In the Indian sub-continent Lantana has invaded vast tracts of dry-moist forests and other culturable wastelands, and has potentially altered biodiversity, landscape ecology and ecosystem services. It has invaded most Indian pasture lands (13.2 million ha) besides forest and fallow areas, and the cost of its control is estimated at US$ 70 per ha. This invasive weed stands out because of its rapid spread, intensity of infestation, allelopathy, opportunistic growth behaviour, reproductive biology traits and tenacious resistance to cutting and burning. This paper reviews the current knowledge on L. camara with particular focus on its ecological attributes such as biomass productivity, reproductive biology, invasiveness, allelopathy, eradication measures and economic uses reported from India. Based on the literature review it can be pointed out that the positive impacts and economic uses of Lantana outweigh its negative impacts and require further studies on cost-benefit considerations for decision making for its eradication and management.
Principal component analysis has been applied to 13 dimensionless geomorphic parameters on 8 subwatersheds of Kanhiya Nala watershed tributary of Tons River located in Part of Panna and Satna district of Madhya Pradesh, India, to group the parameters under different components based on significant correlations. Results of principal component analysis of 13 geomorphic parameters clearly reveal that some of these parameters are strongly correlated with the components but texture ratio and hypsometric integral do not show correlation with any of the component. So they have been screened out of analysis. The principal component loading matrix obtained using correlation matrix of eleven parameters reveals that first three components together account for 93.71 % of the total explained variance. Therefore, principal component loading is applied to get better correlation and clearly group the parameters in physically significant components. Based on the properties of the geomorphic parameters, three principal components were defined as drainage, slope or steepness and shape components. One parameter each from the significant components may form a set of independent parameters at a time in modeling the hydrologic responses such as runoff and sediment yield from small watersheds.
Taxus baccata L. subsp. wallichiana (Zucc.) Pilger has come into prominence in recent times due to its uncontrolled harvesting from the Himalayan wilds for the extraction of the anti-cancer drug Taxol. It is a very slow growing tree with poor regeneration, and the extent of canopy damage is likely to have serious consequences on biomass yield, plant survival and natural regeneration by affecting 'seed' output. The present study in the Jageshwar area of the Central Himalaya aimed to determine the stand and canopy structure, microsite characteristics, extent of canopy removal, and regeneration in human-disturbed and undisturbed sites. The number of trees, saplings and seedlings varied amongst plots. Leaf area index and canopy volume increased with increasing circumference at breast height. Of the total canopy volume, 57.4% was found to have been removed from the study area (9.54 ha; representing about 8% of the total T. baccata habitat). Regeneration of the species was found to be better in moist and shady microsites at undisturbed locations than in disturbed sites. Efforts made thus far for its conservation, and future strategies are discussed.
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