| Upper Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests | |
|---|---|
 Hills near Kanpur | |
 Ecoregion territory (in purple) | |
| Ecology | |
| Realm | Indomalayan |
| Biome | tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests |
| Borders | |
| Geography | |
| Area | 262,642 km2 (101,407 sq mi) |
| Countries | |
| States | |
| Conservation | |
| Conservation status | critical/endangered [1] |
| Protected | 3,544 km2 (1%) [2] |
The Upper Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion of northern India.
It lies on the alluvial plain of the Ganges and Yamuna rivers, with an area of 263,100 square kilometers (101,600 sq mi), covering most of the state of Uttar Pradesh and adjacent portions of Uttarakhand, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar; as well as a minuscule adjacent portion of southern Nepal.
The ecoregion is bounded on the north by the Himalayan subtropical pine forests, Terai-Duar savannas and grasslands and Himalayan subtropical broadleaf forests of the Himalaya foothills, to the west by the drier Northwestern thorn scrub forests and Khathiar-Gir dry deciduous forests, on the south by the Narmada Valley dry deciduous forests of the Malwa and Bundelkhand uplands, and on the east by the more humid Lower Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests.
The ecoregion is home to several large cities, including Delhi, Agra, Kanpur, Lucknow, Gwalior, and Varanasi.
The ecoregion has a subtropical climate. Rainfall is highly seasonal, falling mainly during the June-to-September southwest monsoon.
In ancient times the region was mostly covered with moist semi deciduous forests, with trees that lose their leaves during the winter dry season. sal (Shorea robusta) is predominant tree. Mature trees form a canopy 25 to 35 metres. Other trees include Cinnamomum cassia, Durio zibethinus, Garcinia mangostana, Artocarpus heterophyllus, Ficus benghalensis, Gnetum gnemon, Mangifera indica, Terminalia tomentosa, Terminalia belerica, Lagerstroemia parviflora, Adina cordifolia, Dillenia pentagyna, Stereospermum suaveolens, Gnetum gnemon, Mangifera indica, Toona sinensis, Cocos nucifera, Tetrameles nudiflora, Ginkgo biloba, Prunus serrulata, Camphora officinarum, Tsuga dumosa, Ulmus lanceifolia, Tectona grandis , and Ficus spp. [1]
Where the land has been disturbed by flood, fire, or livestock grazing there are areas of grassland or savanna, with the grasses Saccharum spontaneum, Saccharum narenga, Saccharum benghalense , and Vetiveria zizanioides . [1]
There are 79 known species of mammals in the ecoregion. Large mammals, including tiger (Panthera tigris), Indian rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis), Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), wild water buffalo (Bubalus arnee), chousingha (Tetracerus quadricornis), swamp deer (Rucervus duvaucelii), and sloth bear (Melursus ursinus), once roamed the ecoregion. Habitat destruction has mostly extirpated them from the ecoregion. Small populations of tiger, Asian elephant, sloth bear, and chousingha persist in the few remaining forested areas at the foot of the Himalayas. [1]
There are over 290 species of birds, including the great Indian bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps), lesser florican (Sypheotides indicus), Indian grey hornbill (Ocyceros birostris), and Oriental pied hornbill (Anthracoceros albirostris). [1]
Wetlands along the Ganges River and its tributaries support communities of resident and migrant waterfowl, along with mugger crocodile (Crocodylus palustris) and gharial (Gavialis gangeticus). The ecoregion's large rivers are home to the endangered Ganges river dolphin (Platanista gangetica gangetica). [1]
The ecoregion is currently densely populated, and the fertile plains have largely been converted to intensive agriculture, with only a few enclaves of forest remaining.
A 2017 assessment found that 3,544 km2, or 1%, of the ecoregion is in protected areas. [2] Protected areas in the ecoregion include: [1]
The East Deccan dry evergreen forests is an ecoregion of southeastern India. The ecoregion includes the coastal region behind the Coromandel Coast on the Bay of Bengal, between the Eastern Ghats and the sea. It covers eastern Tamil Nadu, part of Puducherry and south eastern Andhra Pradesh.
The Malabar Coast moist forests are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of southwestern India.
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.
The South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests is a tropical dry forest ecoregion in southern India. The ecoregion lies in the southernmost portion of the Deccan Plateau, and includes the southernmost portion of the Eastern Ghats.
The Khathiar–Gir dry deciduous forests is a mostly arid ecoregion in northwestern India that stretches over 103,100 sq mi (267,000 km2) across Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. The dry deciduous forests in the region are dominated by teak, and thorny trees and scrub in drier areas.
The Odisha semi-evergreen forests are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of eastern India. The ecoregion covers an area of 8,600 square kilometers (3,300 sq mi) on the coastal plain of Odisha state, bounded by the Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests west and north-west, transitioning from the huge ecoregion Lower Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests along the north coastland, and surrounding the smaller ecoregion Godavari-Krishna mangroves along a stretch of the south-east coast by the Bay of Bengal.
The Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests, presently known as East Deccan moist deciduous forests, is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in east-central India. The ecoregion covers an area of 341,100 square kilometers (131,700 sq mi), extending across portions of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, and Telangana states.
The Northern dry deciduous forests, presently known as the North Deccan dry deciduous forests, is a tropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregion of east-central India.
The Lower Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion of Bangladesh and India. The ecoregion covers an area of 254,100 square kilometres (98,100 sq mi), comprising most of Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar and Tripura, and extending into adjacent states of Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and a tiny part of Assam, as well as adjacent western Myanmar.
The Brahmaputra Valley semi-evergreen forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of Northeastern India, southern Bhutan and adjacent Bangladesh.
The Narmada Valley dry deciduous forests are a tropical dry forest ecoregion of central India. The ecoregion lies mostly in Madhya Pradesh state, but extends into portions of Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh states.
The Himalayan subtropical broadleaf forests is an ecoregion that extends from the middle hills of central Nepal through Darjeeling into Bhutan and also into the Indian States of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. It represents the east–west-directed band of subtropical broadleaf forest at an altitude of between 500 and 1,000 m along the Outer Himalayan Range, and includes several forest types traversing an east to west moisture gradient.
The Taiwan subtropical evergreen forests is an ecoregion that covers most of the island of Taiwan, with the exception of the southern tip of the island, which constitutes the South Taiwan monsoon rain forests ecoregion. The island's concentrated steep mountains host a range of forest types, from subtropical forests in the lowlands to temperate and alpine or montane forests.
The Northern Indochina subtropical forests are a subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of northern Indochina, covering portions of Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar, and China's Yunnan Province.
The Mizoram–Manipur–Kachin rain forests is a subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion which occupies the lower hillsides of the mountainous border region joining Bangladesh, China's Yunnan Province, India, and Myanmar. The ecoregion covers an area of 135,600 square kilometres (52,400 sq mi). Located where the biotas of the Indian Subcontinent and the Indochinese Peninsula meet, and in the transition between subtropical and tropical regions of Asia, the Mizoram–Manipur–Kachin rain forests are home to great biodiversity. The WWF rates the ecoregion as "Globally Outstanding" in biological distinctiveness.
The Central Indochina dry forests are a large tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests ecoregion in Southeast Asia.
The Tenasserim–South Thailand semi-evergreen rain forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion on Mainland Southeast Asia. The ecoregion extends north–south along the Kra Isthmus. It includes lowland forests along the coasts, and montane forests on the Tenasserim Hills and Bilauktaung range, which form the mountainous spine of the isthmus.
The ecology of the Himalayas varies with climate, rainfall, altitude, and soils. The climate ranges from tropical at the base of the mountains to permanent ice and snow at the highest elevations. The amount of yearly rainfall increases from west to east along the southern front of the range. This diversity of climate, altitude, rainfall and soil conditions supports a variety of distinct plant and animal species, such as the Nepal gray langur
The Irrawaddy moist deciduous forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion in central Myanmar. The ecoregion occupies the central basin of the Irrawaddy River and the lower basin of the Salween River. The ecoregion is characterized by forests of tall trees which drop their leaves in the dry season. Most of the ecoregion's forests have been converted to agriculture.
The Myanmar coastal rain forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion on Mainland Southeast Asia. The ecoregion occupies Myanmar's coastal lowlands along the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal.