Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 August 2014 | 6(9): 6249–6268 Pteridophytes of Thorangtlang Wildlife Sanctuary, Mizoram, India 1 2 ISSN H.A. Barbhuiya & S.K. Singh Communication Short Online 0974–7907 Print 0974–7893 1, 2 Botanical Survey of India, Eastern Regional Centre, Shillong, Meghalaya 793003, India 1
[email protected] (corresponding author), 2
[email protected] OPEN ACCESS Abstract: A preliminary study on the pteridophytic flora of Thorangtlang concerned, it appears that this state has received less Wildlife Sanctuary, Mizoram, India has been made. A total of 36 taxa attention and is known only through sporadic reports by of pteridophytes are recorded and enumerated for the first time. A brief taxonomic description of each species and the distribution within Gage (1901), Fischer (1938), Chandra & Chandra (1983), northeastern India is provided. Deb & Dutta (1987) and Benniamin (2011, 2012). Many Keywords: Fern, fern-allies, Mizoram, Pteridophytes, Thorangtlang. areas of the state are still unexplored which require systematic exploration. During a recent field trip to TWS in November 2011, The Thorangtlang Wildlife Sanctuary (TWS) is the authors had collected samples of pteridophytic taxa one of the most remote and inaccessible localities, from various habitats. Study of these specimens revealed situated about 230km south-west of Aizawl in Lunglei the occurrence of 36 taxa (28 terrestrial, 7 lithophytic, District of Mizoram, India. It spreads over 50km2 with 1 epiphytic) belonging to 19 genera and 15 families of an altitude of 800–1380 m. The annual rainfall ranges pteridophytes. All of them are reported for the first between 1700–3900 mm and the average temperature time from this sanctuary.