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Ecosystem

Western Ghats

Also Known As Sahyadri
Tropical Rainforest

The Western Ghats, also called the Sahyadri, is a mountain range stretching 1,600 kilometers along India's west coast and covering roughly 160,000 square kilometers. It is not a single uniform rainforest but a mosaic of montane rain forest, moist and dry deciduous forest, scrub, peat bogs, swamps and montane grassland, which is why it is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site rather than treated as one plain ecoregion. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Classification
Biogeographic Realm
Indomalayan 1
Protected Status
Managed or Multiple-Use Protection 1
Area (sq km)
160,000 1
Connections

Demonstrates

Source National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Hosts

Source Asian elephant (Wikipedia)
Source Black-winged kite (Wikipedia)
Source Blue-capped rock thrush (Wikipedia)
Caecilian, Species
Source Caecilian (Wikipedia)
Dhole, Species
Source Wikidata: Tiger
Additional Source Western Ghats (Wikipedia)Article text
Source Eurasian Hoopoe (Wikipedia)
Source Eurasian Otter (Wikipedia)
Source Great hornbill, Wikipedia
Jungle Cat, Species
Source Wikipedia: Jungle cat
King Cobra, Species
Source Wikipedia: King cobra
Source Lantana camara (Wikipedia)
Leopard Cat, Species
Source Wikipedia: Leopard Cat
Source Lion-tailed Macaque (Wikipedia)
Purple Frog, Species
Source Purple frog, Wikipedia
Source Poecilotheria rufilata (Wikipedia)
Rust Fungus, Species
Source Rust (fungus), Wikipedia
Source Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Animal Diversity Web: Prionailurus rubiginosus
Tiger, Species
Source Wikidata: Tiger
Additional Source Western Ghats (Wikipedia)Article text

In Biome

Source Western Ghats (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases

Found In

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Sources
1. Western Ghats (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia
  • lead section
    The Western Ghats, also known as the Sahyadri, is a mountain range that stretches 1,600 km (1,000 mi) along the west coast of India.
  • Biogeographic realm: indomalayan (derived from location stated in entity description)
  • Protected status (stated plainly in the entity own recorded description)
    It is not a single uniform rainforest but a mosaic of montane rain forest, moist and dry deciduous forest, scrub, peat bogs, swamps and montane grassland, which is why it is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site rather than treated as one plain ecoregion.
  • Hosts: Tiger, Article text
    The Western Ghats region has one of the highest tiger populations, estimated at 985 in 2022.
  • Hosts: Dhole, Article text
    Other mammals include endangered and vulnerable species such as the lion-tailed macaque, Nilgiri tahr, leopard, Nilgiri langur, dhole, and gaur.
View the Source
Lion-tailed Macaque (Wikipedia)
WikipediaHosts: Lion-tailed Macaque, Lead section
Quote, Hosts: Lion-tailed Macaque, Lead section
an Old World monkey endemic to the Western Ghats of South India
View the Source
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
National Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationDemonstrates: MonsoonView the Source
Purple frog, Wikipedia
Hosts: Purple Frog, Wikipedia intro: "the pignose frog, is a frog species in the family Nasikabatrachidae. The species is endemic to the Western Ghats in India. Although the adult frog was formally..."View the Source
Eurasian Otter (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHosts: Eurasian Otter, Distribution and habitat
Quote, Hosts: Eurasian Otter, Distribution and habitat
In India, it is distributed in the Himalayan foothills, southern Western Ghats and the central Indian landscape.
View the Source
Wikipedia: King cobra
Hosts: King Cobra, Distribution and habitat
Quote, Hosts: King Cobra, Distribution and habitat
In the Western Ghats, it was recorded in Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra, and also in Gujarat.
View the Source
Eurasian Hoopoe (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationHosts: Eurasian Hoopoe, Distribution and habitat
Quote, Hosts: Eurasian Hoopoe, Distribution and habitat
Hoopoes make seasonal movements in response to rain in some regions such as in Ceylon and in the Western Ghats.
View the Source
Great hornbill, Wikipedia
Hosts: Great Hornbill, Distribution and habitat
Quote, Hosts: Great Hornbill, Distribution and habitat
Its distribution is fragmented in the Western Ghats and in the foothills of the Himalayas.
View the Source
Lantana camara (Wikipedia)
WikipediaHosts: Lantana Camara, As an invasive species
Quote, Hosts: Lantana Camara, As an invasive species
While a study in the Western Ghats, did not find significant impacts of L. camara invasion on a few native plant indicators, many other studies have found substantial impacts of its invasion on various biodiversity indicators.
View the Source
Caecilian (Wikipedia)
Hosts: Caecilian, Cultural significance
Quote, Hosts: Caecilian, Cultural significance
Caecilians in the Eastern Himalayas are colloquially known as "back ache snakes", while in the Western Ghats, Ichthyophis tricolor is considered to be more toxic than a king cobra.
View the Source
Rust (fungus), Wikipedia
Hosts: Rust Fungus, Host plants affected
Quote, Hosts: Rust Fungus, Host plants affected
Recently, a total of 95 rust fungi belonging to 25 genera associated with 117 forest plant species belonging to 80 host genera under 43 host families were reported from the Western Ghats, Kerala, India.
View the Source
Wikipedia: Jungle cat
Hosts: Jungle Cat, Characteristics
Quote, Hosts: Jungle Cat, Characteristics
White cats observed in the coastline tracts of the southern Western Ghats lacked the red eyes typical of true albinos.
View the Source
Wikipedia: Leopard Cat
WikipediaHosts: Leopard Cat, Distribution and habitat
Quote, Hosts: Leopard Cat, Distribution and habitat
In India, the leopard cat has been recorded in protected areas of the Himalayas and their foothills, of the Terai and Dooars, the Brahmaputra Valley, Garo Hills and in the southern part of the Western Ghats.
View the Source
Black-winged kite (Wikipedia)
Hosts: Black-winged kite, Behaviour and ecology
Quote, Hosts: Black-winged kite, Behaviour and ecology
The black-winged kite breeds at different times of the year across its range.
View the Source
Blue-capped rock thrush (Wikipedia)
Hosts: Blue-capped rock thrush, Habits
Quote, Hosts: Blue-capped rock thrush, Habits
Like thrushes, they fly up into trees and sit motionless when they are disturbed.
View the Source
Asian elephant (Wikipedia)
Hosts: Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus), Distribution and habitat
Quote, Hosts: Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus), Distribution and habitat
In a 2013 study, an estimated 10,000 elephants inhabited the Western Ghats
View the Source
Poecilotheria rufilata (Wikipedia)
Hosts: Red Slate Ornamental Tarantula, Distribution and habitat
Quote, Hosts: Red Slate Ornamental Tarantula, Distribution and habitat
It is endemic to South Western Ghats of India.
View the Source
Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Animal Diversity Web: Prionailurus rubiginosus
Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of ZoologyHosts: Rusty-spotted Cat, Geographic Range
Quote, Hosts: Rusty-spotted Cat, Geographic Range
The species is also found in the Varushanad Valley, Western Ghats, part of a biodiversity hotspot.
View the Source

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