FAUNAL DIVERSITY OF

(Source: Proceedings of the National Seminar on the Faunal Diversity of Eastern Ghats Organized by the Zoological Survey of , Southern Regional Centre, Chennai-600 028. Dated. 3rd and 4th March, 2016) S.No. Authors & Topic Abstract 1. A K Ghosh Indian subcontinent represents major ecosystems in an amazing way. While, mountain ecosystem of Himalayas remain distinctive across the northern landscape, the hills Biodiversity of Eastern Ghats and of India, known of Eastern Ghats and have Western Ghats attracted attention of scientists specially on their origin, evolution and diversity of life. The Eastern Ghats region covers 75,000 sq.km located Centre for Environment and Development between 770 22” – 220 81” East Longitude and 110 31” – 210 0” North latitude. The region extends over a linear distance of 1750 km. The northern border can be marked with the River and the southern border with Nilgiri Hills (Pulliah, 2002).

Landscape and Biodiversity Eastern Ghats region is spread across three coastal states of India viz., , and . The region cuts across a wide array of ecosystems from the semi-arid Kalahandi to coastal Vishakhapatnam. Three major Indian rivers viz., Mahanadi, Godavari and Krishna act as a main surface water resource; predominantly tropical monsoon climate is prevalent in the region. Biodiversity in Eastern Ghats flourished under an array of forests types ranging from evergreen to tropical semi- evergreen to moist deciduous forest extending into savannah and scrub jungle. Such diversity provide habitat for 2,500 species of flowering plants (recorded till 2001) dominated by family Fabaceae, Leguminoceae and Convolvulaceae. Sadly, Eastern Ghats fauna still remains ill explode or unexploded especially with reference to largest group of invertebrates, . In case, of vertebrates, insects. In case, of one can record 115 species of Herpetofauna and 297 species of birds, besides, a diverse spectrum of mammalian species starting from tree shrew to lesser cats to large Carnivores like jackals, wolf, hyena and Indian wild dogs etc. There is no consolidated account of fishes of Eastern Ghats. The endemicity of flora and fauna of Eastern Ghats will appear poor if compared with the Western Ghats; in case of plants about 4% of the flora is considered endemic to the region. Sadly, data on endemic fauna of Eastern Ghats seems to be lacking. Threats Major threats to the unique landscape includes high rate of deforestation largely due to development projects including mining, extending railway lines into eco sensitive zones, construction of multipurpose river valley projects, forest fires and shorter cycle of shifting cultivation in the tribal belt etc. In spite of the fact, that 12 protected areas have been declared in the Eastern Ghats, a number of plant species have been introduced to this region which may turn invasive and cause serious impact on native biodiversity. Discussion It seems imperative that, a well planned multi institutional biodiversity survey, covering all the ecological niches should be undertaken in this unique landscape on a time bound project mode. Hardly any data is available on the agro biodiversity of the region which one can expect to be very rich in the tribal belts. Documentation of the traditional knowledge on the uses of biodiversity will be of immense importance; with leading national institutions like Botanical Survey of India and Zoological Survey of India, and all five bureaus dealing with genetic resources under ICAR along with the renowned universities from three states which could provide a unique opportunity to document and widen our knowledge on Eastern Ghats, as has already been established for Western Ghats. Needless to say that, while, targeting a higher GDP may be a national goal so is the goals for sustainable development which have been prescribed by the United Nations in 2015, with target date of 2030. India being as a signatory to the Convention on Biological Diversity, 2002, and also a follower to the Sustainable Development Pathway could play a significant role in drawing a master plan for both Eastern and Western Ghats, which in violet in nature. 2. Chandra.K and Venkitesan. R FAUNAL DIVERSITY OF EASTERN GHATS: There is no consolidating information on the total faunal wealth of Eastern Ghats. Comparatively lesser information is available on the faunal resource of the Eastern Ghats; the Faunal Diversity of Eastern Ghats and dry forests of Eastern Ghats could not attract the Western Ghats - An Overview researchers as comparable with lush green forests of Western Ghats. Information on the fauna of the Eastern Ghats is poor and scanty. Eastern Ghats are unique in its Zoological Survey of India biotic attributes, is home to some of the charismatic and 535, M Block New Alipore – Kolkata - 53 endangered such as , elephants, , etc. It is where the aesthetic beauty of pristine forest dwells and also a treasure house for lavish population of wild flora and fauna. A total of 311 species of insects from different orders and families were recorded form the Eastern Ghats constitutes about 0.56 percentage (Table – 2) ZSI recorded 400 species of vertebrate fauna and 217 species of invertebrate fauna from the Similipal Biosphere Reserve, 55 Species from 10 orders and 19 families of mammals have been reported from the reserve. Avifaunal diversity and abundance is around 258 species (Alfred et al. 2001, Ramakrishna et al., 2006; ZSI, 1995), and forming a major portion of the vertebrate fauna, out of 110 reptiles found in Orissa (including sea turtles), 37 species are known to occur in Similipal. The invertebrate groups constitutes a total of 217 species comprises of Protozoa, Rotifera, Ostracoda, Chilopoda, Diplopoda, Scorpionida, Orthoptera, Odonata and some families of , Diptera and Humenoptera. The fauna of Chandaka-Dampara Wildlife sanctuary included 37 species belonging to 33 genera under 21 families and 10 orders Mammals (Tiwari et al., 2002). The avian fauna is represented by 167 species belonging to 116 Genera under 45 families and 17 orders, About 115 species of amphibians and reptiles have been reported form the Eastern Ghats (Daniel, 2000). The reptile fauna is represented by 33 species belonging to 27 genera under 12 families and 4 order, and amphibian fauna is represented by 13 species belonging to 9 genera under 17 families and 8 orders. Comparatively faunal diversity is abundant in Nallamalai Hills, Thulsi Rao (2007) recorded over 70 species of mammals, 302 species of birds, 64 species of reptiles, 20 amphibians, 55 fishes, 89 species of butter flies, 57 species of moths, 45 species of coleopteran, 30 species of Odonata and numerous other forms of insects have been inventorised in Nallamalai hills. Conclusion: The faunal resource of Western Ghats is fairly documented than the poorly concentrated Eastern Ghats. Western Ghats with a maximum number of 6340 species constitutes about 3.98 percentages and in Eastern Ghats with 884 species constitutes 0.55 percentages of the total Indian fauna. Inventories give a snapshot of the state of biodiversity and identify key variables, bio indicators and eco services renderers. They also provide baseline information for the assessment of change and they apply to all ecosystems from fully natural to intensively managed. Conservation measure like habitat restoration, Pollution control, Invasive alien species management, Environmental impact assessment of development activities, Awareness and education outreach, Legislation and enforcement and identification Key Biodiversity Areas are to be initiated to protect the natural resource of the country. 3. Dr. A.J.T. Johnsingh Conservation anywhere in the world is closely tied to peace, the economic status of the local people and the prevailing political situation. Mammal research and conservation in the Eastern Ghats of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh have suffered as a result of political restlessness Conservation of Mammals in Western that in the past has resulted in insurgency, The Ghats and Eastern Ghats conservation status of large mammals including the elephant and , even in Tiger Reserves like Simlipal, Satkosiaand Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam (no elephant), which I have visited, is poor. These forests also suffer from aridity and the presence of a large number of tribals who, Nature Conservation Foundation out of poverty, do not hesitate to indulge in the presence of and WWF – India a large number of tribals who, out of poverty, do not hesitate to indulge in poaching. Perhaps the best part of the Eastern Ghats contains large mammals is seen in the landscape around the river Cauvery, where we have protected areas such as Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve, Biligirirangan Temple Tiger Reserve, Male Mahadeshwara wildlife sanctuary and Cauvery wildlife sanctuary in and Tamil Nadu. If large mammal species such as , elephant and tiger are secure here, it may be because of the nearness of this landscape to the wildlife rich lower Nilgiris and the lack of insurgency which has resulted in better governance, enabling wildlife to thrive. Biligirirangan Temple Tiger Reserve, with its high mountains and shoal grasslands, looks like an extension of the Nilgiris. Murderer, poacher and smuggler Veerappan, who inhabited this landscape for several years, was considered a threat and was finally hunted down on 18th October, 2004. However years after his death, there is a feeling that his presence possibly gave some protection to the forests which have become increasingly vulnerable to illegal activities. Overall, mammal conservation in the Western and Eastern Ghats can be improved further if protected areas are kept inviolate, corridors are established and maintained and the biomass needs of the people are met in the periphery and outside the forest areas rather than from within the forest. This is a challenging task for the forest department, which represents the Government, and for the conservation community of peninsular India. 4. S. Balachandran, The Eastern Ghats are an ancient chain of low lying hill running from Orissa in the north to Tamil Nadu in the south through Andhra Pradesh, covering an area of 75000sq.km. The avifaunal wealth of this region has been The Bird Diversity of the Eastern Ghats partially studied over the last 100 years by various ornithologists including Salim Ali. The Vernay scientific survey of Eastern Ghats (whistler and Kinnear 1930 – 37) Deputy Director, Bombay Natural History and Hyderabad state Ornithological surveys carried out in Society. the 1930s. Other significant studies on the birds of the Eastern Ghats were done by Abdulali (1945), Krishna Raju (1985), Trevor price (1978, 79), Ripley el al (1987-88). The variety of habitat types from moist evergreen forest to dry scrub jungles supports a myriad of bird species. More than 400 species of birds have been reported for the entire Eastern Ghats. However due to the absence of high mountains like in the Western Ghats, and the less type of forests, the diversity of bird species are relatively lesser than the Western Ghats including in the endemic species. Out of the eight important areas recognized form the Eastern Ghats five (Horsley hill, Sri Lanakamalleswara wildlife sanctuary, Sri Venkateswara wildlife sanctuary, Sri Penusula Narasimha, Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger reserve, Kaundinya) are from Andhra Pradesh and two from Orissa (Sunabeda and Simlipal) and one (Melagiri) from Tamilnadu. The Eastern Ghats support nearly 400 species and subspecies of birds. The Critically endangered Jerdons courser Rhinoptilus bitorquatus is found in the Eastern Ghats. Apart from this, the yellow throated Bulbul Pycnonotus xantholaemus, which is endemic to Southern Peninsular India, is also found in the southern part of the Eastern Ghats. The bird ringing studies carried out at the Sri Venkateswara wildlife sanctuary during 1989 has revealed the importance of Eastern Ghats for the migrant passaerines as wintering and stopover sites. The occurrence of Tree sparrow Passer montanus, Abbot‟s Babbler Malacocincla abbotti and Little Spider hunter Arachnothera longirostra in the northern parts of the Eastern Ghats is of Zoogeographical interest since these species are considered as Himalayan/Southeast Asian relicts. The Eastern Ghats in their southernmost part run in a south west direction to meet the Western Ghats. Species such as the Yellow browed bulbul Iole indica and the White bellied Treepie Dendrocitta leucogastra, which are mainly confined to Western Ghats, are found in the region as well. Apart from these resident species, the Eastern Ghats are important migratory route for the winter visitors arriving from Himalayas, southern Russia and Europe. Coastal wetland and forested watershed in the Eastern Ghats hill ranges act as important wintering and stopover sites for hundred thousands of migrant water birds migrating from Arctic Russia China and Mongolia. There are several studies that have documented the bird diversity and their ecology in the Eastern Ghats. Documentation of bird species in various habitat types by Beehler and others in Northern Andhra Pradesh in 1986, the Vernay Ornithological exploration of the Eastern Ghats in the late 1920,s which was published in 16 volumes by Whistler and Kinnear, Salim Ali‟s „Hyderabad State Ornithological Survey‟ (published in the JBNHS in five parts during 1933-34); Humayun Abdulali‟s „Birds of the Vizagapatam District; studies by Trevor price, K.S.R Krishna Raju and those by S. Dillon, Ripley, Bruce Beehler and Krishna Raju in the 1970s and 1980s, and recently a comprehensive survey of birds in the Eastern Ghats of Tamil Nadu carried out by Care Earth Trust, Chennai that recorded 262 species of birds have all contributed to our knowledge of birds of the different areas of the Eastern Ghats. Some of the Western Ghats endemic birds reported in the Eastern Ghats included the White cheeked Megalaima viridis, Nilgiri Wood pigeon Columba eliphinstonii, Malabar Parakeet Psittacula columboides, Malabar Trogon Harpactes fasciatus, Yellow crowed bulbul Iole indica, Grey headed Bulbul Phycnonotus priocephalus and Black throated Munia Lonchura keelarti. There are also unconfirmed reports of the rare forest owlet Heteroglaux blewitii from the north of Eastern Ghats in Orissa. The Thick billed Green Pigeon Treron curvirostra, a species till now though to inhabit the forest of north east India has now been reported from Orissa. The rare and endemic Jerdon‟s courser Rhinoptilus botorquatus, till recently believed to be extinct, occurs in extremely small numbers on the foothill of the middle portion of Eastern Ghats in Andhra Pradesh near Kadapa. Though there are some protected areas in the Eastern Ghats, more need to be done to conserve the birdlife of the region, especially endemic birds like the Jerdon‟s Courser. In the state of Tamil Nadu there are no protected area for birds on the Eastern hills like Shevroys and Kolli. This need to be noted down and a protected area should be declared in any one of the hills. This will go a long way in conserving the bird diversity in the Eastern Ghats. 5. J.Poorani India, with 2% of global space, is one of the 17 mega diversity nations in the world, About 60000-70000 species of insects are known from India at present, representing about 7.10 – 10% of the world fauna. The Western Ghats, Diversity of Eastern Ghats and one of the biodiversity hotspots of the world and the Western Ghats: Present Scenario and A Eastern Ghats are home to amazing variety insects with a Future Road Map high degree of endemism. In spite of their rich insect diversity, Western and Eastern Ghats have not been surveyed in depth for entomological collections and thousands of species remain to be discovered and ICAR National Reasarch Centre for Banana described from these regions. Habitat destruction due to Thogamalai Raod, Thayanur Post various anthropological interventions has rendered the Tiruchirappalli; 620 102 ecosystems of the Western and Eastern Ghats highly fragile and vulnerable to species extinctions. Entomological collections are considered as a record of genetic and morphological variation, past and recent geographical distribution and other biological information on insects. Often museum specimens are the only collections in India have gone on for over 125 years; specimens from these hotspots are poorly represented in our institutional reference collections compared to foreign museums. The entomofauna of the Western Ghats has received comparatively greater attention from researchers than that of Eastern Ghats, but only a few groups like Lepidoptera (mainly butterflies), Odonata, parasitic Hymenoptera, Coleoptera (Scarabaeidae) and some aquatic insects (Ephemeroptera, Trichoptera) have been well studied in both. An analysis of papers published on the insects of Eastern and Western Ghats in the last ten years (2005-15) indicates that most of them are devoted to ecological/conservation aspects on a few selected groups of insects like butterflies and Odonata, with fewer papers on descriptive of other insect groups. This could be partly attributed to the role played by these groups of insects as biological ecological indicators and better prospects of getting publications in high impact factor journals. It is hence, imperative to strengthen taxonomic research on the insects of Western and Eastern Ghats to provide a strong supporting framework for future management and conservation. This is an onerous task compounded by the alarming decline in the number of insect taxonomists in India and the fact that few Indian insect taxonomists measure up to international standards and have the capability and competence to take up monographic research the future road map towards complete documentation of the insect diversity of Eastern and Western Ghats should include the following steps. 1. Organized collection expeditions in poorly surveyed areas of Eastern and Western Ghats and networking of institutions, collections and researches to facilitate their characterization and documentation. For this, well trained technical staff to build develops and /or take care of existing entomological collections is a fundamental requirement. It is also needed to train these technicians in computerization of collection data and information retrieval so that other national programmers‟ on biodiversity documentation, management and quarantine can be supported at the ground level. 2. Capacity building programmes in survey and collection of insect fauna, collection management, and specific, group-oriented trainings on morphological and molecular characterization of insects/DNA barcoding. 3. Rules framed under the Biodiversity Act, 2002, to regulate commercial exploitation of biological resources, are being irrationally imposed of fundamental research, particularly taxonomic research, which generates only knowledge and has no commercial value. To facilitate the documentation and subsequent conservation and management of the insect diversity of Eastern and Western Ghats, collections of biological specimens without legislative hurdles should be made possible for bona fide taxonomists to facilitate basic studies and other initiatives like DNA barcoding. 4. In order to speed up the pace of documentation of insect diversity in these regions, we need to enable free access for researchers both from India and abroad to our entomological collections for comprehensive taxonomic revisions of our flora and fauna following modern systems of classification. 5. On the lines of PEET (Partnerships for Enhancing Expertise in Taxonomy) programme, under which the US national science foundation offers fellowships to encourage future generations of experts, meritorious PG candidates can be financially supported to take up poorly known groups of insects from the Western And Eastern Ghats for monographic research. It can also be mandated that expertise thus generated on various groups of insects translates into electronic databases, online diagnostic keys and content with broad accessibility to the scientific community as being done in PEET and programmers supported by the Australian Biologically Resources Study (ABRS). 6. The National Biodiversity Authority, MoEF, DST and other agencies should extend fellowship/competitive grants to meritorious students and young researchers to take up taxonomic research on insects of Western and Eastern Ghats. 6. S R V Murthy, IFS Wildlife, both flora and fauna across the world face several threats and continue to decline in numbers. Wildlife crime and its illegal trade in Understanding where these species occur, how they use Western their habitats and what factors influence these patterns and Eastern Ghats are important for their conservation. Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats support a healthy population of various Regional Deputy Director animals and plants and home to some of the most WCCB, Chennai charismatic animals on the planet. Most of the demand for wildlife products comes from outside the country. India has nearly 6.5% of the world‟s known wildlife and its products puts at risk the mega diversity of the country. The changing market dynamics and the lifestyles make the existing regulatory regimes inadequate in dealing with the wildlife crimes assuming organized status. Illegal wildlife trade has exploded to meet increasing demand for elephant ivory, tiger products and other important but lesser known species particularly in southern states. Controlled by dangerous crime syndicates, wildlife is trafficked much like drugs or weapons. Wildlife criminals often operate with impunity, making the trade a low- risk/high profit-business. 7. John T.D. Caleb and R. Karthikeyani Salticidae (jumping spiders) is the most diverse family of spiders. In the present study the current knowledge on the diversity of Salticidae in Tamil Nadu has been reviewed. Presently 40 species classified under 27 genera are known Current knowledge on the Salticid Fauna, from Tamil Nadu. Seven species are known exclusively with reference to the Eastern Ghats of from the Nilgiri hill ranges. These families of spiders in this Tamil Nadu region are from collections dating back at least about 4 decades or more. Consequently less than 1% of the Eastern Ghats have been appropriately surveyed for Department of Zoology, Madras Christian taxonomic study of spiders. Considering the rich biomes College, Tambaram, Chennai-59. and habits, many genera and species await imminent School of Energy, Environment and Natural discovery. Recent studies form Chennai city and its Resources, Kamaraj University, suburbs yielded descriptions of 8 new species and 3 Madurai-21, Tamil Nadu species (Aelurillus Kronestedti Azarkina, 2004, Phintella volupe kirsch, 1879 & Thyene bivittata Xie & Peng, 1995) recorded for the first time in India. Viciria diatreta simon, 1902 was rediscovered 112 years after its first description. These results necessitate the compelling need for intensive expeditions and continual dedicated taxonomic studies. 8. Babu R. Odonata are an order of aquatic palaeopterous insects. Dragonflies and damselflies are regarded as beneficial insects because they are carnivorous throughout their life, Diversity of Odonata Fauna of Eastern mostly feeding on smaller insects such as mosquitoes, Ghats of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu termites, ants, mayflies etc. They are generally found at or near fresh water although some species roam widely and may be found far from their breeding sites. The distribution of various groups and species of Odonata is highly variable. Some genera and species are widespread Southern Regional Centre, while others are highly local in their distribution. Some Zoological Survey of India, families are restricted to cool streams or rivers, others to Chennai – 600 028 ponds or still clear waters, and some to marshy places. The Eastern Ghats constitute an important biogeography region, as one of the biologically richest zones of India and form a broken chain of mountains spreading along the states of Odisha, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu and lie between Mahanadi and Vaigai rivers. The Eastern Ghats of India is runs almost parallel to east coast of India and the region falls under tropical monsoon climate receiving rainfall from both South-west monsoon and North-East retreating monsoon. Unlike the Western Ghats, studies on the distribution of Odonata in the Eastern Ghats are scanty (Fraser, 1933, 1935, 1936). Hence the present study is an attempt to provide a comprehensive account of Odonata fauna of the Eastern Ghats of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu is currently studied through literature, field surveys and National collections present in the Zoological Survey of India, Southern Regional Centre and a summary of the results obtained so far is presented. A total of 53 species under 35 genera of seven families of two suborders were recorded. Anisopterans were found to be more abundant than Zygopterans. Among the families recorded, the family Libellulidae (suborder Anisoptera) is found to be most dominant family comprised with 30 species of 20 genera; followed by the family Coenagrionidae (suborder Zygoptera) comprised with 13 species of six genera. Among 53 species recorded, only five endemic species viz., Caconeura ramburi (Fraser, 1922), Disparoneura qudrimaculata (Rambur, 1842), Prodasineura verticalis annandalei (Fraser,1921), Heliocypha bisignata Hagen in Selys, 1853 and Zygonyx iris malabarica Fraser, 1926, are reported from the study area. Updated distributional range within Eastern Ghats of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, rest of India and elsewhere is also provided. More efforts need to be made to seasonal sampling of adult odonates from all the types of freshwater habitats in the Eastern Ghats; it may reveal the complete diversity of dragonflies in the Eastern Ghats. 9. S.R. Ganesh and M. Arumugam Herpetofauna of the hills (10.12-10.28oN 77.92- 78.11oE; 1400 m asl) situated at the southernmost end of the Eastern Ghats still remains largely unknown. We Amphibians and Reptiles of Sirumalai conducted a long-term (500 hrs) herpetological survey in Hills, Sirumalai hills using diurnal time-constrained search and Southern Eastern Ghats, Peninsular India nocturnal visual encounter methods targeting the montane zones (>900 m asl). We aimed to gather data on the diversity, distribution habitat use and status of herpetofauna. A total of 39 species, including seven species of amphibians, 15 species of lizards and 17 species Department of Zoology, University of Madras, of were documented. Of these 10 species (26%) Guindy campus, Chennai 600 025. comprising five species of amphibians, three species of Tamil Nadu, India lizards and two species of require finer taxonomic resolution. Some of the noteworthy findings include the litter frog Indirana sp., Sreeni‟s stream frog Indosylvirana sreeni, the bush frog Pseudophilautus cf. wynaadenis, the rock gecko Hemidactylus cf. acanthopholis, the blinking lacertid Ophisops minor nictans, the flying lizard Draco dussumierii, the Dindigal sheildtail Uripeltis dindigalensis, the bamboo pitviper Trimeresurus gramineus, the five- striped coral snake Calliophis nigrescens pentalineatus and the Giri‟s bronzeback tree snake Dendrelaphis girii to name a few. As for the habitat use, 696 sightings were in aquatic habitats, 380 sightings were in subterranean conditions, 608 sightings were on ground, 580 sightings were in rocky habitats, 530 sightings were in arboreal situation and 208 sightings were on road. Including both live and dead. A total of 1501 observations comprising 621 amphibian sightings, 817 lizard sightings and 64 snake sightings were obtained. Anthropogenic threats in the form of vehicle- mediated road kill mortalities were recorded. A total of 58 road kills, comprising of 28 amphibians represented by three species, 16 lizards represented by seven species and 14 snakes represented by six species were recorded. As much as the studies reveal, two endemic reptiles reported to be described from sirumalai, the Gunther‟s cat skink Ristella guentehri and the Brougham‟s shieldtail U.broughami were not recorded during our or earlier studies in Sirumalai, although reported from the Western Ghats. Speared by just over 30 kms from the eastern spur of the Palnis in the Western Ghats, Sirumalai is characterized by mixed biotic elements, due to its peculiar geography. The Dindigal shieldtail Uropeltis dindigalensis Is a vertebrate endemic only to the moist montance forests of Sirumalai hills. As per our current knowledge, very few such hills having confirmed endemic vertebrates are present in the Eastern Ghats. Our work on the herpetofauna further highlights the conservation importance of the currently unprotected Sirumalai hills. 10. J. Patrick David and B. Vinoth In total, 262 species of birds were recorded during the survey. This included seven RET species. The RET species were the Grey-headed fishing eagle Icthyophaga ichthyaetus, Lesser Fish eagle Icthyophago humilis, Avian Diversity in the Eastern Ghats of Egyptian culture Neophron percnopterus, Nilgiri wood Tamil Nadu pigeon Columa elphinstonii, Yellow throated bulbuk Pycnonotus priocephalus, savanna Nightjar Caprimukgus affinis and Brown Hawk Owl ninox scuytulata were Founder trustee, Thillaiganaga Nagar, recorded for the first time from the first time region. Chennai – 61 Species such as the black bulbul Hypsipetes leucocephalus, Asian Fairy Bluebird Irena puella (in shevroys) , Blue beared BEE-eater Byctiornis athertone (in Shevroys) Blue beared Bee eater Nyctironis athertoni in Chitheri, Malabar whistling thrush Myophonus horsfieldi are peristing in the same old sites reported by the vernay survey (80 years back). The top five abundant species were the red vented Bulbul pycnonotus cafer, White browed bulbul pycnonotus luteolus red whiskered bulbul pycnonotus luteolus, Red whiskered Bulbul Pycnonotus jocosus, Common lora Aegithina tiphia and Purple rumped sunbird leptocoma zeylonia. The Vaniyar tract an adjacent forest in the shevroys has been identified as a potential site for bird conservation in the EGTN. Strict protection of existing forested areas, wetlands and awareness creation among the general public is essential for ensuring the long term survival of the bird species in EGTN. 11. V. Vasuki and R. Balasubramaniyan Biodiversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth, particularly variability within species, between species and between ecosystems. It also refers to the ecological richness of the community which is richest in tropics. Diversity of Mosquitoes in the selected Biodiversity generally tends to cluster in hotspots and has areas of Eastern Ghats; A Review been increasing through the time but will be likely to slow in the future. India is one of the world‟s top 12 mega diversity nations and ranks about 10th amongst the nations in terms of diversity of species. Among all insects diversity of mosquitoes is of greater economic importance because they are vector for number of diseases such as malaria, dengue chikungunya, filariasis etc. Mosquitoes continue to coexist with man and transmit many mosquito borne disease to more than 700 million people annually in the tropical and subtropical countries. They are found to be present and breed in a variety of habitats in almost all parts of India except in some high altitude regions. The Eastern Ghats is one of the important biodiversity areas of India and the diversity of mosquitoes in some selected areas of Eastern Ghats is discussed in this review. From sirumalia hills, a part of Eastern Ghats situated at the south of Dindugul district, Tamil Nadu, mosquitoes belonging to 3 genera and 13 species accounting to a total of 481 mosquitoes have been collected and reported during the period Oct - 2010 Mar 2011. The Anopheles was more diverse with 6 species, Aedes with 4 species and Culex with 3 species. Tree hole breeding mosquito survey conducted from Jan 2013 – Dec 2013 in three different places of forests in of Eastern Ghats recorded 11 species representing 5 genera of mosquitoes, In a survey carried out subsequently in three other localities of kolli hills during pre May – June 2013 and post monsoon Nov – Dec 2013 hills recorded 6 species of mosquitoes belonging to 4 genera. The species composition of mosquitoes reported in different localities of Eastern Ghats provides base lie date for the control of mosquitoes and mosquito borne diseases. 12. M. Bubesh Guptha The Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve (SBR) designated recently in 2011, these hill ranges are part of the Eastern Ghats lie between 130 38‟ E and 130 55‟ N latitudes and Inventory and documentation studies on 790 07‟ and 790 24‟ E longitudes spread over Chittoor and major Fauna from Seshachalam Hills, Kadaph districts of Andhra Pradesh. The predominant Southern Eastern Ghats of Andhra vegetation type is tropical southern dry mixed deciduous Pradesh forest. The vegetation is a unique mix of the tropical southern dry mixed deciduous types. The area is having as many as 1750 species belonging to 178 families of vascular plants. The elevation ranges from 150 to 1,130 m, the terrain is undulating, with deep forest covered valleys. The mean maximum temperature ranges form 160 C to 460C and minimum from 9.70C to 250C depending upon the season. Average rainfall in this region is between 800 to 900 mm. It includes two protected areas namely Sri Venkateswara Wildlife Sanctuary and Sri Venkateswara National. It is the richest floristic hotspot harboring many endemic and rare plants. The entire sanctuary is an uninhabited large chunk of dry deciduous Red Sanders bearing forest. Various groups of faunal survey were documented in the study areas recorded by both direct and indirect methods. This study was conducted during between June 2011 to July 2014. Different sampling techniques and systematic methods were followed. Animals recorded in the present study include mammals, herpetofauna, birds and butterfly. Mammals: a total of 25 species of mammals belonging to 17 families were recorded IUCN status and schedule species were analyzed. During camera traps as well as direct sighting (28 individuals) of Elephant were recorded. The Panthera pardus and wild dog cuon alpines is quite common in our study. Other predators and ungulates were captured. The nocturnal Slender Loris Loris tardigradus could be common but is seldom seen. Indian Giant squirrel Ratufa inida and Ruddy mangoose Herpestes smithii are other interesting species.

Hepetofauna: Data collection was carried out by using Visual Encounter survey Method. A total of 12 species of Amphibians belonging to four families and seven genera were recorded. So far 46 speices of reptiles belonging to 36 genera, distributed in 12 families were recorded (33 species of snakes (72%) and 13 species of lizards 28% the snakes belongs to six families more number of snakes were record3d from the family coloubridae (21 species) followed by Uroperltidae 1 species. The lizards belongs to six families have been recorded in the study area, more number of lizards were recorded from the family Gekkonidae 5 species followed by Agamidae (3 species) Sciencidae (2 Species) Varanidae 1 species, chamaeleonidae 1 species and Testudinidae 1 Species, also stared tortoise and turtle are interesting . Snake IUCN status were gathered i.e 68% followed by 20% (LR-nt), 23% (VU) and 8% (EN) were recorded. So far 33 snakes species were recorded among which six species are venomous snakes and new records (Calliphis melanurus and Uropeltis ellioti), new locality records (Ahaetulla pulverulenta and Lycodon flavicollies), rediscovery (Coluber bholanathi ) and one first record in Indian (Chrysipelea taprobanica ) were recorded. Birds: The study recorded 215 species of birds, which belong 45 families, Among which 172 species 80% were resident, 30 (14%) were winter migrant, 8 (4%) were seasonal local migrant and 5 (2%) were local migrant. 88 species were found common ( C ) followed by 91 species uncommon (UC); 15 species rare ( R ) 14 species occasional (O) and 7 species were found very rare (VR) Passeriform birds are the domination order of birds, more than 14 families and 79 species of birds were recorded. During the bird survey IUCN status was also gathered, out of 215 species (n=208), 97% species were least concern (LR-IC), (n=4), 2% species were near threatened (LR-nt) and (n=#), 1% species were Vulnerable (VU) status. Butterfly: The objective of the survey is to determine the presence and status of butterflies. The reserve area has different habitats like scrub jungle, open forest, grass land, dense forests and mud puddle. Each zone was explored on the basis of possibility and availability of butterflies. A Total of 96 species of butterflies were recorded under five families. The family Bymphalidae and Lycaenidae were found dominant with 32 species and 22 species, respectively followed by pieridae ( 19 Species), Hesperiidae (14 species and Papilionidae (9species) were recorded. More number of species was conserved in followed by Tirumala, SS Kona, Balapalli Mamandu, Jungle book and Divyaram. Observed species were grouped in five categories on basis of number of sighting in the field. The butterflies were categorized as very common (vc) 20 % (19 species) common ( c) 37% (36 species), Uncommon (UC) 16% (15 speices, Occasional (O) 18% (17 Species) and Rare (R) 9% ( 9 species) . In our observation more number of butterflies preferred open forest (36%). Followed by scrub jungle 36% dense forest 21% grass land 5% and mud puddle 1% . Out of 96 species, seven species namely Pachliopta hector, bolina, Castaliyus rosimon, Euchrysops cnefus lampides boeticus, Cepora nerissa and core are scheduled species. Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve shows present in rich biodiversity and we recommended further studies in the Eastern Ghats at the earliest opportunity. Also everyone should realize that Wildlife is an important part of ecological community as a wildlife play an important role in the environment. There is several importance of wildlife as wildlife itself is an important character of nature so its conservation is an important obligation for human beings for the sustainability of life. The protection of habitat is an important aspect in the conservation of such species. 13. R. Aengals Reptiles constitute an important component in Indian wildlife. Often loathed by people, many are threatened and endangered. More than 300 species are found in the Recently Described New Taxa of Reptiles Indian peninsula and many more are being described. from the Eastern Ghats and Western After our latest update on Indian reptiles in 2011, a fresh Ghats of India update on new peninsular Indian reptiles is here presented, from 2012 to till date. Their common and scientific names, taxon authors and type locality information are summarized. 2012  Johnsingh‟s skink Dasia johnsinghi Harikrishnan, Vasudevan, De silva, Deepak, karnaniwadekar, Lalremruata, Prasoona & Aggarwal from kalakkad – Mundaturai Tiger Reserve, Tamil Nadu.  Castoe‟s coral snake Calliphis castoe smith, ogale, Deepak & Giri from Amboli, Sindhudrug, . 2013  Gowers‟s shield tail snake Rhinophis goweri Aengals & Ganesh from Bodamalai, , Tamil Nadu.  Yellow green cat snake Boiga flaviviridis vogel & ganesh from Berhampur, Odisha. 2014  Giris‟day geck Cnemaspis girii Mirza, pal, Bhosale & Sanap frm kaas, Satara, Maharashtra.  Kottiyoor day gecko Cnemaspis kottiyoorensis Cyriac & Umesh from Kottiyoor wayanad, .  Scaly rock gecko Hemidactylus acanthopholis Mirza & sanap from Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu.  Satpura leopard gecko Eublepharis satpuraenisis Mirza, Sanap, Raju, Gawai & Ghadekar from Pachmahri, Madhya Pradesh. 2015  Adi‟s day gecko Cnemaspis adii Srinivasulu, Kumar & srinivasulu from Bellary, Karnataka.  Yajurved‟s rock gecko Hemidactylua yajurvedi Murthy, Bauer, Lajmi, Agarwal and Giri from Kanker, Chattisgarh.  Hemchandra‟s rpck geckop Hemidactylus hemchandrai Dandge and tiple from Bhandara, Maharashtra. Of these new descriptions, five species were described from the Western Ghats regions of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Maharashtra. Six species were described form the Eastern Ghats and associated regions to the West () and the east (Circar coastal plains). However the possibilities of such species occurring within the poorly explored Eastern Ghats is largely high. The compilation point out that new reptile, consisting of many taxa such as skink, gecko, uropeltid, colubrid and elapid snakes still continue to enrich the faunal resources of the country. 14. Kumaresan, N1 Hangao, K2 and Tribal community live in harmony with the local ecological Bhuvaneswar, R3 conditions and have strong link between ,man and his environment. Kolli Hills is also one such region inhabiting tribal settlements surrounding the forest, where 14 panchayats or nadus completely surrounded by forest. Role of Agrobiodiversity on Plant Hopper Agricultural forms the basic livelihood option for these Diversiyt in Kolli Hills communities from where they draw almost 99% of their energy needs. Immediately after the evolution of agricultural crops their practices developed for agriculture (Rogan, 1999), mixed farming is the first ever agriculture practice which supported even the Indus Valley Civilization (Dev, 2006; Thulasamma, 2006), in which resources from agricultural systems like home gardens, shifting cultivation, valley land cultivation mixed with livestock for dung manure fertilization, ploughing, crop processing, transport etc. Myrdal and morel, 2011, Grigg, 1974) such mixed farming systems are existing still in Kolli Hills traditional farming communities. Development of science and technology during 18th century changed the above traditional agriculture practices as a result of increased transport facility, electrification, mechanization, commercialization, crop improvement, global climate change and change in living standards. Hilly track such as Kolli Hills access to above changes are delayed due to their difficult terrain, hence agricultural practices at different stages are available even now in thise regions. Present investigation classified these agricultural practices and transformed, under transformation and tradional and clearly shown that reducing agro biodiversity with indigenous from traditional. However regions like Kolli hills still retain many of indigenous traditional agriculture practices and facing increasing demand for fertilize and pest management techniques. Plant hoppers are one of the important pest that not only effect the crop by feeding on them but also transmitting viral and bacterial disease. Therefore present investigation estimated plant hoppers in different agricultural systems in the classified regions transformed under transformation and traditional. Estimation of plant hoppers population in the transformed region followed by under transition and less population in regions with traditional agricultural. Among the different agricultural systems plant hopper decreased with decrease in agro biodiversity in agricultural systems. However, plant hopper population was highly pronounced landraces they are short duration, dwarf variety improved varieties. However, the investigation showed that number of natural pesticides traditionally evolved still exists and use mostly the local biodiversity and natural material and preference is given for pesticides prepared from local biodiversity. Number of insects attack paddy in which insect pests plant hoppers gall midges and stem borers are economically important pests. It has been reported that six different plant hoppers create divesting loss in paddy fields through hopper burn, transmitting viral disease, stunt growth, etc. The six plant hoppers are (BPH) browth plant hopper (Nilaparvatha lugens stal) SBPH- small brown plant hoppers (Laodelphax striatellus fallen), GLH – green (Nephotettix virescens Distant), GRH green rice leafhopper (Nephotettix cincticeps uhler), WBPH – white backed planthopper (Sogaella furicifera Horvath) and ZLH zigzag leafhopper (Recilia dorsalis Motschusky) (Brar et al., 2009) Nilaparvata lugens was found to be dominant in all altitudes of Kolli Hills highest number was seen in 250 amsl followed by sogatella furcifera highest number was seen in 500 amsl. As the height of the paddy fields increases number of plant hoppers decreases in general it may be due to increase in biodiversity of natural forest.

15. K.IIango, D. Prabakar, R.Sakthivel, V.M. The southern Regional Centre (SRC) of Zoological survey of Sthis Kumar, R. aengals, s.Prabaran, India (ZSI), Chennai has been involved since 1961 on the R.Venkitesan, R. Babu, J. Thilak, A. Gokul, faunal study of southern states including Tamil Nadu, G. Ramesh and M. Senraj Kerala, Union Territory of Pondicherry and Parts of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Tamil Nadu state is unique in its geographical location where the southern parts of Eastern Faunal study of Eastern Ghats and Ghats and Western Ghats merge. A series of faunal studies Western Ghats contributed Southern carried out by the scientists of this centre for more than Regional Centre of Zoological Survey of five decades from 222 field surveys resulted in discovery of India, Chennai 82 new taxa, 26 new records, 640 research publications including research papers fauna volumes, sate fauna series, technical monograph, occasional publication, Some of the prominent contributions made by the SRC are the multidisciplinary scientific study of Silent Valley, taxonomic review of Gymnophiona of Western Ghats, fishers of Cauvery Rivers and Insects of Eastern Ghats. 16. C.A. Viraktamath form the largest family Cicadellidae in Exopterygota with more than 22000 species known from the world. There are more than 1350 species known from Leafhopper (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) the world. There are more than 1350 species known from Diversity in South India with special the Indian subcontinent constituting about 6 percent of reference to Western and Eastern Ghats the world species. As one of the important components of exclusively phytophagous sap sucking insects, they play a significant role in the natural ecosystems. A few species develop large populations affecting growth of plants by Department of Entomology their sap sucking activity and also by their oviposition University of Agricultural Sciences injuries in the shoots and leaves. A few species also act as GKVK, Bengaluru 560065, India. vectors of plant pathogens thus attaining serious pest status in agro-ecosystem. The diversity of some groups of leafhoppers revised recently on all India-basis will be dealt with in this presentation. These include species of the subfamilies Cicadellinae, Coelidiinae, Idiocerinae, Macrospsinae, Megophthalminae and Typhlocybinae. The trend indicates that these leafhoppers are more diverse (in terms of species and genera) in North Indian mountains region followed by Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats. In certain groups like Idiocerinae only pestiferous species are represented in Eastern Ghats and Deccan plateau. Present indications are that the diversity shown is not a true indication of natural diversity but a reflection of collection efforts made in these areas. More systematic efforts need to be made to collect leafhoppers from all the habitats in India. 17. K.G. Sivaramakrishnan In the context of the current awareness of ongoing global “biodiversity crisis” and “anthropogenic sixth mega extinction”, rapid depletion of the insect species richness in montane lotic habitats of the Western and Eastern Hill stream Insect Diversity of the Ghats of peninsular India is highlighted. Hill stream Western and the Eastern Ghats – An insects comprise some well known groups like mayflies, Overview stoneflies, dragonflies and damselflies, aquatic bugs, beetles and dipteran flies besides dobsonflies and semi aquatic bugs, beetles and dipteral flies besides dobsonflies and semi aquatic grasshoppers. They silently discharge West Mambalam Chennai – 600 033 vital ecosystem services in streams, primarily processing decaying wood and leaf litter from adjoining vegetation in riparian zone as well as cycling and downstream transport of the nutrients. They are vital links in food chain of fishes and other aquatic vertebrates, ideal bioindicators of stream health and are fit objects for phylogenetic, biogeographic and phylogeographic investigations besides some of them being charismatic or vector or keystone taxa. Diversity profiles and species constellations of some reasonably explored groups of hill stream insects of the Western and the Eastern Ghats are briefly presented against the background of past geological history, climate change impacts, habitat fragmentation and other anthropogenic havocs. Causes of imperilment, discontinuity, localization and rapid local extinction of cryptic species complexes, endemics and phylogenetic relicts are analyzed. Holistic, integrated conservation strategies of hill stream biota are broadly outlined. 18. M.Suneela and K. Jyothi Eastern Ghats are the discontinuous range of hill mountains of south East Asia, India. They are called as Purva Ghat or Mahendra parvatam, also known as Malyadri. Eastern Ghats passes through Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, touches Karnataka and ends in Tamil Nadu. There are broadly classified as (1) Northern – Eastern Issues and Challenges of Faunal studies Ghats and (2) River Mahanadi to River Godavari (3) River in Krishna to Chennai city and 4. Southern Eastern Ghats. Eastern Ghats There are 20 Wild life sanctuaries, 1 National Park and 2 Biosphere reserves are located in the Eastern Ghats region. Among them 9 Wildlife sanctuaries and 1 ENVIS Centre Biosphere reserves are from Odisha; 10 wildlife Environment Protection Training and sanctuaries, 1 National park and 1 Biosphere reserves Research Institute from Andhra Pradesh; 1 Wildlife sanctuary from Tamil Gachibowli, Hyderabad. Nadu. Eastern Ghats has a rich biodiversity. Biodiversity harbors a variety of animal and plant species of economic, ecological and socio-cultural importance. The loss of biodiversity and the related changes in the environment have been more rapid in the few decades. Many animal and plant populations have been declined in numbers as well as in geographical distribution sometimes both. These current loses are the outcomes of human actions such as habitat destruction, overexploitation of species, introduction of exotic species, pollution and global warming. However, these areas and adjacent lands have long been subjected to a number of emerging issues and challenges, which include government policies, failure of conservation to compete effectively with alternative land uses, habitat degradation and blockage of wildlife corridos, overexploitation and illegal resource extraction, wildfires, human population growth poverty and human-wildlife conflicts. There are numerous challenges and issues constraining the conservations work at Eastern Ghats. Faunal species in Eastern Ghats are facing severe threat due to habitat loss, loss of fruiting trees, hunting for medicinal purposes etc. Increase in global temperatures is also killing species. Global temperature is affecting species in terms of animal migration, hatching of eggs at irregular seasons and intervals, amphibians spawning earlier, plants flowering earlier etc. Apart from global warming, the greatest threat to biodiversity is habitat loss and fragmentations by deforestation and urbanization destroying wildlife habitat and degrading water quality. Habitat loss is due to different human activitities involving construction works like housing developments, malls, commercial complex, business parks laying of new roads involving use of heavy machines, draining, bulldozing, large-scale clearing and burning of forests, overharvesting of plants and animals, use of pesticides, draining and filling of wetlands, destructive fishing practices, air pollution, and the conversion of agricultural land to development lands for urban use, etc. Invasive Alien species cause the loss of species. Pollution affects aquatic organisms and leads to a loss of species as chemicals and agricultural chemicals play a vital role in terms of toxicity, cause fertility problems, etc. Industry sewage treatment plant affects water bodies from pollution by pesticides, fertilizers and other chemicals. Everything that happens on land affects the waterways; the contaminants through roads, Vehicles and due to other works, etc gets flooded to the nearest stream and affects the livelihood of biological organisms. Tortoise is at major threat due to over-exploitation for trade. Some of the species are under threat due to eco- tourism and some species due to destruction of roosting sites resulting from developmental activities and hunting for food by local people and tribal‟s, etc in the Eastern Ghats. Conservation Management  To minimize man-animal conflict  Natural growth of local trees of value are to be maintained  To protect against poaching and grazing  To protect against fire  To protect against indiscriminate use of pesticides, chemicals/agricultural chemicals, fertilizers etc.  To manage and protect the habitat.  To monitor the populations outside the sanctuary limits also  Ex situ conservation is a must.  To study migration movement through satellite tracking;  To improve the socio-economic status of neighboring villages.  Should create awareness to protect habitat and foraging grounds  Need people participation in Protected Area management activities.  To promote community based ecotourism as an alternative means of livelihood to the locals.  To promote bio-pesticides  Newly laid nests of tortoise and turtles are to be covered by wire meshes to prevent predation and poaching form predators and humans.  Institutionalize the process of building, awareness and education for conservation of biodiversity. 19. Mathew M. Joseph and Sebastian P.A. With over 45000 valid described species, spiders (Order Araneae) from one of the most ubiquitous groups of predaceous organism in the animal kingdom. This is the most diverse, female dominated and entirely predatory order in the world. Spiders are clearly an Diversity of Spiders in Western Ghats integral part of global biodiversity since they play many with a note on their conservation status important roles in ecosystem as predators and sources of in the Eastern and Western Ghats food for other creatures. They are used as excellent model organisms in biochemical (Venom and silk proteins), behavioral (sexual and web-building) and ecological Division of Arachnology, PG & Research Dept. (foraging, predator-prey interaction, integrated pest of Zoology management) research. Spider silk is used for producing Sacred Heart College (Autonomous) Thevara, bullet proof clothing, wear resistant light weight clothing, – 682 013, Kerala biodegradable bottles, bandages, surgical threads, ropes, nets, artificial tendons/ligaments etc. Spider venom can be used to develop biopesticides, painkillers and various drugs against diseases such as muscular dystrophy, atrial fibrillation, brain diseases etc. They are also used in the form of effective conservation tools as ecological indicators of overall biodiversity in many terrestrial communities. Currently 45,829 valid species of spiders in 3977 genera and 114 families have been described from around the world (world spider catalog, 2015) and so far 1686 species belonging to 438 genera and 60 families have been recorded from India, which represents about 3.67% of global Araneae diversity. Among these, more than 500 spp. Are represented in Western Ghats. The araneofauna of Western Ghats is dominated by the jumping spiders (Family Salticidae), followed by the crab spiders (family Thomisidae), the orb web spiders (family Araneidar) the flat bellied ground spiders (family Gnaphosidae) and the wolf spiders (family Lycosidae). The 2015 IUCN Red Data Book (IUCN, 2015) list 15 spp. Of Indian spiders as threatened and it is interesting to note that all of them are distributed either in Eastern of Western ghats or both with 6 spp. endemic to Western Ghats and 3 spp. to Eastern Ghats. This data amply illustrates the biological wealth of these regions, as well as indicates the need to conserve this animal group. The major obstacle for spider conservation is an absence of public support, arguably due to fear and ignorance. Many species any be threatened, endangered or extinct, but research on them is lacking. Unfortunately, due to this limited information on distribution, population and conservation status of spiders, it is difficult to get them listed under national or international legislation. Conservation of spiders will this necessitate a greater understanding by the students, general public, scientists, land use managers and conservationists about the importance of conserving these fascinating creatures. 20. K.R. Saisdharan and C. Kunhikannan Bees are integral part of many natural and farmed landscapes all over the world and they are considered to be responsible for 80 per cent of pollination taking place in nature. Pollination is recognized as an important ecosystem function that is directly linked to biodiversity Diversity of Bee Fauna of the Nilgiris and and global food security. But bees are under pressure strategies for its conservation everywhere, both from the direct impact of pesticides in the environment as well as habitat alteration and destruction. There is recognition of a looming pollination crisis and efforts have been mobilized at global level to address pollinator management and conservation. The Nilgiris District of Tamil Nadu form a major chunk of area, under the Nilgiris Biosphere Reserve and information on Biodiversity Division the bee fauna of this ecologically important part is scanty Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding and the present study was undertaken to generate Coimbatore – 641 002 information on the diversity of bees, so as to development strategies for their conservation. The studies have revealed the occurrence of about 92 species of bees in the Nilgiris district. These species fall under 14 genera viz. Apis, Amegilla, Braunsapis, Ceratina, Chelostoma, Halictus, Lasioglossum, Megachile, Nomada, Nomia, Sphecodes, Thyreus, Trigona and Xylocopa. The highest diversity of bees was noticed in the Dry Deciduous forests, followed by the semi evergreen forest. The sub- tropical Broad Leaved Hill forests, the Moist Deciduous forests and the swamp forests showed intermediate diversity, while the Montane Wet Temperate forests (Shola forest) and the Thorn forests exhibited lower diversity. The diversity of bee species in monoculture plantations was found to be low, compared to the natural forests. Among the eight forest types, the semi evergreen forests were found to have the maximum diversity of the trees/woody climbers, followed by the Montane Wet Temperate forests (Shola forests) and the Wet Ever Green forests. The subtropical Broad Leaved Hill forests, the swamp forests and the Moist Deciduous forests showed intermediate diversity of trees/woody climbers and the Dry Deciduous forests and the Thorn forests, exhibited lower diversity. The Dry Deciduous forests had the maximum diversity of shrubs and herbs, followed by Montane Wet Temperate forests (Shola forests) and Moist Deciduous forest. The Thorn forests and the sub tropical broad leaved hill forests showed intermediate diversity and the Wet Evergreen forest had the lowest diversity of shrubby and herbaceous species. Association of about 113 species of plants with different bee species was recorded in the study area. No significant correlation was observed between the bee faunal diversity and the plant diversity, in the different forest types. The number of bee species and their population showed positive correlation with minimum temperature and rainfall, while these parameters exhibited negative correlation with the maximum temperature. Hence, the rise in temperature caused by the climate change is likely to have high negative impact on the bee fauna. As some of the natural forest areas in the Nilgiris are in different stages of degradation, eco-restoration of these areas, by promoting natural regeneration or through assisted natural regeneration of local indigenous species are to be taken up with priority. Since the forest fire is one of the important destructive factors affecting both the floristic diversity and the bee faunal diversity, its occurrence has to be prevented. The cattle graze/browse many of the herbaceous and shrubby plants, which serve as nectar and pollen sources of bees and hence the forests may be protected from cattle grazing, so as to ensure enough food materials to the bees. Though many of the invasive exotic plant species available in the district are the source of nectar/pollen for the bees, considering the have caused by them to the natural forests, in terms of competition with native forest species, the spread of such plant species in the forest areas need to be monitored and controlled. The existing monocultures plantations, particularly of exotic species are to be slowly replaced with local indigenous species, so as to create ideal habitats for bees to sustain. Large amount of chemical pesticides is used in the Nilgiris against various target pests of different crops and it will have impact on non target organisms like bees, The usage of such pesticides is to be minimized by adopting Integrated Pest Management Strategies, so as to protect the bee population. The European honey bee (Apis mellifera) was not recorded from the Nilgiris, during the present study, but if introduced, it can pose a severe threat to native bees, mainly due to competition for the floral resources. Hence, introduction of such exotic species should be prevented to conserve and protect the native bee fauna of the hilly region.