Dehing Patkai Landscape, located in the Upper

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

, stretches for over roughly 600 square kilometres and comprises three large blocks of forests (Jeypore, Upper Dehing West Block and Upper Dehing East Block) and several forest fragments. The forest is classified as a lowland Tropical Wet Evergreen Forest (Dipterocarpus-Mesua). It falls under Indo-Burma Biodiversity Hotspot. Due to its biodiversity and significance for elephant habitat, parts of the landscape are recognised as Dehing Patkai Elephant Reserve and 111 km² is protected as the

Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary Dehing Patkai National Park is a national park in the Dibrugarh district, Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts of Assam covering an area of of rainforest. It is located in the Dehing Patkai Landscape, which is a dipterocarp-dominated lowland rainf ...

since 2004. The name Dehing Patkai comes from the Dehing river and Patkai hills. It is popularly referred to as “The Amazon of East”.

Climate

Dehing Patkai landscape has tropical monsoon rainforest climate with heavy monsoon downpour. The temperature reaches a Peak in June and falls with the arrival of monsoons. July is the month of heaviest rainfall and monsoons end in September. The dry period ranges from October to February. The average temperature ranges from 6 °C to 38 °C. There are 119 to 164 rainy days per year.

Biodiversity

Flora

The Dehing Patkai Landscape is one of the richest spots for biodiversity in India. It has hundreds of plant species which range from '' Shorea assamica'' and ''

Dipterocarpus retusus ''Dipterocarpus retusus'', commonly known as hollong, is a large tree and perhaps the best known species in the genus ''Dipterocarpus''. It is native to China, Vietnam, Philippines, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, and India.DY PHO ...

'', occupying the top canopy of the forest at heights of 50 m, to ''

Mesua ferrea ''Mesua ferrea'', the Ceylon ironwood, or cobra saffron, is a species in the family Calophyllaceae native to the Indomalayan realm. This slow-growing tree is named after the heaviness and hardness of its timber. It is widely cultivated as an o ...

'' and '' Vatica lanceifolia'', which dominate the middle canopy, and a number of woody shrubs such as ''

Saprosma ternatum ''Saprosma'' is a genus of flowering plants in the family Rubiaceae. There are about 40 species distributed from south China to tropical Asia. These are shrubs with opposite or whorled leaves and often an offensive scent. The inflorescence is us ...

'', '' Livistona jenkinsiana'' and ''

Calamus erectus ''Calamus erectus'', also known as viagra palm and locally as tynriew, tara, and zhi li sheng teng, is a flowering shrub in the family Arecaceae. The Botanical nomenclature, specific epithet (''erectus'') refers to the plant's habit of growing str ...

'', which constitute the undergrowth. ''

'', or hollong, the state tree of Assam dominates the forest while the forest floor is home to charismatic ground orchids. Some of the important tree species found in the forest area are: hollong, mekai (''Shorea assamica''), dhuna (''

Shorea robusta ''Shorea robusta'', the sal tree, sāla, shala, sakhua, or sarai, is a species of tree in the family Dipterocarpaceae. The tree is native to India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Tibet and across the Himalayan regions. Evolution Fossil evidence from lig ...

''), nahar (''Mesua ferrea'', gurjan (''

Dipterocarpus turbinatus ''Dipterocarpus turbinatus'', commonly known as gurjan or gurjun, is a species of tree in the family Dipterocarpaceae, native to north-eastern India and mainland Southeast Asia, and cultivated in surrounding regions. It is an important source of ...

''), outenga (''

Dillenia indica ''Dillenia indica'', commonly known as elephant apple or ou tenga, is a species of ''Dillenia'' (Family Dilleniaceae) native to China, India, and tropical Asia. It is found in stony river banks. This species was one of the many first described b ...

''), different species of ''

Ficus ''Ficus'' ( or ) is a genus of about 850 species of woody trees, shrubs, vines, epiphytes and hemiepiphytes in the family (biology), family Moraceae. Collectively known as fig trees or figs, they are native throughout the tropics with a few spe ...

'' etc. Plant Orchid Papilionanthe teres IMG 8643 09.jpg, ''

Papilionanthe teres ''Papilionanthe teres'', formerly ''Vanda teres'' and ''Ple. teres'' in the horticultural trade is an orchid species with many variations found in many parts of South-East Asia and is also found as north as Yunnan and in colder regions like the H ...

'' orchid Dipterocarpus macrocarpus young leaf P1100189.jpg, ''

Dipterocarpus macrocarpus ''Dipterocarpus retusus'', commonly known as hollong, is a large tree and perhaps the best known species in the genus ''Dipterocarpus''. It is native to China, Vietnam, Philippines, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, and India.DY PHO ...

'' young leaf Hedychium coronarium P1130247 08.jpg, ''

Hedychium coronarium ''Hedychium coronarium'', the white garland-lily or white ginger lily, is a perennial flowering plant in the ginger family Zingiberaceae, native to the forest understorey of Asia. Other common names include butterfly lily, Khumpui, fragrant g ...

'' Breynea P1100101.jpg, ''Breynea'' Mesua ferrea P1100125.jpg, ''

'' Plant Ardisia P1100095.jpg, ''

Ardisia ''Ardisia'' (coralberry or marlberry) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Primulaceae. It was in the former Myrsinaceae family now recognised as the myrsine sub-family Myrsinoideae. They are distributed in the Americas, Asia, Australia ...

'' Plants Elaeocarpus flower P1100273.jpg, ''

Elaeocarpus ''Elaeocarpus'' is a genus of nearly five hundred species of flowering plants in the family Elaeocarpaceae native to the Western Indian Ocean, Tropical and Subtropical Asia, and the Pacific. Plants in the genus ''Elaeocarpus'' are trees or shrub ...

'' flower Dehing Patkai is also an important biodiversity spot for its range of orchid species. There are around 100 species of orchid in this region, including ''

Bulbophyllum ebulbum ''Bulbophyllum'' is a genus of mostly Epiphyte, epiphytic and Lithophyte, lithophytic orchids in the Family (biology), family Orchidaceae. It is the largest genus in the orchid family and one of the List of the largest genera of flowering plants, ...

'', '' Chrysoglossum erraticum'', '' Chrysoglossum robinsonii'', '' Eria connate'', '' Eria pudica'', '' Zeuxine clandestina'', '' Hetaeria affinis'', '' Thelasis pygmaea'' and ''

Taeniophyllum crepidiforme ''Taeniophyllum'', commonly known as ribbon roots or 带叶兰属 (dai ye lan shu) is a genus of about 240 species of epiphytic or lithophytic plants from the orchid family, Orchidaceae. Plants in this genus are more or less leafless with a very ...

''.

Fauna

Green Trinket Snake P1120804.jpg, Green Trinket Snake Hoolock Gibbon by Dr Raju Kasambe 03.JPG, Hoolock Gibbon Royal Bengal Tiger (40961228).jpeg, Royal Bengal Tiger Clouded Leopard Mouth Open Cropped.jpg, Clouded Leopard Mom's embrace.jpg, Assamese Macaque Dehing Patkai landscape is a critical refuge for biodiversity as it provides habitat for species of most conservation concern at the sub-national level in India and species that are identified under the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is an inventory of the global conservation status and extinction risk of biological ...

. There is a wide variety of wildlife found in the landscape with as many as 47 species of mammals, 50 species of snakes, 13 species of lizards, few rare and threatened turtle species, more than 350 species of butterflies etc. It was the first place in the world to have presence of seven different species of wild cats in the world -

tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large Felidae, cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is ...

leopard The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant cat species in the genus ''Panthera''. It has a pale yellowish to dark golden fur with dark spots grouped in rosettes. Its body is slender and muscular reaching a length of with a ...

clouded leopard The clouded leopard (''Neofelis nebulosa''), also called mainland clouded leopard, is a wild cat inhabiting dense forests from the foothills of the Himalayas through Northeast India and Bhutan to mainland Southeast Asia into South China. It w ...

leopard cat The leopard cat (''Prionailurus bengalensis'') is a Felinae, small wild cat native to continental South Asia, South, Southeast Asia, Southeast, and East Asia. Since 2002 it has been listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List as it is widely di ...

, golden cat,

jungle cat The jungle cat (''Felis chaus''), also called reed cat and swamp cat, is a medium-sized cat native from the Eastern Mediterranean region and the Caucasus to parts of Central, South and Southeast Asia. It inhabits foremost wetlands like swamps, ...

and

marbled cat The marbled cat (''Pardofelis marmorata'') is a small Felidae, wild cat native from the eastern Himalayas to Southeast Asia, where it inhabits forests up to an elevation of . As it is present in a large range, it has been listed as Near Threatene ...

. There are also seven species of primates found in the forest -

Western hoolock gibbon The western hoolock gibbon (''Hoolock hoolock'') is a primate from the gibbon family, Hylobatidae. The species is found in Assam, Mizoram, and Meghalaya in India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar west of the Chindwin River. Classification Mootnick and ...

rhesus macaque The rhesus macaque (''Macaca mulatta''), colloquially rhesus monkey, is a species of Old World monkey. There are between six and nine recognised subspecies split between two groups, the Chinese-derived and the Indian-derived. Generally brown or g ...

, Assamese macaque,

pig-tailed macaque The pig-tailed macaques are two macaque sister species. They appear similar and are best distinguished by their parapatric ranges: * Northern pig-tailed macaque (''Macaca leonina''), inhabiting Bangladesh to Vietnam, south to northern Malaysia * S ...

stump-tailed macaque The stump-tailed macaque (''Macaca arctoides''), also called the bear macaque, is a species of macaque native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. In India, it occurs south of the Brahmaputra River, in the northeastern part of the country. Its range ...

slow loris Slow lorises are a group of several species of Nocturnality, nocturnal Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhine primates that make up the genus ''Nycticebus''. Found in Southeast Asia and nearby areas, they range from Bangladesh and Northeast India in the ...

, and

capped langur The capped langur (''Trachypithecus pileatus'') is a primate species in the family Cercopithecidae native to subtropical and tropical dry forests in northeast India, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. It is arboreal and feeds on 43 plant species. ...

. It is also home to mammals like

Asian elephant The Asian elephant (''Elephas maximus''), also known as the Asiatic elephant, is the only living ''Elephas'' species. It is the largest living land animal in Asia and the second largest living Elephantidae, elephantid in the world. It is char ...

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

Chinese pangolin The Chinese pangolin (''Manis pentadactyla'') is a pangolin native to the northern Indian subcontinent, northern parts of Southeast Asia and southern China. It has been listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2014, as the wild ...

Himalayan black bear The Himalayan black bear (''Ursus thibetanus laniger'') is a subspecies of the Asian black bear. It is distinguished from '' U. t. thibetanus'' by its longer, thicker fur and smaller, whiter chest mark. The species is considered an ecological ind ...

black giant squirrel The black giant squirrel or Malayan giant squirrel (''Ratufa bicolor'') is a large tree squirrel in the genus '' Ratufa'' native to the Indomalayan zootope. It is found in forests from northern Bangladesh, northeast India, eastern Nepal, Bhutan ...

Porcupine Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp Spine (zoology), spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two Family (biology), families of animals: the Old World porcupines of the family Hystricidae, and the New ...

Crab-eating mongoose The crab-eating mongoose (''Urva urva'') is a species of mongoose found from the north-eastern Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia to southern China and Taiwan. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. Taxonomy ''Gulo urva'' was ...

, sambar,

sun bear The sun bear (''Helarctos malayanus'') is a bear species in the Family (biology), family Ursidae found in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. It is the only species in the genus ''Helarctos'' and the smallest bear species, standing nearly ...

barking deer Muntjacs ( ), also known as the barking deer or rib-faced deer, (URL is Google Books) are small deer of the genus ''Muntiacus'' native to South Asia and Southeast Asia. Muntjacs are thought to have begun appearing 15–35 million years ago, ...

wild water buffalo The wild water buffalo (''Bubalus arnee''), also called Asian buffalo, Asiatic buffalo and wild buffalo, is a large bovine native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It has been listed as ''Endangered'' in the IUCN Red List since 198 ...

etc.

Avifauna

White-winged Duck RWD3.jpg, White-winged Duck Greater Necklaced Laughing Thrush DSCN9333 02.jpg, Greater Necklaced Laughing Thrush White Rumped Shama DSCN9500 03.jpg, White Rumped Shama Blue-eared Kingfisher, Alcedo meninting.jpg, Blue-eared Kingfisher Silver Breasted Broadbill DSCN9380 01.jpg, Silver Breasted Broadbill The rich rainforest is well known for its avian diversity with nearly 400 species reported so far. A majority of these bird species are resident species. Some of the important bird species found in the area includes

Slender-billed vulture The slender-billed vulture (''Gyps tenuirostris'') is an Old World vulture species native to sub-Himalayan regions and Southeast Asia. It is Critically Endangered since 2002 as the population on the Indian subcontinent has declined rapidly. As o ...

White-winged Duck The white-winged duck or white-winged wood duck (''Asarcornis scutulata'') is a large species of duck, formerly placed in the genus ''Cairina'' with the Muscovy duck (''Cairina moschata'') and allied with the dabbling ducks. However, mtDNA cyto ...

(State bird of Assam), Greater Adjutant Stork, Lesser Adjutant Stork,

Greater Spotted Eagle The greater spotted eagle (''Clanga clanga''), also called the spotted eagle, is a large migratory bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It is a member of the subfamily Aquilinae, commonly known as "booted eagles".Helbig, A. J., Kocum, A., ...

, Gray Peacock-Pheasant,

Rufous-necked hornbill The rufous-necked hornbill (''Aceros nipalensis'') is a species of hornbill in Bhutan, northeastern India, especially in Arunachal Pradesh, Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It is locally extinct in Nepal due to hunting and significant los ...

Pale-capped Pigeon The pale-capped pigeon (''Columba punicea''), also known as the purple wood pigeon, is a species of large Columbidae, pigeon that is found patchily distributed in parts of the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It has a slow flight and spend ...

, brown hornbill, etc.

Cultural groups

The Dehing Patkai Landscape lies within a mosaic of tea plantations, farmlands and oil and coalfields. There are also more than a dozen ethnic groups which have lived in this region. Some of the indigenous tribes from this region are Tai Phake, Khamyang, Khampti, Singpho, Nocte, Sonowal Kachari, Ahom, Kaibarta, and

Moran Moran may refer to: Places Antarctica * Moran Bluff, Marie Byrd Land * Moran Buttress, Marie Byrd Land * Moran Glacier, Alexander Island Asia * Moran Town, Assam, India * Moran, Israel, a kibbutz * Moran Hill, North Korea * Moran Station, a s ...

Coal mining

Dehing-Patkai landscape has been a site for legal and illegal

coal mining Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...

. In April 2020, a coal mining project in the Dehing Patkai Elephant Reserve was approved by the National Board for Wildlife of India. Nearly a hundred hectares of land from reserve forest land was approved for a coal mining project by North-Easter Coal Field (NECF), a unit of

Coal India Limited Coal India Limited (CIL) is an Indian public sector undertaking and the largest government-owned coal producer in the world. Headquartered in Kolkata, it is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Coal, Government of India. It acc ...

. This decision was challenged by environmental groups from Assam and other parts of the country, which highlighted the rich biodiversity harboured in the Dehing Patkai landscape. As a result of these awareness campaigns and protests, the North Eastern Coalfields (NEC), temporarily halted all of its operations in the region from June 3, 2020.

References

External links

{{commons category Assam