Assessing the tree diversity along the Dudhganga River in Kolhapur District of Maharashtra, India
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9455.18.2.28275-28286Keywords:
Altitudinal gradient, conservation planning, dominance pattern, endemic tree species, family-level diversity, floristic composition, full census approach, riverine ecosystem, riparian ecology, species richnessAbstract
Riparian vegetation is the buffer zone between the aquatic ecosystem of a river and the terrestrial ecosystem. Trees are a typical feature of many ecosystems. Understanding the diversity and geographic distribution of trees holds significant theoretical and practical value. This study highlights the rich diversity of tree species along the river Dudhganga with 80 species from 30 families identified through an extensive field survey from October 2021 to June 2024. The species-rich families are Fabaceae with 10 native species, contributing 18% of the total native tree diversity, Moraceae with eight species, and Malvaceae & Lamiaceae each with four species. Species-rich and diverse genus Ficus dominated with seven species. Ficus racemosa exhibits a widespread distribution across riparian habitats, which is the most evenly distributed species, while Pongamia pinnata stands out as the most dominant species among riparian tree taxa. Among the 80 tree species, two species are endemic to India, 55 are native and 25 are invasive. The altitudinal gradient exerts a substantial influence, as evidenced by research indicating that the diversity and density of riparian trees escalate with ascending altitudes. This study reveals a relatively diverse tree flora in riparian areas and aims to serve as a tool for managing the tree species diversity of the riparian land.
References
Chazdon, R.L., R.K. Colwell, J.S. Denslow & M.R. Guariguata (1998). Statistical methods for estimating species richness of woody regeneration in primary and secondary rain forests of NE Costa Rica. Forest Ecology and Management 112: 1–10.
Condit, R. (1998). Tropical Forest Census Plots: Methods and Results from Barro Colorado Island, Panama and a Comparison with Other Plots. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 211 pp.
Cooke, T. (1903). The Flora of the Presidency of Bombay: Vol. 1. Taylor and Francis, London, 645 pp. https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/42327
Flowers of India (2024). http://www.flowersofindia.net. Downloaded on 23.viii.2024.
Gotelli, N.J. & R.K. Colwell (2001). Quantifying biodiversity: procedures and pitfalls in the measurement and comparison of species richness. Ecology Letters 4: 379–391.
Gregory, S.V., F.J. Swanson, W.A. McKee & K.W. Cummins (1991). An ecosystem perspective of riparian zones. BioScience 41(8): 540–551.
Gunaga, S., N. Rajeshwari & R. Vasudeva (2013). Tree diversity and disturbance of kaan forests: relics of a community-protected climax vegetation in the Central Western Ghats. Tropical Ecology 54(1): 117–131.
Hood, W.G. & R.J. Naiman (2000). Vulnerability of riparian zones to invasion by exotic vascular plants. Plant Ecology 148: 105–114.
Hynes, H.B.N. (1970). The Ecology of Running Waters. University of Toronto Press, Toronto, 555 pp.
IUCN (2024). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (Version 2022-1). https://www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 01.viii.2024.
Jain, S.K. & R.R. Rao (1977). A Handbook of Field and Herbarium Methods. Scholarly Publications, New Delhi, 157 pp.
Johansson, M.E., C. Nilsson & E. Nilsson (1996). Do rivers function as corridors for plant dispersal? Journal of Vegetation Science 7(5): 593–598. https://doi.org/10.2307/3236309
Korse, K.H. & G. Krishnakumar (2006). Riparian flora of perennial rivers in the Western Ghats: floristic diversity, ecological uniqueness and conservation strategies. Proceedings of Lake 2006. Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, 12 pp.
Lacerda, A.V.D., N. Nordi, F.M. Barbosa & T. Watanabe (2005). Levantamento florístico do componente arbustivo-arbóreo da vegetação ciliar na bacia do rio Taperoá, PB, Brasil. Acta Botanica Brasilica 19(3): 647–656. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0102-33062005000300027
Liunima, V., L. Banilodu & C.G. Semiun (2022). Composition and diversity of riparian vegetation of the Talau river, Belu Regency. Edubiotik: Jurnal Pendidikan, Biologi dan Terapan 7(02): 167–176. https://doi.org/10.33503/ebio.v7i02.1934
Mohan, S.N. & S. Joseph (2024). Disturbances on riparian vegetation: a comprehensive review. International Journal of Research and Review 11(4): 200–208. https://doi.org/10.52403/ijrr.20240422
Mohite, S. & S.A. Mane (2020). Phytosociological study of riparian trees in the Panchganga River system at Kolhapur District, Maharashtra, India. Journal of Aquatic Biology & Fisheries 8 (Special Issue): 62–67.
Myers, N., R.A. Mittermeier, C.G. Mittermeier, G.A.B. da Fonseca & J. Kent (2000). Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature 403: 853–858. https://doi.org/10.1038/35002501
Naiman, R.J. & H. Décamps (1997). The ecology of interfaces: Riparian zones. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 28(1): 621–658. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.28.1.621
Naiman, R.J., H. Décamps & M. McClain (2005). Riparia: Ecology, Conservation, and Management of Streamside Communities. Academic Press, Burlington, MA, 448 pp. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-012663315-3/50003-4
Nilsson, C., R. Jansson & U. Zinko (1997). Long-term responses of river-margin vegetation to water-level regulation. Science 276(5313): 798–800. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.276.5313.798
POWO (2024). Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. https://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org. Downloaded on 01.viii.2024.
Rao, K.S. & D. Kumar (2024). India Flora Online. https://indiaflora-ces.iisc.ac.in/herbsheet.php?id=3517&cat=13. Downloaded on 01.viii.2024.
Richardson, D.M., P.M. Holmes, K.J. Esler, S.M. Galatowitsch, J.C. Stromberg, S.P. Kirkman, P. Pyšek & R.J. Hobbs (2007). Riparian vegetation: degradation, alien plant invasions, and restoration prospects. Diversity and Distributions 13(1): 126–139. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1366-9516.2006.00314.x
Singh, N.P. & S. Karthikeyan (eds.) (2000). Flora of Maharashtra State: Dicotyledones – Vol. 1. Botanical Survey of India, Calcutta, 898 pp.
Stevens, P.F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website (Version 14, July 2017). http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/research/APweb/. Downloaded on 01.viii.2024.
Sumarmi, S., T.I. Pakarti, L.F.P. Destari, N. Aini & A. Tanjung (2022). Preservation of vegetation diversity to maintain the riparian ecosystem of the Sampean watershed. KnE Social Sciences 7(16): 140–151. https://doi.org/10.18502/kss.v7i16.12168
Tockner, K. & J.A. Stanford (2002). Riverine flood plains: present state and future trends. Environmental Conservation 29: 308–330.
UNESCO (2012). Western Ghats (India) (No. 1342rev). UNESCO World Heritage Centre. https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1342/ Downloaded on 07.viii.2024.
Yadav, S.R. & M.M. Sardesai (2002). Flora of Kolhapur District. Shivaji University, Kolhapur, India, 680 pp.
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Sachin Chavan, Rajaram Gurav
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors own the copyright to the articles published in JoTT. This is indicated explicitly in each publication. The authors grant permission to the publisher Wildlife Information Liaison Development (WILD) Society to publish the article in the Journal of Threatened Taxa. The authors recognize WILD as the original publisher, and to sell hard copies of the Journal and article to any buyer. JoTT is registered under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY), which allows authors to retain copyright ownership. Under this license the authors allow anyone to download, cite, use the data, modify, reprint, copy and distribute provided the authors and source of publication are credited through appropriate citations (e.g., Son et al. (2016). Bats (Mammalia: Chiroptera) of the southeastern Truong Son Mountains, Quang Ngai Province, Vietnam. Journal of Threatened Taxa 8(7): 8953–8969. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.2785.8.7.8953-8969). Users of the data do not require specific permission from the authors or the publisher.
