The Hindu : Kerala News : Kakkayam forests rich in flora: study

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Sep 04, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Kakkayam forests rich in flora: study

By Maleeha Raghaviah

KOZHIKODE, SEPT. 3. A study of the rich floral diversity of the Kakkayam forests in the Western Ghats made by the Malabar Natural History Society (MNHS) calls for urgent conservation measures to protect the region from further degradation.

The study has been conducted by the Society as part of its intensive data collection drive in the region.

A team from the Department of Botany of the University of Calicut which also participated in the study has provided a checklist of Pteridophytes, Bryophytes, grasses and Zingiber plants prevalent in the forest for the report.

The rapid assessment could identify more than 680 species of flowering plants in the forests. Of these, 226 species are endemic to the southern Western Ghats. Five kinds of vegetation are noted during the study: West coast tropical evergreen forests, West coast semi-evergreen forests, Southern moist mixed decidious forests, Southern hilltop tropical evergreen forests and grasslands.

`Under threat' categories

There are 69 species in the reserve forests which are considered to be `under threat' categories. A fairly good number of tree species such as Meteromyrtus wayanaadensis, Syzygium stocksii, Parinarium indicum, Coffea crassifolia and Garcinia malabarica are found there.

There are 55 species of grasses, 22 species of orchids and 22 species of legumes there. The high representation of Lauraceae (16 species), Myrtaceae (11), Clusiasceae (10) and Melastomataceae (nine) indicates the virginity and primary nature of the hill forests, according to the study.

Also, more than 200 species of plants of medicinal use have been identified.

According to the MNHS secretary, Jafer Palot, the Society has been conducting such biodiversity studies for the last two years. The compilation assumes significance in the light of the State Government evincing keen interest on the details of the flora and fauna of the Kakkayam forests.

The present study, though conducted in a short period, could throw light on the biodiversity of the region to some extent. It recommends further explorative study to ascertain the full biotic potential of the Kakkayam forests, especially since it is the catchment area of the Kuttiadi river, which provides round-the-year water supply to Kozhikode. The study also recommends conservation of the area by high status forest protection by declaring it as a wildlife sanctuary.

While 34 sq km of forest area has already been protected in the vicinity of the Kakkayam dam, the suggestion is that the adjacent Lady's Myth reserve forest covering an extent of 100 sq km could be added to it.

Survey

The survey was conducted from 2002 to 2004 in four phases. Topographically, this part of the Western Ghats in Kozhikode district comprises rugged steep hills that rise from 50 m to 1,600 m. The proximity of the Banasura Mala (2,059 m) and the varying altitudinal ranges must have contributed to the rich biodiversity of the forests.

This is the only evergreen patch remaining in Kozhikode district now.

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