BIOGEOGRAPHICAL CLASSIFICATION OF INDIA

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Introduction
Biogeography is the study of the distribution of species and ecosystems in geographic space and
through (geological) time. Organisms and biological communities often vary in a regular fashion along
geographic gradients of latitude, elevation, isolation and habitat area.
Biogeographers have classified India into ten biogeographic zones with each zone having characteristic
climate, soil and biodiversity. These zones are described below:

1. Transhimalayan region
The trans-himalayas is an extension to the Tibetean plateau. This region harbors the high-altitude cold
desert in ladakh (Jammu and Kashmir) and Lahaul Spiti (Himachal Pradesh). It accounts for 5.7% of the
country's landmass. The Trans-Himalayan region with its sparse vegetation has the richest wild sheep and
goat community in the world. The snow leopard is found here, as is the migratory black-necked crane.

2. Himalayan region
The Himalayas are the northern boundaries of India. The entire mountain chain is running from Kashmir
in the North-west to Assam in the north-east. The Himalayas have attained a unique personality owing to
their high altitude, steep gradient and rich temperate flora.
The forests are very dense with extensive growth of grass and evergreen tall trees. Oak, chestnut, conifer,
ash, pine, deodar are abundant in Himalayas. There is no vegetation above the snowline. Several
interesting animals live in the Himalayan ranges. Chief species include wild sheep, mountain goats, ibex,
shrew, and tapir. Panda and snow leopard are also found here.

3. Desert region
The extremely dry area west of the Aravalli hill range, is comprising both the salty desert of Gujarat and
the sandy desert of Rajasthan. Deserts occupy around 6.9% of the country's land mass. The kinds of
deserts found in India are:
a. The desert of western Rajasthan
b. The desert of Gujarat
c. The high-altitude cold desert of Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh.
The plants are mostly xerophytic. Babul, Kikar, wild palm grows in areas of moderate rainfall. The large
expanses of grassland supports several endangered species of mammals such as Wolf (Canis lupus),
Caracal (Felis caracal), Desert Cat (Felis libyca) and birds of conservation interest viz., Houbara Bustard
(Chamydotis undulate) and the Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps).

4. Semi Arid region

Adjoining the desert are the semi-arid areas, a transitional zone between the desert and the denser forests
of the Western Ghats. The natural vegetation is thorn forest. This region is characterized by discontinuous
vegetation cover with open areas of bare soil and soil-water deficit throughout the year.Thorny scrubs,
grasses and some bamboos are present in some regions. A few species of xerophytic herbs and some
ephemeral herbs are found in this semi-arid tract. The cervid species of Sambar (Cervus unicolor) and
Chital (Axis axis) are restricted to the better wooded hills and moister valley areas respectively. The Lion
(Leo persica), an endangered carnivore species (restricted to a small area in Gujarat), Caracal (Felis
caracal),Jackal (Canis aureus) and Wolf (Canis lupus) are some of the endangered species that are
characteristic of this region.

5. Western Ghats
The western ghats are a mountain range that runs along the western cost of India. They are a range
extending north-south from southern tip of Gujarat in the north to Kanyakumari in the south. It is one of
the major tropical evergreen forest regions in India and represents one of the two biodiversity hot spots.
Significant species endemic to this region include Nilgiri Langur (Presbytis jobni), Lion Tailed Macaque
(Macaca silenus), Grizzled Giant Squirrel (Ratufa macroura), Malabar Civet (Viverricula megaspila),
Nilgiri Tahr (Hemitragus bylocrius) and Malabar Grey Hornbill (Ocycerous griseus). The Travancore
Tortoise (Indotestudo forstem) and Cane turtle (Heosemys silvatica) are two endangered taxa restricted to
a small area in central Western Ghats.

6. Deccan Plateau
It is a large triangular plateau south of the Narmada valley. Three sides of the plateau are covered by
mountains slopes towards east. Satpura mountains cover the north while western ghats cover the west side
and eastern ghats cover the eastern side of the plateau. The zone comprising of deciduous forests, thorn
forests and degraded scrubland support diverse wildlife species. Species found in this region are Chital
(Axis axis), Sambar (Cervus unicolor), Nilgai (Boselapbus tragocamelus) and Chousingha (Tetracerus
quadricornis), Barking deer (Muntiacus muntjak) and Gaur (Antilope cervicapra), Elephant (Elephas
maximus) in Bihar-Orissa and Karnataka-Tamil Nadu belts, Wild Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) in a small
area at the junction of Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra and the hard ground Swamp Deer
(Cervus duvauceli), now restricted to a single locality in Madhya Pradesh.
7. Gangetic plain
This plain covers the area between the south himalayas to the tropic of cancer. These plains were formed
by the Ganges river system and are relatively homogeneous. The characterstic fauna of this region include
Rhino (Rhinoceros unicornis), Elephant (Elephas maximus), Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis), Swamp Deer
(Cervus duvauceli), Hog-Deer (Axis porcinus) and Hispid Hare (Carprolagus bispidus). The trees
belonging to these forests are teak, sal, shisham, mahua, khair etc.

8. North East India

This region represents the transition zone between the Indian, Indo-Malayan and Indo-Chinese biogeographical regions as well as being a meeting point of the Himalayan mountains and peninsular India.
The North-East is thus the biogeographical gateway for much of Indias fauna and flora and also a
biodiversity hotspot (Eastern Himalaya). It has several species of orchids, bamboos, ferns and other
plants. Here the wild relatives of cultivated plants such as banana, mango, citrus and pepper can be found.

9. Islands
The Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal has almost 300 big and small islands. Among
these, only five islands are inhabited. Only tribes are found in the island of Nicobar. The islands house an
array of flora and fauna not found elsewhere. These islands are centres of high endemism and contain
some of Indias finest evergreen forests and support a wide diversity of corals. In India, endemic island
biodiversity is found only in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Some of the endemic fauna of Andaman
& Nicobar islands include Narcondam hornbill, South Andaman krait etc.

10. Coasts
India has a large coastline distributed both to the east and west with distinct differences between the two.
The Lakshwadeep islands are included in this but the area of these islands is negligible. Mangrove
vegetation is characteristic of estuarine tracts along the coast for instance, at Ratnagiri in Maharashtra.
Coastal region constitutes 2.5 per cent of the total geographical area with sandy beaches, mangroves, mud
flats, coral reefs and marine angiosperm pastures make them the wealth and health zones of India. Larger
parts of the coastal plains are covered by fertile soils on which different crops are grown. Rice is the main
crop of these areas. Coconut trees grow all along the coast.

Conclusion
India has different climate and topography in different parts and hence is termed as a mega diversity
country. India occupies 10th place among plant rich countries of the world. It is essential to acquire
knowledge about the distribution and environmental interaction of flora and fauna of India