Forest and Ecosystem
* Forest impacts our environment in a variety of ways.
They control:
* Climate
* Soil erosion
* Pollution
* Forests also support a variety of industries and offer scenic beauty.
* There are very few areas left in India where the vegetation can be called natural in the true sense of the world.
* In June 2001, the actual forest cover in India was only 20.55 percent.
* Extensive modification of vegetation and depletion forest cover has been caused by:
* Together, the flora, fauna and the physical environment of an area form a ecosystem.
* Human beings can have a huge impact on an ecosystem.
* A very large ecosystem on land having distinct types of vegetation and animal life is called a biome.
Types of Vegetation
* The major types of vegetation in India are tropical evergreen forest tropical deciduous forests, tropical thorn and scrubs forests, mountain forests and mangrove forests.
* Tropical evergreen forests are characterised by heavy rainfall and a warm climate.
* Tropical deciduous forests make up most of the forest area in India, and are also known as monsoon forests. Rainfall in these areas is in the range of 70 to 200 cm.
* Areas that receive between 70 and 100 cm rainfall are classified as dry deciduous forests.
* Thorn forests and scrubs need very little rainfall.
* Montane forests are very different in their make – up from other types of forests as the temperature and soil conditions are different on different altitudes.
* Mangrove forests are usually found in coastal areas.
Wildlife and Conservation of Flora and Fauna
* India is home to around 1.6 million on nearly 8% of the total species of the flora and fauna found in the world.
* India is also home to over 86000 species of fauna. These include birds, insects, and land and water animals.
* India is one of the few countries that have a habitat to support large land animals like the elephant.
* The Himalayas also harbour some large land animal like the yak.
* The wildlife in the Indian rivers, lakes and coastal areas is equally rich various species of reptiles like the crocodile and the gharial, the water snake and the turtle.
* There are over 940 different species of fish in India.
* As per IUCN specifications, the species of flora and fauna can be classified as normal, extinct, endangered, vulnerable, rare or endemic.