Floristic and Phytoclimatic Study of a Sacred Grove Vegetation of West Midnapore District, West Bengal, India

Sen, Uday Kumar; Bhakat, Ram Kumar

doi:10.11594/jtls.09.02.01

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 11 publications

(13 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The origin of life on earth is a fascinating subject that can be studied through observations made today, and these observations, coupled with climate change over time, can provide answers as to how biodiversity has changed over time [1]. High-altitude mountainous belts safeguard important biodiversity and the scenic, aesthetic value of landscapes [2][3][4][5], provide ecosystem services to benefit human well-being, and are essential for a sustainable world [6][7][8]. Plant adaptation adjusts a life form to certain ecological conditions; thus, it has been widely used in the analysis of flora and vegetation [9].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fragmented Forest Patches in the Indian Himalayas Preserve Unique Components of Biodiversity: Investigation of the Floristic Composition and Phytoclimate of the Unexplored Bani Valley

Singh

Surmal

et al. 2021

Sustainability

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Subtropical and temperate forests are amongst the most threatened habitats of Asia, due to large-scale habitat loss and the fragmentation of landscapes. Inspite of these, the Asiatic regions preserve their endemic biodiversity, and provide a favorable environment for the abundant growth of vegetation. In the Himalayas, many interior regions are still unexplored from a biodiversity perspective, due to remote locations and high snow-clad mountains. In this study, we investigated the unexplored Bani Valley in order to reduce the gap of uninventorized areas of rich biodiversity in the Himalayas and formulate plant conservation and management strategies. Thirteen field expedition tours were undertaken during 2017 and 2020 for data collection in different growing seasons in the study area. All plant species were collected as voucher samples, identified, and deposited in the internationally recognized Janaki Ammal Herbarium (acronym RRLH). GPS points were recorded in order to study the forest types and vegetation components of the study area. A total of 196 plant species belonging to 166 genera and 68 families were identified in Bani Valley, covering a total area of 2651 km2. Approximately 70.62% of the species were native and 29.38% were non-native. In total, 46% of species were Indo-Malayan, followed by 22% Palearctic species. In angiosperms, dicotyledon species (68.37%) dominated. Poales were the most dominant order, with 38 species (19.38%). The most abundant families were Poaceae with 29 species (14.79%), Fabaceae (17, 8.67%), Rosaceae, Cyperaceae, and Asteraceae (9, 4.59% each). The life form analysis showed 50% of species as phanerophytes, followed by therophytes (25.77%). The leaf size spectra show mesophyllous species (34.69%) as the dominant group. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants categorized Ailanthus altissima as endangered (EN), Aegle marmelos and Quercus oblongata as near threatened (NT), Ulmus wallichiana and Plantago lanceolata as vulnerable (VU), Taxus baccata and 75 other species as least concern (LC), and 2 species as data deficient (DD). The remaining 113 species of plants had not been evaluated according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. This study will help to shape conservation and management plans for threatened species for future implementation, and will help in biodiversity conservation. This study will serve as a database for future reference materials in terms of biodiversity management.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fragmented Forest Patches in the Indian Himalayas Preserve Unique Components of Biodiversity: Investigation of the Floristic Composition and Phytoclimate of the Unexplored Bani Valley

Singh

Surmal

et al. 2021

Sustainability

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Sacred Groves in the Global South: A Panacea for Sustainable Biodiversity Conservation

Imarhiagbe

Ogwu

2022

Sustainable Development and Biodiversity

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Floristic and Phytoclimatic Study of an Indigenous Small Scale Natural Landscape Vegetation of Jhargram District, West Bengal, India

Sen

Bhakat

2020

JTFE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Sacred groves are distinctive examples of biotic components as genetic resources being preserved in situ and serve as secure heavens for many endangered and endemic taxa. From this point of view, the biological spectrum, leaf spectrum and conservation status of the current sacred grove vegetation, SBT (Swarga Bauri Than) in Jhargram district of West Bengal, India, have been studied. The area's floristic study revealed that SBT’s angiosperms were varied and consisted of 307 species belonging to 249 genera, distributed under 79 families of 36 orders as per APG IV. Fabales (12.05%) and Fabaceae (11.73%) are the dominant order and family in terms of species wealth. Biological spectrum indicates that the region enjoys “thero-chamae-cryptophytic” type of phytoclimate. With respect to the spectrum of the leaf size, mesophyll (14.05%) was found to be high followed by notophyll (7.84%), microphyll (7.19%), macrophyll (7.84%), nanophyll (6.86%), leptophyll (6.21%), and megaphyll (2.29%). The study area, being a sacred grove, it has a comparatively undisturbed status, and the protection of germplasm in the grove is based on traditional belief in the social system.

show abstract

Floristic and Phytoclimatic Study of a Sacred Grove Vegetation of West Midnapore District, West Bengal, India

Cited by 3 publications

References 11 publications

Fragmented Forest Patches in the Indian Himalayas Preserve Unique Components of Biodiversity: Investigation of the Floristic Composition and Phytoclimate of the Unexplored Bani Valley

Fragmented Forest Patches in the Indian Himalayas Preserve Unique Components of Biodiversity: Investigation of the Floristic Composition and Phytoclimate of the Unexplored Bani Valley

Sacred Groves in the Global South: A Panacea for Sustainable Biodiversity Conservation

Floristic and Phytoclimatic Study of an Indigenous Small Scale Natural Landscape Vegetation of Jhargram District, West Bengal, India

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About