Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests

Map

Dry Evergreen Forests during Monsoon along the Eastern Ghats at Visakhapatnam

Deciduous Forests during Monsoon along the Eastern Ghats

The Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of east-central India. The ecoregion covers an area of 341,100 square kilometers (131,700 sq mi), extending across portions of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, and Telangana states.

Setting

The Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests extend from the Bay of Bengal coast in northern Andhra Pradesh and southern Orissa, across the northern portion of the Eastern Ghats range and the northeastern Deccan Plateau, to the eastern Satpura Range and the upper Narmada River valley.

The forests of the ecoregion are sustained by the moisture-bearing monsoon winds from the Bay of Bengal, which lies to the southeast. The ecoregion is bounded on the north and west by tropical dry deciduous forest ecoregions, including the Central Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests to the southwest and west, the Narmada valley dry deciduous forests to the northwest, and the Chota Nagpur dry deciduous forests to the north and northeast. The drier Northern dry deciduous forests ecoregion, lying west of the Eastern Ghats range, is completely surrounded by the Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests, in the rain shadow of the Ghats, which partially block the moisture-laden monsoon winds off the Bay of Bengal. The humid Orissa semi-evergreen forests ecoregion lies to the northeast in the coastal lowlands of Orissa.

Flora

The ecoregion's forests are dominated by Sal (Shorea robusta), in association with Terminalia, Adina, Toona, Syzygium, Buchanania, Cleisanthus, and Anogeissus. The flora of the ecoregion shares many affinities with the moist forests of the Western Ghats and the eastern Himalayas.

Fauna

The ecoregion is considered globally outstanding by the World Wildlife Fund for its assemblage of large mammals, including tiger (Panthera tigris), wolf (Canis lupus), gaur (Bos gaurus), and sloth bear (Melursus ursinus). The Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus) has been extirpated from the ecoregion.

Conservation

Approximately 25% of the original habitat remains, much of it in blocks of 5000 km² or larger. 31 protected areas, totaling 13,500 km², preserve about 4% of the ecoregion's intact habitat. The largest protected area in the ecoregion is Simlipal National Park in Odisha state.^[1]

Achanakmar Wildlife Sanctuary, Chhattisgarh (550 km²)
Badalkhol Wildlife Sanctuary, Chhattisgarh (120 km²)
Baisipalli Wildlife Sanctuary, Odisha (170 km²)
Balimela Wildlife Sanctuary, Odisha (130 km²)
Barnawapara Wildlife Sanctuary, Chhattisgarh (240 km²)
Bori Wildlife Sanctuary, Hoshangabad district, Madhya Pradesh (460 km²)
Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary, Warangal district, Telangana (120 km²)
Bhairamgarh Wildlife Sanctuary, Bijapur district, Chhattisgarh (160 km²)
Hadgarh Wildlife Sanctuary, Odisha (140 km²)
Indravati National Park, Bijapur district, Chhattisgarh (1,150 km²)
Kanha National Park, Mandla and Balaghat districts, Madhya Pradesh (900 km²)
Karlapat Wildlife Sanctuary, Odisha (150 km²)
Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary, Adilabad district, Telangana (1,080 km²)
Kinnerasani Wildlife Sanctuary, Khammam district, Telangana (290 km²)
Kolleru Wildlife Sanctuary (480 km², partially in the Central Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests ecoregion).
Kondakameru Wildlife Sanctuary, Odisha (400 km²)
Kotgarh Wildlife Sanctuary, Odisha (400 km²)
Lakhari Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, Ganjam district, Odisha (180 km²)
Lanjamadugu Wildlife Sanctuary, Karimnagar district, Telangana (80 km²)
Mahuadaur Wildlife Sanctuary, Jharkhand (60 km²)
Pachmarhi Wildlife Sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh (500 km²)
Pakhal Wildlife Sanctuary, Warangal district, Telangana (120 km²)
Pamed Wildlife Sanctuary, Chhattisgarh (60 km²)
Papikonda Wildlife Sanctuary, Khammam district, Telangana and East and West Godavari districts, Andhra Pradesh (530 km²)
Phen Wildlife Sanctuary, Mandla district, Madhya Pradesh (100 km²)
Pranahita Wildlife Sanctuary, Adilabad district,Telanagana (130 km²)
Satkosia Gorge Wildlife Sanctuary, Odisha (790 km²)
Satpura National Park, Madhya Pradesh (490 km²)
Simlipal National Park, Mayurbhanj district, Odisha (2,550 km²))
Sitanadi Wildlife Sanctuary, Chhattisgarh (670 km²)
Udanti Wildlife Sanctuary, Chhattisgarh (340 km²)

External links

"Eastern highlands moist deciduous forests". Terrestrial Ecoregions. World Wildlife Fund.

References

↑ Wikramanayake, Eric; Eric Dinerstein; Colby J. Loucks; et al. (2002). Terrestrial Ecoregions of the Indo-Pacific: a Conservation Assessment. Island Press; Washington, DC. pp. 306-308

Ecoregions of India

Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests	Andaman Islands rain forests Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests Chin Hills-Arakan Yoma montane forests Eastern highlands moist deciduous forests Himalayan subtropical broadleaf forests Lower Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests Malabar Coast moist forests Maldives-Lakshadweep-Chagos Archipelago tropical moist forests Meghalaya subtropical forests Mizoram-Manipur-Kachin rain forests Nicobar Islands rain forests North Western Ghats moist deciduous forests North Western Ghats montane rain forests Orissa semi-evergreen forests South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests South Western Ghats montane rain forests Sundarbans freshwater swamp forests Upper Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests

Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests	Central Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests Chota-Nagpur dry deciduous forests East Deccan dry evergreen forests Kathiarbar-Gir dry deciduous forests Narmada Valley dry deciduous forests Northern dry deciduous forests South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests

Tropical and subtropical coniferous forests	Himalayan subtropical pine forests Northeast India-Myanmar pine forests

Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests	Eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests Western Himalayan broadleaf forests

Temperate coniferous forests	Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests Western Himalayan subalpine conifer forests

Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands	Terai-Duar savanna and grasslands

Montane grasslands and shrublands	Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows Karakoram-West Tibetan Plateau alpine steppe Northwestern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows Western Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows

Flooded grasslands and savannas	Rann of Kutch seasonal salt marsh

Deserts and xeric shrublands	Deccan thorn scrub forests Indus Valley desert Northwestern thorn scrub forests Thar desert

Mangrove	Godavari-Krishna mangroves Indus River Delta-Arabian Sea mangroves Myanmar coast mangroves Sundarbans mangroves

Ecoregions of India

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