The Himalayas, or Himalaya, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest; more than 100 peaks exceeding elevations of 7,200 m (23,600 ft) above sea level lie in the Himalayas.
Rhododendron is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are native to eastern Asia and the Himalayan region, but smaller numbers occur elsewhere in Asia, and in North America, Europe and Australia.
Coptis is a genus of between 10–15 species of flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae, native to Asia and North America.
Aconitum ferox is a member of the monkshood genus Aconitum of the Ranunculaceae. The common name by which it is most often known in English is Indian Aconite, while the Hindi names used by practitioners of Ayurveda include वत्सनाभvatsanabha and महाविषाmahavisha.
Bugyals are alpine pasture lands, or meadows, in higher elevation range between 3,300 metres (10,800 ft) and 4,000 metres (13,000 ft) of the Himalayas in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, where they are called "nature’s own gardens". The topography of the terrain is either flat or sloped. The surface of these bugyals is covered with natural green grass and seasonal flowers. They are used by tribal herdsmen to graze their cattle. During the winter season the alpine meadows remain snow-covered. During summer months, the Bugyals present a riot of beautiful flowers and grass. As bugyals constitute very fragile ecosystems, particular attention needs to be given for their conservation.
Khangchendzonga National Park, also Kanchenjunga Biosphere Reserve, is a national park and a biosphere reserve located in Sikkim, India. It was inscribed to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list in July 2016, becoming the first "Mixed Heritage" site of India. It was included in the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme. The park is named after the mountain Kangchenjunga, which is the third-highest peak in the world at 8,586 m (28,169 ft) tall. The total area of the park is 849.5 km2 (328.0 sq mi).
Shingba Rhododendron Sanctuary is a nature park in the Indian state of Sikkim. It has forty species of rhododendron trees. It is located in the Yumthang Valley of Flowers north of Lachung in North Sikkim district. Bird species found in the park include Wood snipe and Hoary-throated barwing. The sanctuary is part of the Sacred Himalayan Landscape.
Graphium eurous, the sixbar swordtail, is a swallowtail butterfly belonging to the genus Graphium, also known as the swordtails.
Kyongnosla Alpine Sanctuary is a nature reserve in Gangtok district, Sikkim, India. It is situated around the area adjoining the Tsomgo (Changu) lake along the Nathula Road. Located about 31 km (19 mi) east of Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim, this sanctuary covers an area of about 31 km2 (12 sq mi), and extends from the "15th Mile" police check point up to and along the ridges bordering the Rong Chu Valley and Lake Tsomgo.
The Eastern Himalayan broadleaf forests is a temperate broadleaf forest ecoregion found in the middle elevations of the eastern Himalayas, including parts of Nepal, India, Bhutan, Myanmar and China. These forests have an outstanding richness of wildlife.
The Eastern Himalayas extend from eastern Nepal across Northeast India, Bhutan, the Tibet Autonomous Region to Yunnan in China and northern Myanmar. The climate of this region is influenced by the monsoon of South Asia from June to September. It is a biodiversity hotspot, with notable biocultural diversity.
The Eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion of Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, and Nepal, which lies between the tree line and snow line in the eastern portion of the Himalaya Range.
The 'Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests is a temperate coniferous forests ecoregion which is found in the middle and upper elevations of the eastern Middle Himalayas, in western Nepal, Bhutan, northern Indian states including Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim and adjacent Myanmar and China.
Rubus ellipticus, commonly known as ainselu, golden evergreen raspberry, golden Himalayan raspberry, or yellow Himalayan raspberry, is an Asian species of thorny fruiting shrub in the rose family. It is native to China, Nepal, India, Pakistan, Indochina, and the Philippines.
Rhododendron campylocarpum (弯果杜鹃) is a rhododendron species native to eastern Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan, Arunachal Pradesh, southeastern Tibet, and southwestern China, where it grows at altitudes of 3000–4000 meters. It is a shrub that grows to 2–3 m in height, with leathery leaves that are suborbicular or ovate-elliptic to oblong-elliptic, 4–8.5 by 2.5–4 cm in size. Flowers are yellow.
Rhododendron thomsonii (半圆叶杜鹃) is a rhododendron species native to northern India, Bhutan, Nepal, Sikkim, and southern Xizang in China, where it grows at altitudes of 3,000–4,000 m (9,800–13,100 ft). It is a shrub that grows to 2–4 m in height, with leathery leaves that are oblong-elliptic to ovate or orbicular to obovate, 3–7 by 2–6 cm in size. Flowers are red.
Rhododendron grande is a rhododendron species with a native range from eastern Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan into central Arunachal Pradesh and southern Tibet. It grows at altitudes of 2100–3200 meters and reaches 6–15 meters in height in mixed forests. Flowers vary from cream to yellow to pink, spotted with a blotch on the top petal.
Allium sikkimense is a plant species native to Sikkim, Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal, India and parts of China. It grows in meadows and on the edges of forests at elevations of 2400–5000 m. The species is cultivated as an ornamental in other regions because of its strikingly beautiful blue flowers. It is used medicinally in the Sikkim Eastern Himalayas.
Rhododendron falconeri, the falconer rhododendron, is a species of flowering plant in the family Ericaceae, native to the eastern Himalayas. It is a large evergreen shrub or tree, and sometimes the dominant canopy tree, that typically grows to 12–15 m (39–49 ft) in height, with leathery leaves that are elliptic to obovate in shape and usually about 1 ft (0.30 m) in length. Flowers are white to cream, pale yellow, or pinkish, with a prominent purple blotch.
