The Western Ghats, also known as the Sahyadri, is a mountain range that stretches 1,600 km (990 mi) along the western coast of the Indian peninsula. Covering an area of 160,000 km2 (62,000 sq mi), it traverses the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu. The range forms an almost continuous chain of mountains along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, from the Tapti River to Swamithoppe in Kanyakumari district at the southern tip of the Indian peninsula. The Western Ghats meet with the Eastern Ghats at Nilgiris before continuing south.
The South Western Ghats montane rain forests is an ecoregion in South India, covering the southern portion of the Western Ghats in Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu at elevations from 1,000 to 2,695 m. Annual rainfall in this ecoregion exceeds 2,800 mm (110 in).
The Nilgiri tahr is an ungulate that is endemic to the Nilgiri Hills and the southern portion of the Western and Eastern Ghats in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala in southern India. It is the only species in the genus Nilgiritragus and is closely related to the sheep of the genus Ovis.
The South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests is an ecoregion in the Western Ghats of southern India with tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests. This biome covers the Nilgiri Hills between elevation of 250 and 1,000 m in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu states.
A shola is the local name for a patch of stunted tropical montane forest found in valleys amid rolling grassland in the higher montane regions of South India, largely in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamilnadu. These patches of shola forest are found mainly in the valleys and are usually separated from one another by undulating montane grassland. The shola and grassland together form the shola-grassland complex or mosaic. Not all such high-elevation grasslands have sholas in their valleys, especially if they are isolated from other such meadows, such as the meadows found in the Idamalayar Reserve Forest in Ernakulam district of Kerala. The word 'Shola' is probably derived from the Tamil language word cōlai (சோலை) meaning grove.
The Malabar large-spotted civet, also known as the Malabar civet, is a viverrid endemic to the Western Ghats of India. It is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List as the population is estimated to number fewer than 250 mature individuals. It has not been recorded during surveys carried out between 1990 and 2014. In the early 1990s, isolated populations still survived in less disturbed areas of South Malabar but were seriously threatened by habitat destruction and hunting outside protected areas.
The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve is a biosphere reserve in the Nilgiri Mountains of the Western Ghats in South India. It is the largest protected forest area in India, spreading across Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. It includes the protected areas Mudumalai National Park, Mukurthi National Park, Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu; Nagarhole National Park, Bandipur National Park, both in Karnataka; Silent Valley National Park, Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary, Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, and Karimpuzha Wildlife Sanctuary in Kerala.
Mudumalai National Park is a national park in the Nilgiri Mountains in Tamil Nadu in southern India. It covers 321 km2 (124 sq mi) at an elevation range of 850–1,250 m (2,790–4,100 ft) in the Nilgiri District and shares boundaries with the states of Karnataka and Kerala. A part of this area has been protected since 1940. The national park has been part of Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve since 1986 and was declared a tiger reserve together with a buffer zone of 367.59 km2 (141.93 sq mi) in 2007. It receives an annual rainfall of about 1,420 mm (56 in) and harbours tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests with 498 plant species, at least 266 bird species, 18 carnivore and 10 herbivore species. It is drained by the Moyar River and several tributaries, which harbour 38 fish species.
Eravikulam National Park is a 97 km2 national park located along the Western Ghats in the Idukki and Ernakulam districts of Kerala in India. The park is situated between 10º05'N and 10º20' north, and 77º0' and 77º10' east and is the first national park in Kerala. It was established in 1978.
The stripe-necked mongoose is a mongoose species native to forests and shrublands from southern India to Sri Lanka.
The small Indian civet is a civet native to South and Southeast Asia. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List because of its widespread distribution, widespread habitat use and healthy populations living in agricultural and secondary landscapes of many range states.
The Malabar spiny dormouse is a species of muroid rodent endemic to the Western Ghats of India. It is the only extant species in the genus Platacanthomys and although resembling a dormouse, it is not closely related. About the size of a brown rat, this arboreal species lives in tree holes in dense forest habitats in a small family group. They are distinguishable from other species in the area by their bushy tuft tip to the tail and the spiny fur on the back.
The brown palm civet, also called the Jerdon's palm civet, is a viverrid endemic to the Western Ghats of India.
The Indian brown mongoose or brown mongoose is a mongoose species native to the Western Ghats in India and the western coast in Sri Lanka and introduced to Fiji. It is listed as least concern on the IUCN Red List.
The yellow-throated marten is a marten species native to the Himalayas, Southeast and East Asia. Its coat is bright yellow-golden, and its head and back are distinctly darker, blending together black, white, golden-yellow and brown. It is the second-largest marten in the Old World, after the Nilgiri marten, with its tail making up more than half its body length.
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Pampadum Shola National Park is the smallest national park in Idukki district of Kerala in India. It is on the border with Kodaikanal, Dindigul district of Tamil Nadu. The park is administered by the Kerala Department of Forests and Wildlife, Munnar Wildlife Division, together with the nearby Mathikettan Shola National Park, Eravikulam National Park, Anamudi Shola National Park, Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary and the Kurinjimala Sanctuary. The park adjoins the Allinagaram Reserved Forest within the proposed Palani Hills Wildlife Sanctuary and National Park.It is a part of Palani hills stretched up to Vandaravu peak. The Westerns Ghats, Anamalai Sub-Cluster, including these parks, is under consideration by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for selection as a World Heritage Site.
The Pothigai Hills, also known as Agasthiyar Mountain is a 1,866-metre (6,122 ft)-tall peak in the southern part of the Western Ghats or Sahyadri of South India. The peak lies in Tirunelveli District of Tamil Nadu near the border of Kerala.
The Banasura laughingthrush is a species of bird in the family Leiothrichidae. It is found in shola habitat in a small section of the Western Ghats in southwestern Karnataka and northern Kerala. It was formerly considered a subspecies of the black-chinned laughingthrush.
