The South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests is a

tropical dry forest The tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forest is a habitat type defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature and is located at tropical and subtropical latitudes. Though these forests occur in climates that are warm year-round, and may receive ...

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of ...

in southern

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. The ecoregion lies in the southernmost portion of the

Deccan Plateau The large Deccan Plateau in southern India is located between the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, and is loosely defined as the peninsular region between these ranges that is south of the Narmada river. To the north, it is bounded by th ...

, and includes the southernmost portion of the

Eastern Ghats The Eastern Ghats are a discontinuous range of mountains along India's eastern coast. The Eastern Ghats pass through Odisha, Andhra Pradesh to Tamil Nadu in the south passing some parts of Karnataka as well as Telangana. They are eroded and ...

. The ecoregion lies in the rain shadow of the Western Ghats, and receives most of its rainfall with the June–September

southwest monsoon A monsoon () is traditionally a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with annual latitudinal oscill ...

. It is characterized by tall trees that drop their leaves during the dry winter and spring months. Much of the forest has been degraded through over-use, and thorn forests and shrub thickets are common. To the north and east, the dry deciduous forests transition to the drier Deccan thorn scrub forests.

Flora

These forests have three stories, with an upper canopy at , an understory at , and undergrowth at . Trees are draped in

liana A liana is a long- stemmed, woody vine that is rooted in the soil at ground level and uses trees, as well as other means of vertical support, to climb up to the canopy in search of direct sunlight. The word ''liana'' does not refer to a t ...

s in denser, mature forests. The vegetation is characterized by ''

Acacia catechu ''Senegalia catechu'' is a deciduous, thorny tree which grows up to in height. The plant is called ''khair''
in H ...

'', '' Albizia amara'', ''

Anogeissus latifolia ''Anogeissus latifolia'' is a species of small to medium-sized tree native to the India, Nepal, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. Its common names are axlewood (English), ''bakli, baajhi, dhau, dhawa, dhawra'', or ''dhaora'' (Hindi), ''takhian-nu'' ( Thai) ...

'', ''

Boswellia serrata ''Boswellia serrata'' is a plant that produces Indian frankincense. The plant is native to much of India and the Punjab region that extends into Pakistan. Sustainability ''Boswellia serrata'' is currently at risk of being eradicated because of n ...

'', ''

Cassia fistula ''Cassia fistula'', commonly known as golden shower, purging cassia, Indian laburnum, or pudding-pipe tree,U. S. Department of Agriculture, William Saunders; Catalogue of Economic Plants in the Collection of the U. S. Department of Agriculture; ...

'', ''

Chloroxylon swietenia ''Chloroxylon swietenia'' , the Ceylon satinwood or East Indian satinwood, is a tropical hardwood, the sole species in the genus ''Chloroxylon'' (from the Greek χλωρὸν ξύλον, "green wood"). It is native to southern India, Sri Lank ...

'', ''

Dalbergia latifolia ''Dalbergia latifolia'' (synonym ''Dalbergia emarginata'') is a premier timber species, also known as the Indian rosewood ( Tamil / தமிழ்: Eetti / ஈட்டி). It is native to low-elevation tropical monsoon forests of south east ...

'', ''

Diospyros montana ''Diospyros montana'', the Bombay ebony, is a small deciduous tree in the ebony family up to tall, distributed all along the Western Ghats of India, Sri Lanka, Indo-China through to Australia. References External resources Britannica'' ...

'', '' Hardwickia binata'', ''

Pterocarpus marsupium ''Pterocarpus marsupium'', also known as Malabar kino, Indian kino, Vijayasar, or Venkai is a medium to large, deciduous tree that can grow up to tall. It is native to India (where it occurs in parts of the Western Ghats in the Karnataka- Ke ...

'', '' Shorea talura'', '' Sterospermum personatum'', ''

Terminalia bellirica ''Terminalia bellirica'', known as baheda, bahera, behada, beleric or bastard myrobalan (Arabic: beliledj بليلج, borrowed from Middle Persian Balilag), Persian بلیله (Balileh), Sanskrit: Bibhitaka बिभीतक, Aksha is a large ...

'', ''

Terminalia paniculata ''Terminalia paniculata'' is a tree native to southwest India (including the Western Ghats and Karnataka). Known in the timber trade as kindal, it has a variety of names in local languages. It is economically important for wood, medicinal uses, ...

'', and ''

Terminalia tomentosa ''Terminalia elliptica'' is a species of '' Terminalia'' native to southern and southeast Asia in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.Sal and Saaj Deforestation in West Nepal"Terminalia Tomentosa"/ref> It is a ...

''.

Sal Sal, SAL, or S.A.L. may refer to: Personal name * Sal (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or nickname Places * Sal, Cape Verde, an island and municipality * Sal, Iran, a village in East Azerbaijan Province * Ca ...

found here is used for railway sleepers and house construction while

teak Teak (''Tectona grandis'') is a tropical hardwood tree species in the family Lamiaceae. It is a large, deciduous tree that occurs in mixed hardwood forests. ''Tectona grandis'' has small, fragrant white flowers arranged in dense clusters ( pan ...

, a durable timber, is used for ship building and furniture. Sandalwood (''

Santalum album ''Santalum album'', or Indian sandalwood, is a small tropical tree, and the traditional source of sandalwood oil. It is native to southern India and Southeast Asia. It is considered sacred in some religions like Hinduism, and some cultures plac ...

'') is used for perfume and semal for toys.

Fauna

The ecoregion is home to 75 mammal species. Threatened species include the

Indian elephant The Indian elephant (''Elephas maximus indicus'') is one of four extant recognised subspecies of the Asian elephant and native to mainland Asia. Since 1986, the Asian elephant has been listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List as the wild pop ...

(''Elephas maximus''), wild dog (''Cuon alpinus''),

sloth bear The sloth bear (''Melursus ursinus'') is a myrmecophagous bear species native to the Indian subcontinent. It feeds on fruits, ants and termites. It is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, mainly because of habitat loss and degradation ...

(''Melursus ursinus''),

chousingha The four-horned antelope (''Tetracerus quadricornis''), or ''chousingha'', is a small antelope found in India and Nepal. Its four horns distinguish it from most other bovids, which have two horns (with a few exceptions, such as the Jacob sheep) ...

(''Tetracerus quadricornis''),

gaur The gaur (''Bos gaurus''; ), also known as the Indian bison, is a bovine native to South Asia and Southeast Asia, and has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1986. The global population was estimated at a maximum of 21,000 m ...

(''Bos gaurus''), and

grizzled giant squirrel The grizzled giant squirrel (''Ratufa macroura'') is a large tree squirrel in the genus '' Ratufa'' found in the highlands of the Central and Uva provinces of Sri Lanka, and in patches of riparian forest along the Kaveri River and in the hill f ...

(''Ratufa macruora'').

Salim Ali's fruit bat Salim Ali's fruit bat (''Latidens salimalii'') is a rare megabat species in the monotypic genus ''Latidens''. It was first collected by Angus Hutton, a planter and naturalist in the High Wavy Mountains in the Western Ghats of Theni district, ...

(''Latidens salimalii'') is critically endangered, and is near-endemic. 260 species of birds live in the eco-region, and two, the

rufous babbler The rufous babbler (''Argya subrufa'') is an endemic species of bird found in the Western Ghats of southern India of the family Leiothrichidae It is dark brown and long tailed, and is usually seen foraging in noisy groups along open hillsides ...

(''Turdoides subrufus'') and yellow-throated bulbul (''Pycnonotus xantholaemus'') are near-extinct. The threatened

great Indian bustard The great Indian bustard (''Ardeotis nigriceps'') or Indian bustard, is a bustard found on the Indian subcontinent. A large bird with a horizontal body and long bare legs, giving it an ostrich like appearance, this bird is among the heaviest of t ...

(''Ardeotis nigriceps'') and

lesser florican The lesser florican (''Sypheotides indicus''), also known as the likh or ''kharmore'', is the smallest in the bustard family and the only member of the genus ''Sypheotides''. It is endemic to the Indian Subcontinent where it is found in tall gras ...

(''Eupodotis indica'') inhabit the eco-region.

Protected areas

Bannerghatta National Park Bannerghatta National Park is a national park in India, located near Bangalore, Karnataka. It was founded in 1970 and declared as a national park in 1974. In 2002, a small portion of the park became a zoological garden, the Bannerghatta Biolog ...

, Karnataka * Biligiriranga Swamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary, Karnataka *

Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary The Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area located in the Mandya, Chamarajanagar and Ramanagar districts of Karnataka, India. The Cauvery River passes through its midst. An area of was established as Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary on 14 Ja ...

, Karnataka * Melkote Temple Wildlife Sanctuary, Karnataka * Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary, Karnataka * Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary, Tamil Nadu *

Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary is a protected area located in the Madurantakam taluk of the Chengalpattu District in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. The sanctuary is about from Chennai on National Highway 45 ( H45. It is easily reachable fr ...

, Tamil Nadu *

Cauvery North Wildlife Sanctuary The Cauvery North Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area located in the Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts of Tamil Nadu, India. Sanctuary is named as it is located above the north of Cauvery river in Tamil Nadu state and south of river connec ...

, Tamil Nadu

References

{{coord, 12.0000, N, 77.5000, E, source:wikidata, display=title Ecoregions of India Indomalayan ecoregions Tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests

Flora

Fauna

Protected areas

See also

References