CBSE Notes Class 9 Social Science Geography Chapter 5 Natural Vegetation and Wildlife here in this page. We (Net Explanations Teacher) discussed here each and every keyword from this Chapter 5 Natural Vegetation and Wildlife.
CBSE Notes Class 9 Geography Chapter 5 Natural Vegetation and Wildlife
THINGS TO ANSWER AFTER READING THE CONTEXT
- How are forests useful?
- What measures have been taken by government to preserve wildlife of our country?
- Explain some features of tropical deciduous forests.
- Write a brief note on wildlife in India.
Flora: plants of a particular region or period
Fauna: species of animals of a particular region or period
Virgin vegetation: natural vegetation that grows in a particular region without any aid and has been left undisturbed by humans.
Endemic or indigenous species: which are of a country’s origin
Exotic species: which are origins of a different country
India has a diverse number of plants and animals. It is at the tenth place in the world and fourth place in Asia in terms of presence of varied plant species (47,000). India also has 90,000 species of animals and a wide variety of fish in marine and fresh waters.
India’s huge diversity in flora and fauna can be attributed to the following factors:
Relief:
- Land: the type of land affects the vegetation and wildlife present. Same type of vegetation cannot be seen in every type of land, i.e., mountains, plains, plateaus, etc. The regions of plateau and terrains are areas where forests and wildlife are found, while in plains, agriculture has its dominance.
- Soil: The type of soil plays a very important role in the type of vegetation it grows. The composition of soil varies with place and so varies the plants, like, desert soils support cactus and thorns while deltaic soils support mangrove trees.
Climate:
- Temperature: Places with high temperatures will have vegetation as scrubs and thorns, while places with moderate and pleasing temperature will have abundant vegetation, with greenery and flowers all around. A drop in temperature will result in grasslands.
- Photoperiod: Sunlight is important for plants as it helps them prepare their own food. So places receiving sunlight abundantly (not extremely) and for a long duration will have trees grown faster than otherwise.
- Precipitation: Places receiving good rainfall have dense vegetation than places receiving less rainfall.
Forests, a very important natural resource, are very useful. From providing woods, fruits and shelter to many nomadic tribes to being a source of timber, wood and other items for commercial purposes – forests have been a source of constant benefit to mankind. But apart from this, forests also play a very important role in climate control. Trees bind soil and help prevent soil erosion, presence of trees enhances rainfall and keeps climate in check, forests provide humus to soil. And most importantly, they are habitat of many wildlife species.
But, most natural vegetation has been hampered to give land to agriculture or to provide shelter to humans. This has impacted our climate, and also many animal and bird species have lost their homes.
TYPES OF VEGETATION
- Tropical evergreen forests
- Tropical deciduous forests
- Tropical thorn forests and scrubs
- Montane forests
- Mangrove forests
Tropical Evergreen Forests:
- Present in areas of Western Ghats, islands of Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar islands, upper parts of Assam and Tamil Nadu coast.
- Rainfall required – 200 cm and above
- All types of vegetation – trees, bushes, shrubs, creepers – are present in such forests. There is no particular time for the trees to shed their leaves and so the forests appear evergreen throughout the year.
- Important commercial trees – ebony, mahogany, rosewood, rubber and cinchona
- Animals found – elephant, monkey, lemur and deer. One horned rhinoceros are found in the jungles of Assam and West Bengal.
Tropical Deciduous Forests:
- Also called monsoon forests, these are the most widespread forests in India. The trees of these forests shed their leaves for six to eight weeks in dry summer season.
- Based on the type of rainfall the region receives, deciduous forests are further divided into two types: moist and dry.
- Moist deciduous forests
Found in eastern part of India – along the foothills of Himalayas, Jharkhand, West Odisha and Chhattisgarh and eastern parts of Western Ghats.
Rainfall received – 200 to 100 cm
Important trees – teak, bamboo, sal, shisham, sandalwood, khair, kusum, arjun, mulberry, etc.
- Dry deciduous forests
Found in rainier parts of Peninsular plateau and plains of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.
Rainfall received – 100 to 70 cm
Important trees – teak, sal, peepal and neem
- Animals found – lion, tiger, pig, deer and elephant; variety of birds, lizards, snakes and tortoise
The Thorn Forests and Scrubs:
- Such forests are found in the north western part of India – Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
- Rainfall received – less than 70 cm
- Plants found – acacia, palms, euphorbias and cacti
- Trees have deep penetrating roots to search water; stems are succulent to conserve water; leaves are thick and thin to minimize evaporation. The trees, in more arid areas, are thorns and scrubs.
- Animals found – rats, rabbits, fox, wolf, tiger, wild ass, horses, camels
Montane Forests:
- Montane forests are found in the mountainous regions, i.e., at high altitudes and low temperatures. As the distance from the sea increases, the type of vegetation also changes.
- At the heights of 1000 – 2000m, wet temperate forests prevail, where evergreen broadleaf trees like oaks and chestnuts are common. Between the heights of 1500 – 3000m, temperate forests are found containing coniferous trees like pine, deodar, silver fir, cedar, etc..
- At altitudes above 3600m, Alpine vegetation comes into being, consisting of trees such as junipers, pines and birches. And as one goes further above, towards the snow line, alpine grasslands are the only vegetation found which are used as grazing lands for nomadic tribes (Gujjars and Bakarwals).
- Common animals found are Kashmir stag, wild sheep, Tibetan antelope, snow leopard, rare red panda and many more.
Mangrove Forests:
- Mangrove forests are found in the deltaic regions of the Ganga, the Kaveri, the Krishna, the Godaveri and the Mahanadi.
- The forests have abundant vegetation of mangrove trees – these have roots submerged under water.
- The Ganga-Brahmaputra delta is rich in sundari trees – these have durable hard timber. Other trees found in the regions are palm, coconut, keora, agar, etc.
- Animals found are – Royal Bengal Tiger, turtles, crocodiles, gharials and snakes.
WILDLIFE
India’s wildlife is very rich. With different types of vegetation available, India is home to different species of animals and birds.
- India consists of 2,000 species of birds, which is 13% of the world’s Likewise, it consists of approx 2500 species of fish which is 12% of the present.
- A number of animals are found in different parts of the country, like:
- Elephants are found in hot wet forests of Assam, Kerala and Karnataka.
- One horned rhinoceroses in wet swampy areas of Assam and West Bengal.
- Wild ass and camels are found in arid areas of Rann of Kachchh and Thar Desert respectively
- India is home to lions and tigers (only country to have both). Indian Lion is found in Gir forest of Gujarat, while tigers are found in forests of Madhya Pradesh, Sundarbans of West Bengal and Himalayan region.
India is also home to Indian bichon, nilgai, chousingha, leopard and different species of deer, monkey, and many more.
Likewise, bird species in India are wide and they are beautiful, ranging from peacock, pheasants to ducks, cranes and pigeons.
Though India is home to many species of animals and birds, the wildlife in India is at its deteriorating phase. Many animals and birds have gone extinct, firstly to climate change and pollution, and secondly, due to greed of humans. Animals are hunted down either for commercial purposes or just for fun, leading to various species on the verge of extinction and being extinct.
To conserve the wildlife of the country, Indian government has taken following steps:
a. Biospheres have been set up across the country, 10 out of 14 are included in the world network of biospheres.
The ten biospheres are: the Sundarbans, Nanda devi, the gulf of Mannar, the Nilgiri, Nokrek, Great Nicobar, Manas, Simlipal, Pachmarhi and Andaman-Amarkantak.
b. Many projects have been initiated to control the alarming decrease of some species, to prevent them from extinction – Project Rhino, Project Tiger, Project Great Indian Bustard
c. Financial help have been extended to botanical gardens to preserve plant species – Cold Desert, Panna, Kachchh are some examples
d. National parks, wildlife sanctuaries, zoological gardens have been set up to preserve our wildlife.
Humans should understand the fact that earth has given the right to live to each and every creature equally and in the efforts to make our life convenient, we should not make the lives of others painful, be it animals, plants including marine life. Earth is beautiful because it is full of nature and the different life forms living in it. It will not be a place to live in if any of the life forms goes to extinction, as one needs to balance the ecosystem – on which all of our lives depend.