Explain the types of vegetation in India.
Answers
The following are the principal types of natural vegetation in India:
(1) Tropical Evergreen Rain Forests,
(2) Deciduous or Monsoon Type of Forests,
(3) Dry Deciduous Forests and Scrubs,
(4) Semi Desert and Desert Vegetation,
(5) Tidal or Mangrove Forests and
#1. Tropical Evergreen Forests
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The tropical evergreen forests usually occur in areas receiving more than 200 cm of rainfall and having a temperature of 15 to 30 degrees Celsius.
They occupy about seven per cent of the earth’s land surface and harbours more than half of the world’s plants and animals.
They are found mostly near the equator. Region is warm and wet throughout the year.
Trees reach great heights up to 60 metres or even above.
It has a luxuriant vegetation of all kinds – trees, shrubs, and creepers giving it a multilayered structure.
In India, evergreen forests are found in the western slopes of the Western Ghats in States such as Kerala and Karnataka. They are also found in hills of Jaintia and Khasi. Some of the trees found in Indian Tropical Forests are rosewood, mahogany and ebony. Bamboos and reeds are also common.
Common animals found in these forests are elephants, monkey, lemur and deer. The one horned rhinoceros are found in the jungles of Assam and West Bengal.
#2. Tropical Deciduous Forests:
They are the most widespread forests of India.
Also called the monsoon forests and spread over the region receiving rainfall between 200 cm and 70 cm.
Trees of this forest type shed their leaves for about six to eight weeks in dry summer.
On the basis of the availability of water, these forests are further divided into moist and dry deciduous.
Moist deciduous forests:
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It found in areas receiving rainfall between 200 and 100 cm.
Exist mostly in the eastern part of the country – northeastern states, along the foothills of the Himalayas, Jharkhand, West Orissa and Chhattisgarh, and on the eastern slopes of the Western Ghats.
Teak is the most dominant species of this forest.
Bamboos, sal, shisham, sandalwood, khair , kusum, arjun, mulberry are other commercially important species.
Dry Deciduous Forests:
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The dry deciduous forests are found in areas having rainfall between 100 cm and 70cm.
These forests are found in the rainier parts of the peninsular plateau and the plains of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
There are open stretches in which Teak, Sal, Peepal, and Neem grow.
A large part of this region has been cleared for cultivation and some parts are used for grazing.
Common animals found are lion, tiger , pig, deer and elephant. Variety of birds, lizards, snakes, and tortoises are also found here.
Difference between Dry & Moist Deciduous Forests