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Introduction

Forests are the most important resource for life. They are home to Flora and Fauna, Avi-Fauna of earth. We share this planet with millions of other living beings…micro-organisms such as bacteria to huge animals like Elephant ,Blue Whale .We humans along with all living organisms form a complex web of Ecological System in which we are only a part and very much depended on the system for our existence. Forests are the Lungs of Earth.

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Flora and Fauna in India

Flora are nothing but plants.
Fauna are animals.
Avi-Fauna refers to birds.

India is one of the world’s richest… in terms of its vast array of Biological diversity. Over 81,000 species of Fauna and 47,000 species of Flora are found in the country so far? Of the estimated 47,000 plants species, About 15,000 flowering species are Endemic(Indigenous) to India

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BIODIVERSITY

Biodiversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is typically a measure of variation at the genetic, species, and ecosystem level.
Terrestrial biodiversity is usually greater near the equator, which is the result of the warm climate and high primary productivity. Biodiversity is not distributed evenly on Earth, and is richest in the tropics. These tropical forest ecosystems cover less than 10 percent of earth's surface, and contain about 90 percent of the world's species.

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Is Biodiversity good or bad?

They supply us with oxygen and clean water. They cycle carbon and fix nutrients. They enable plants to grow and therefore to feed us, keep pest species and diseases in check and help protect against flooding and regulate the climate. These benefits are known as ecosystem services.

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The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve

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The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve was the first biosphere reserve in India established in the year 1986. It is located in the Western Ghats and includes 2 of the 10 bio geographical provinces of India. Wide ranges of ecosystems and species diversity are found in this region. Thus, it was a natural choice for the premier biosphere reserve of the country.
The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve was established mainly to fulfill the following objectives:
To conserve in situ genetic diversity of species
To restore degraded ecosystems to their natural condition

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The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve falls under the bio geographic region of

the Malabar rain forest.
The Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary, Wyanaad Wildlife Sanctuary
Bandipur National Park, Nagarhole National Park,
Mukurthi National Park and Silent Valley are the protected areas present within this reserve.

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Deforestation

The dimension of deforestation in India are staggering. The forest and the tree cover in the country is estimated at 79.42 million hectare, which is 24.16 % of total geographical area(Dense forest- 12.2 % ; Open forest-9.14 %; and Mangrove forest-0.14%)

According to the state of forest report(2015),dense forest cover has increased by 3775 sq km since 2013.

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The loss of Trees and Other Vegetation can Cause �

Climate change,
Desertification,
Soil erosion,
Fewer crops,
Flooding,
Increased greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and
A host of problems for indigenous people.

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Afforestation

Afforestation is the process of planting trees, or sowing seeds, in a barren land devoid of any trees to create a forest. The term should not be confused with reforestation, which is the process of specifically planting native trees into a forest that has decreasing numbers of trees.

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Red data book

The list contains critically endangered, endangered and vulnerable species.
The list is updated by Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) from time to time as per The International Union for Conservation of Nature(IUCN), 1996.

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Endangered species

These are species which are in danger of extinction. The survival of such species is difficult if the negative factor that have led to decline in their population continue to operate.
E.g.. Tiger, Rhino,,,,

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‘Critically Endangered’ Mammals In India

Malabar Civet (Viverra civettina)
The most Endangered civet and possibly the most endangered mammal in India, The Malabar civet was last reported in Kerala (27 march 2020) on lockdown day. ( "nocturnal animal is freely walking during daytime at Meppayur Town, Kozhikode, Kerala, India. They are natural to this place. Just that less traffic makes them walk freely now. This one is following the Zebra crossing also.)

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Rare species

Species with small population may move into the endangered or vulnerable category if the negative factors affecting them continue to operate.

Eg.Himalayan brown bear, wild Asiatic buffalo, and hornbill,,,,

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Lion-tailed macaque/ wanderoo (Macaca silenus)

Endemic to the Western Ghats.
Avoids human presence and they do not live, feed or travel through plantations.
Habitat: Evergreen forests in the Western Ghats range.
Threat: Habitat fragmentation due to spread of agriculture and tea, coffee, teak and cinchona, construction of water reservoirs and human settlements to support such activities.

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Hornbills

The Hornbills (Bucerotidae) are a family of bird found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly colored and sometimes has a casque on the upper mandible.

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One of the Hornbill ……

The Malabar grey hornbill (Ocyceros griseus) is a hornbill endemic to the Western Ghats and associated hills of southern India. They have a large beak but lack the casque that is prominent in some other hornbill species. They are found mainly in dense forest and around rubber, arecanut or coffee plantations.

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The Asiatic cheetah: where did they go?��

The Asiatic cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus), also known as Iranian or Persian cheetah, is a Critically Endangered cheetah subspecies surviving today only in Iran. It once occurred from the Arabian Peninsula and the Near East to the Caspian region, Kyzylkum Desert, Pakistan and India, but has been extirpated there during the 20th century.

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What are the Negative factors that cause such fearful depletion of the Flora and Fauna?

Human: Wood, barks, leaves, rubber, medicines, dyes, fuel, fodder results in depletion of flora. Hunting and poaching of wildlife, overexploitation, environmental pollution are some factors which leads to the depletion of fauna.
Development of transport: Expansion of railways, commercial and scientific forestry leads to depletion of Indian forest
Agricultural expansion: In India, in years between 1951 and 1980, 26,200 sq. km of forest land was converted into agricultural land.

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Large scale development projects: Since, 1951 over 5000 sq km of forest was cleared for river valley projects. Clearing of forests is still continuing with the Narmada Sagar Project in Madhya Pradesh.�
Mining: Mining process causes into deforestation. The Buxa Tiger Reserve in West Bengal is threatened by mining. It has disturbed the natural habitat of many species and blocked migration routes of many other species like great Indian elephant.

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Himalayan yew�

The Himalayan Yew is a medicinal plant found in various parts of Himachal Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh in the Himalayan region. ...�
Taxus wallichiana, the Himalayan yew, is a species of yew, native to the Himalaya and parts of south-east Asia. The species has a variety of uses in traditional medicine. It is currently classified as endangered by the IUCN.

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Types and Distribution of Forest

National Parks (NPs)
Wildlife Sanctuaries (WLSs)
Conservation Reserves (CRs)
Community Reserves
Protected Forest,,,

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Protected Areas of India (July, 2019) (Source: Forest Surveys of India)

	No.	Total Area (km²)	Coverage % of Country
National Parks (NPs)	104	40501.13	1.23
Wildlife Sanctuaries (WLSs)	551	119775.80	3.64
Conservation Reserves (CRs)	88	4356.49	0.13
Community Reserves	127	525.22	0.02
Protected Areas (PAs)	870	165158.54	5.02

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Forest Survey of India (FSI)

Forest Survey of India (FSI), founded in June 1981 and headquartered at Dehradun in Uttarakhand, is a Government of India Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change organisation for conducting forest surveys, studies and research to periodically monitor the changing situation of land and forest resources and present the data for National Planning, Conservation and Sustainable management of Environmental protection as well for the implementation of social forestry projects.

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Wild Life Protection Act, 1972

The Wild Life Protection Act, 1972 is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted for protection of plants and animal species. Before 1972, India had only five designated national parks. Among other reforms, the Act established schedules of protected plant and animal species; hunting or harvesting these species was largely outlawed. The Act provides for the protection of wild animals, birds and plants; and for matters connected there with or ancillary or incidental thereto. It extends to the whole of India. It has six schedules for wildlife protection.

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National Green Tribunal (NGT)

The National Green Tribunal has been established on 18.10.2010 under the National Green Tribunal Act 2010 for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and conservation of forests and other natural resources including enforcement of any legal right relating to environment and giving relief and compensation for damages to persons and property and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

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The Indian Forest Service (IFS)

The Indian Forest Service (IFS) is one of the three All India Services of the Government of India. The other two being the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and the Indian Police Service (IPS). It was constituted in the year 1966 under the All India Services Act, 1951, by the Government of India.

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The main mandate of the service is the implementation of the National Forest Policy in order to ensure the ecological stability of the country through the protection and participatory sustainable management of natural resources.

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Project Tiger

Project Tiger is a tiger conservation programme launched in April 1973 by the Government of India during Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's tenure. Kailash Sankhala was the first director of Project Tiger.

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The Project Aims

The project aims at ensuring a viable population of Bengal tigers in their natural habitats, protecting them from extinction, and preserving areas of biological importance as a natural heritage forever represented as close as possible the diversity of ecosystems across the distribution of tigers in the country.

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GHARIAL�

The gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) is a critically endangered crocodilian existing only in India and Nepal. India’s Katernia ghat Wildlife Sanctuary contains a breeding population vital to the survival of the species. However this population is threatened by a combination of natural and anthropogenic causes.

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The gharial is distributed in the Padma river (Ganges) and the Jamuna Brahmaputra river and some of the tributaries and distributaries in Bangladesh. As the natural habitats of gharials belong to both the Padma and Jamuna Brahmaputra rivers, gharial conservation becomes a trans-boundary issue.
The ecological role played by gharials as top predators in the river ecosystem is yet to be appreciated and disseminated to the general masses and most importantly policy makers and the people dependent on the rivers.

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The Chipko Movement

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Sunderlal Bahuguna, a noted environmentalist who initiated the Chipko Movement, was born on January 9, 1927. The man who has been fighting for the preservation of forests in the Himalayas celebrates his 90th birthday today.

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