Ecology and phytosociology of the tropical dry deciduous forests of Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary, Telangana, India

Abstract

The paper describes the species composition, abundance, density and community structure of the tropical dry deciduous forests of Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary. Phytosociological analysis was based on the data generated from the 81 sample plots laid at random covering the entire sanctuary area. A total of 177 Angiosperms of species were enumerated from the sampled quadrats. The species present as per preponderance are herbs 71, trees 55, climbers 33, and shrubs 18. The species diversity indices indicate the following facts: Shannon-Weiner index as 4.15, Simpson index value as 0.91, Margalef’s species richness index as 5.20, density of trees above 10 cm GBH class as 470 individuals per hectare. The total basal area of the tree species was 17.7m² ha-1. These statistics along with the composition of the forest, and information on the diversity of the communities as a whole provided a better insight into the state of the forests in the Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary.

Keywords

• India
• Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary
• phytosociology
• quantitative analysis
• tropical dry deciduous forests.