CEPF Western Ghats Special Series: Meghamalai landscape : a biodiversity hotspot

• Main Authors: S. Bhupathy, S. Babu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wildlife Information Liaison Development Society 2013-11-01
• Series: Journal of Threatened Taxa
• Online Access: http://threatenedtaxa.org/index.php/JoTT/article/view/1523

The Meghamalai, also known as High Wavy Mountains, is located in the Theni Forest Division of Tamil Nadu, Western Ghats. The landscape is endowed with an array of vegetation types varying from dry (thorn forests) in the eastern side to wet (evergreen) forests on the western side due to wide elevation gradient (220-2000 m above sea level) and varied rainfall pattern (wind ward and leeward zones). The composition and configuration of this landscape facilitates diverse species of vertebrates (18 species of fishes, 35 amphibians, 90 reptiles, 254 birds, 63 mammals). In the past, selected floral and faunal groups of Meghamalai have been sporadically surveyed by the British explorers. However, in-depth ecological studies on various biota have only been initiated in recent years by SACON and WILD, which highlighted the conservation importance of the area. It is hoped that the recently declared Meghamalai Wildlife Sanctuary encompassing a part of the landscape, and the proposal of the Srivilliputtur-Meghamalai Tiger Reserve, if realized, would help conserving the diverse biota of this landscape in the long run.