Vegetation types of India
Biogeographic zones of India
• India is bestowed with a wide range of flora and fauna.
• Due to a diverse geographical and climatic condition, an
extensive range of natural vegetation grows in India.
• Types of Natural Vegetation in India (Vegetation Types of
India)
– Tropical Evergreen Rain Forests
– Deciduous or Monsoon Type of Forests
– Dry Deciduous Forests
– Mountain Forests
– Tidal or Mangrove Forests
– Semi-Desert and Desert Vegetations
Major vegetation types of India
1. Tropical evergreen rain forests
• It is found in the areas where precipitation is more than 200 cm.
• Temperature range: 15-30 degree C.
• They are largely found in the Northeastern regions of Arunachal Pradesh,
Meghalaya, Assam, Nagaland, the Western Ghats, the Tarai areas of the Himalayas,
and the Andaman groups of Islands.
• They are also found in the hills of Khasi and Jaintia.
• The trees in this area have intense growth.
• 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 copious vegetation of all kinds – trees, shrubs, and creepers giving it a
multilayered structure.
• The major trees found in this area are Sandal Wood, Rosewood, Garjan,
Mahogany, and bamboo.
• The elephants, monkey, lemur are the common animals found in these areas.
2. Deciduous or monsoon type forests
• They are the most widespread forests of India.
• The Deciduous forests are found on the lower slope of the
Himalayas, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Orissa,
Karnataka, Maharashtra Jharkhand, and the adjoining areas.
• The precipitation in this area is between 70 cm and 200 cm.
• Teak is the dominant species seen in the area, along with that
Deodar, Blue Gum, Pal Ash, Sal, Sandalwood, Ebony, Arjun,
Khair, and Bamboo are also seen.
• The trees in this forest shed their leaves during dry winter and
dry summer.
• Based on the availability of water, these forests are again
divided into moist and dry deciduous.
A. Moist deciduous forests:
– 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.
B. Dry deciduous forests
– 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.
3. Mountain/montane forests
• Montane forests are those found in mountains with decreasing
temperature.
• Mountain forests differ significantly along the slopes of the
mountain.
• On the foothills of the Himalayas until a height of 1500 meters,
evergreen trees like Sal, teak, and bamboo grow copiously.
• On the higher slope, temperate conifer trees like pine, fir, and oak
grow.
• At the higher elevation of the Himalayas, rhododendrons and
junipers are found.
• Further, then these vegetation zones, alpine grasslands appear up
to the snowfield.
• Common animals found in these forests are Kashmir stag, spotted
dear , wild sheep, jack rabbit, Tibetan antelope, yak, snow
leopard, squirrels, Shaggy horn wild ibex, bear and rare red panda,
sheep and goats with thick hair.
4. Tidal or mangrove
forests
• The tidal or mangrove forests grow by the side of the coast and on the edges of
the deltas e.g., the deltas of the Cauvery, Krishna, Mahanadi, Godavari, and Ganga.
• Dense mangroves are the common varieties with roots of the plants submerged
under water.
• In West Bengal, these forests are known as ‘Sundarbans’.
• The ‘Sundari’ (Heritiera sp.) is the most major tree in these forests. The important
trees of the tidal forests are Hogla, Garan, Pasur, etc.
• This forest is an important factor in the timber industry as they provide timber and
firewood.
• Palm and coconut trees beautify the coastal strip.
• Royal Bengal Tiger is the famous animal in these forests.
• Turtles, crocodiles, gharials and snakes are also found in these forests.
5. Semi-desert and desert vegetation
• This area receives rainfall of less than 50 cm.
• Thorny bushes, acacia, and Babul are found in this vegetation
region.
• The Indian wild date is generally found here. They have long roots
and thick flesh.
• The plants found in this region store water in their stem to endure
during the drought.
• Acacias, palms, euphorbias and cacti are the main plant species.
• Trees are scattered and have long roots penetrating deep into the
soil in order to get moisture.
• The stems are succulent to conserve water.
• Leaves are mostly thick and small to minimize evaporation
• These vegetation are found in parts of Gujarat’s, Punjab, and
Rajasthan.
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