An updated floral diversity of Tal Chhapar Wildlife Sanctuary, Rajasthan, India
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.9660.17.11.27806-27821Keywords:
Angiosperms, checklist, climatic variability, conservation, flora, floristic survey, inventory, life forms, plants, vetetationAbstract
Tal Chhapar Wildlife Sanctuary, located on the eastern edge of the Thar Desert, supports higher floristic diversity and structural complexity compared to other arid zone ecosystems. A comprehensive floristic survey conducted from 2022 to 2024 recorded 211 angiosperm species belonging to 146 genera and 49 families, including one species from the magnoliids, 44 eudicots, and four monocots. Poaceae emerges as the dominant family with 49 species, followed by Asteraceae and Amaranthaceae, each contributing 17 species. Herbaceous plants were predominant, accounting for 40% of the flora, followed by grasses 23%, trees 12%, and shrubs 12%. Therophytes were the most common life form (105 species), followed by phanerophytes (55), hemicryptophytes (38), chamaephytes (11), and geophytes (2). The number of perennial plants (106 species) was almost equal to that of annuals (105 species), suggesting increased resilience to climate variability. Additionally, the survey identified one ‘Endangered’ species, Tecomella undulata, and one ‘Critically Endangered’ species, Commiphora wightii. Overall, this study provides a comprehensive floristic inventory of Tal Chhapar Wildlife Sanctuary, revealing its rich floral diversity and highlighting key species of conservation concern.
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