Biodiversity Significance of North East India

The following figures highlight the biodiversity significance of the region (Hegde 2000, FSI, 2003) :

1. 51 Forest types are found in the region broadly classified into six major forest types viz.,

tropical moist deciduous forests, tropical semi evergreen forests, tropical wet evergreen

forests, subtropical forests, temperate forests and alpine forests

2. Out of the 9 important vegetation types of India, 6 are found in the North Eastern region.

3. These forests harbour 80,000 out of 15,000 species of flowering plants . These include

• 40 out of 54 species of gymnosperms

• 500 out of 1012 species of Pteridophytes

• 825 out of 1145 species of orchids

• 80 out of 90 species of rhododendrons

• 60 out of 110 species of bamboo

• 25 out of 56 species of canes

4. In terms of floral species richness the highest diversity is reported from the states of Arunachal

Pradesh and Sikkim amongst the North Eastern States as shown in the following table

 

State Species richness (flowering plants)

  

Arunachal Pradesh 5000

Sikkim ± 4500

Meghalaya ± 3500

Assam ± 3010

Manipur ± 2500

Nagaland ± 2250

Mizoram ± 2200

Tripura ± 1600 

Scenario of Forest Cover in North East India (Areas in Sq. km.)

 

 

 

Biodiversity conservation and natural resources in North East India

Northeast States of India is blessed with a wide range of physiographic and ecoclimatic conditions

and the geographical ‘gateway’ for much of India’s endemic flora as well as fauna. This region

represents an important part of the Indo-Myanmar biodiversity hotspot, one of the 25 global

biodiversity hotspots recognized currently. This article stressed the need to conservation of

biodiversity and natural resources in northeast states with special reference to Manipur. The

known biodiversity of Manipur includes 4000 angiosperm plants, 430 medicinal plants, 34 species

of edible fungi, 500 orchids, 54 species of bamboo, 40 endemic rice cultivars, 160 fish species, 21

migratory aquatic birds and a multitude of low and high altitude butterflies. The most endangered

species of this state viz. Cervus eldi eldi and Lilium macklinae sealy are in deplorable condition and

their protection and conservation initiatives/measures should be of prime concern.

KEY

biodiversity of region

Northeast IndiaOne of the richest biomes of the world, high in endemism and rare species which is now under constant threat.
The Northeast India, (22-30 degree N and 89-97 degree E) spread over 2,62,379 sq.km., represents the transition zone between the Indian, Indo-Malayan and Indo-Chinese biogeographic regions and a meeting place of the Himalayan Mountains and Peninsular India. It was the part of the northward moving ‘Deccan Peninsula’ that first touched the Asian landmass after the break up of Gondwanaland in the early Tertiary Period. Northeast India is thus the geographical ‘gateway’ for much of India’s flora and fauna. It is in this lowland-highland transition zone that the highest diversity of biomes or ecological communities can be found, and species diversities within these communities are also extremely high