FOREST

Tropical deciduous forests are the most widespread forests of India.
They are also called the monsoon forests and spread over the region receiving rainfall between 200 cm and 70 cm.
• Trees of this forest type shed their leaves for about six to eight weeks in dry summer.
Additional Information
• On the basis of the availability of water, these forests are further divided into moist and dry deciduous.
• Moist deciduous forests:
■ Found in areas receiving rainfall between 200 and 100 cm.
■ Mostly found in the eastern part of the country and northeastern states.
■ Also in the foothills of the Himalayas, Jharkhand, West Odisha, and Chhattisgarh, and on the eastern slopes of the Western Ghats.
■ Teak is the most dominant species of this forest.
■ Bamboos, sal, shisham, sandalwood, khair, etc. are other commercially important species.
• Dry deciduous forests:
■ Found in areas having rainfall between 100 cm and 70 cm.
■ These forests are found in the rainier parts of the Peninsular plateau and the plains of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
It includes teak, sal, peepal, and neem trees.
Tropical thorn forests:
• In regions with less than 70 cm of rainfall.
• The natural vegetation consists of thorny trees and bushes.
Montane forests:
• These forests cover mostly the southern slopes of the Himalayas, places having high altitudes in southern and north-east India.
Tropical evergreen forests:
• These forests are restricted to heavy rainfall areas of the Western Ghats and the island groups of Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar, upper parts of Assam and Tamil Nadu coast.
• They are at their best in areas having more than 200 cm of rainfall with a short dry season