Class Notes

NATURAL VEGETATION AND WILDLIFE ( GEOGRAPHY )

● Natural vegetation refers to a plant community which has grown naturally

without human aid and has been left undisturbed by humans for a long time.
● Natural vegetation is also termed as virgin vegetation .
● Endemic species - The virgin vegetation which is purely Indian is known as
endemic or indigenous species .
● Exotic plants -Those which have come from outside India are termed as
exotic plants.
● flora - Denotes plants of a particular region or period.
● Fauna - species of animals are referred to as fauna.
● Biodiversity - Species of flora and fauna are known as biodiversity .
● Factors Affecting Diversity in Flora and Fauna
1. Relief ---- Land and Soil .
2. Climate --- Temperature , photoperiod and precipitation

LAND
 2

Natural vegetation and wildlife is affected by land both directly and indirectly.
● The part of land which is fertile is devoted entirely to agriculture.
● Grasslands and woodlands help in developing and give shelter to a varied variety of wildlife
in the undulating and rough terrains.

Soil

There are different types of soil which give birth to different kinds of vegetation.

● Hill slopes have soil that has conical trees

● The desert has sand soils which give support to thorny bushes and cactus. On the other
hand, deltaic, wet and marshy soils support deltaic and mangrove vegetation.

Climate
Temperature

The temperature of a place determines the extent and character of vegetation along with
precipitation, soil and humidity in the air.

The vegetation and its growth affect the fall in temperature.

Sunlight or Photoperiod

The duration and variation of sunlight in different places is due to differences in season, latitude,
altitude and duration of the day.

The trees grow faster in the summer season due to the longer duration of sunlight

Precipitation

There is denser vegetation in areas which receive heavy rainfall as compared to areas of less rainfall.

Ecosystem
 3

Types of Vegetation

(i) Tropical Evergreen Forests

 4

(ii) Tropical Deciduous Forests

(iii) Tropical Thorn Forests and Scrub

(iv) Montane Forests

(v) Mangrove Forests

Conservation/Protection of Flora and Fauna

(i) The government has taken many steps to protect the flora and fauna.

(a) Fourteen biosphere reserves have been set up in the country to protect flora and
fauna.

Sundarbans in West Bengal, Nanda Devi in Uttaranchal, the Gulf of Mannar in Tamil
Nadu and the Nilgiris (hills situated in the states of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil
Nadu) have been included in the world network of biosphere reserves.

(b) Financial and technical assistance is provided to many botanical gardens by the
government since 1992.

(c) Project Tiger, Project Rhino, Project Great Indian Bustard and many other
eco-developmental projects have been introduced.

(d) 89 National Parks, 49 Wildlife Sanctuaries and zoological gardens are set up to take
care of our natural heritage.
5
6
 7

Wildlife
The diversity of fauna contributes to the wildlife of an area. Enlisted below are some exciting facts
about wildlife and nature.

● Camels found in the Thar Desert; Wild Ass found in Rann of Kachchh
● Lions are found in Gir forest in Gujarat
● Elephants found in wet forests of Assam, Karnataka and Kerala
● One-horned rhinoceros found in Assam and West Bengal
● Ladakh is home to Yaks, Wild Ox, Antelopes, Wild Sheep and Wild Ass
● Tigers are found in Madhya Pradesh, Sundarbans, and the Himalayas
● Turtles, Crocodiles and Gharials found in rivers, lakes and coastal areas
● Forests and wetlands are home to Peacocks, Ducks, Pheasants, Parakeets and Pigeons

Cause of Major Threat to flora and fauna

Every species has an important role in the ecosystem. Hence, conservation of flora and fauna is essential.
About 1,300 plant species are endangered and 20 species are extinct. The main causes of this major
threat to nature are:

1. Hunting for commercial purposes

2. Pollution due to chemical and industrial waste
3. Rapidly cutting of the forests for cultivation and habitation
8
9