth, scorpions and snails

Evergreen Forests (Western Ghats)

Ebony

Rosewood

Mahogany

Rubber

Elephants

Sloth

Lemur

One Horned Rhino

Tropical Deciduous Forests The trees of these forests shed their leaves during

dry-winter and dry-summer.

These are found in areas having 70cm to 200 cm of annual rainfall.

They are also called Monsoon Forests.

These forests can be divided into two types on the basis of availability of water. Tropical moist deciduous forests Tropical dry deciduous forests

Tropical DeciduousForestsMoist Deciduous Forest: Found in areas which receive rainfall between 200 cm

to100 cm.

Northeastern states, along the foothills of the Himalayas, Jharkhand, West Orissa and Chhattisgarh. They are also found on the eastern slopes of the Western Ghats.

Flora - Teak, Bamboos, Sal, Shisham, Sandalwood, Kusum, Arjun etc.

Fauna - Tiger, Wolf, Gaur, Sloth bear etc.

Tropical DeciduousForestsDry Deciduous Forest: Found in areas which receive rainfall between 100

cm to70 cm.

Parts of peninsular plateau, plains of Bihar & Uttar Pradesh, Vidarbha, parts of Telangana.

Flora - Teak, Sal, Peepal, Neem etc.

Fauna - Four-horned antelope, chinkara,  blackbuck, wild water buffalo etc.

DeciduousForests

Teak SandalwoodPeepal Neem

Four Horned Antelope Chinkara

Water Buffalo Blackbuck

The thorn Forests & Scrubs Thorn forests grow in those regions which receive

less than 70 cm of rainfall.

Found in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh.

The trees are scattered and they have long roots which go very deep in the ground. The stems are succulent to conserve water. Leaves are usually modified into thorns to prevent evaporation.

Flora - Cacti, Palms, Acacias, Euphorbia etc.

Fauna - Camels, Rabbits, Rats, Fox, Wolf, Wild ass etc.

Cacti Euphorbia

Acacia Palm

Camel Desert FoxWild Ass Viper

Montane Forests The forests in the mountainous areas are called

Montane forest.

The Wet Temperate type of forest is found between a height of 1000 and 2000 meters.

Temperate forests are found between the heights of 1500 and 3000 meters.

Alpine vegetation are found at heights of more than 3600 meters.

There is no vegetation along the snowline and above.

Montane Forests Flora - oak, chestnut, pine, deodar, silver fir,

spruce and cedar.

Fauna - Kashmir stag, spotted deer, jack rabbit, Tibetan antelope, yak, snow leopard, horn wild ibex,rare red panda

Dark Brown Oak Forest Chestnut

Deodar Forest Spruce

Snow Leopard Jack Rabbit

Kashmir Stag Red Panda

Mangrove Forests Large and extensive types of trees up to medium

height and shrubs that grow in saline coastal sediment habitats in the tropics and subtropics.

Roots of the mangrove plants are submerged under water.

Hollow roots grow out vertically above water so that roots can breathe.

Flora - Sundari, Keora, Agar, Coconut

Fauna - Royal Bengal Tiger, Spotted Chital, Monkeys,Indian Crocodile, Gharial, Ganges Dolphin etc.

Mangrove Forests : World Distribution

Mangrove Forest

Sundari Tree Kewda

Palm Coconut

Royal Bengal Tiger Indian Crocodile

Gharial Macaque monkey

Ganges Dolphin

Wildlife of India There are more than 89,000 animal, more

than1200 species of birds & over 2500 species of fish in India.

It is home to Bengal tigers, Indian lions, deer, pythons, wolves, foxes, bears, crocodiles, wild dogs, monkeys, snakes, antelope species, varieties of bison and the Asian elephant.

Peacocks, pheasants, ducks, parakeets, cranes & pigeons are some of the birds found in India.

There are thousands of species of reptiles including many venomous snakes.

Asiatic Lion Royal Bengal Tiger

Nilgiri Langoor Himalayan Brown Bear

Indian Elephant

Nicobar Pigeon Great Indian Hornbill

Pheasant Peacock

Cobra Salt Water Croc

Andaman Gecko Water Monitor

Wildlife of India

The region's rich and diverse wildlife is preserved in : 120+ nation

al parks 18 bio -

reserves  500+ wildlif

e sanctuaries 

National Parks  It is a protected

area, a geographic territory within which wildlife is protected.

Established to conserve the natural habitats of the wild fauna and flora with a no human interference.

There are 120+ national parks in India.

Wildlife Sanctuaries A wildlife

sanctuary is a declared protected area, where very limited human activity is allowed.

It is not physically fenced to restrict the public from entering and roaming inside a wildlife.

There are 500+  national parks in India.

National Park vs Wildlife SancturyNational Park

It is meant for protection of both flora and fauna.

Cultivation of land is not permitted.

Grazing is not allowed.

Forest products are not harvested.

Boundary is well demarcated.

Wildlife Sanctury

It is meant for protection of only fauna.

Cultivation of land is permitted to some extent

Grazing is allowed.

Forest products are harvested.

Boundary is not well demarcated.

Biosphere Reserves Biosphere Reserves of India often include one or

more National Parks or sanctuaries.

The Indian government has established around 18 Biosphere Reserves in India.

Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve

Nanda Devi  Gulf of Mannar Nokrek Sundarbans Manas Simlipal Dihang-Dibang Pachmarhi 

Achanakmar-Amarkantak 

Great Rann of Kutch   Cold Desert Khangchendzonga Agasthyamalai  Great Nicobar  Dibru-Saikhowa Seshachalam Panna