Moist Tropical Forests In India
- Where the amount of annual rainfall ranges between 200 and 250 cm, the mean annual temperature lies between 24 and 27 and humidity percentage is 80, the evergreen forests degenerate into semi- evergreen forests.
- Such forests are found along the Western Coast, in Upper Assam, lower slopes of the eastern Himalaya, Orissa coast and neighboring hills.
- These forests are characterized by evergreen trees mixed with deciduous (height 24-36 m), having typical features like less dense canopy, gregariousness, frequent buttressed trunks, thicker and rougher barks, and heavy climbers.
- Although bamboos are less abundant but epiphytes are present in large number. Important plant varieties include aini, semul, gutel, mundane, hopea, benteak, kadam irul,llaurel, rosewood, haldu, kanju, bijasal, kusum, bomsum, Indian chestnut, litsea, holloch, champa and mesua, etc. These forests are less dense and can be easily exploited.
Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests
- These are the typical monsoon forests in areas where the amount of annual rainfall ranges between 100cm and 150cm with mean annual temperature of 24 to 27, and humidity percentage of 60 to 80.
- They mostly occur along the eastern slopes of the Western Ghats, North-Eastern part of the Peninsula and along the foothills of the Himalayas in the Shiwaliks, the Bhabar and the Tarai.
- Sal and teak are commercially the most significant species; the former occupying the relatively wetter north-eastern parts of the Peninsula.
- Teak is more suited to the drier Madhya Pradesh.
Tridal Forests
- These forests forma fair by continuous fringe along the deltas of the Ganga, the Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna and Cauvery.
- They occur in and around the tidal creeks and the tide-washed coasts where mud, slit and saline water have accumulated.
- Mangrove which attains 30m of height, is the most important tree in these forests which is utilized for fuel purpose.
- The famous tree which supplies hard durable timber for construction, building purpose and boat making.
- Here, higher ground supports screw pines. Epiphytes are predominant all over the region.