Climate crisis in forests: Wild fruits, sacred groves in Sharavathi valley bear the brunt

Subject : Environment

Section: Protected Area

Context:

Due to climate change and changing rainfall patterns, production of fruits from wild trees are decreasing rapidly.

Details:

Indian Institute of Science’s (IISc) research station in Kumta, Uttara Kannada district of Karnataka.
Climatic changes are hitting something much more fundamental in Siddapur taluk of Uttara Kannada district. The area is famous for its sacred groves which have conserved ancient forests almost intact.
Climate change has affected evergreen forests and they are increasingly deciduous, which has also led to a water shortage. Acacia plantations have also led to water shortage in these areas.
Some sacred groves that have witnessed a decline in production are: Kokum (Garcinia indica) tree, Wild amla or nellikai (gooseberry) (mainly used for medicinal purposes), kasarakaya (Strychnosnux-vomica) (kasarakaya is a medicinal fruit but with poisonous qualities because of the presence of the compound strychnine), Upagi, monkey jacks, Malabar tamarind, Kathalekan sacred groves.

Climax species:

Climax species, also called late seral, late-successional, K-selected or equilibrium species, are plant species that can germinate and grow with limited resources; e.g. they need heat exposure or low water availability.
They are the species within forest succession that are more adapted to stable and predictable environments, and will remain essentially unchanged in terms of species composition for as long as a site remains undisturbed.
The seedlings of climax species can grow in the shade of the parent trees, ensuring their dominance indefinitely. The presence of climax species can also reduce the prevalence of other species within an ecosystem. However, a disturbance, such as fire, may kill the climax species, allowing pioneer or earlier successional species to re-establish for a time.
They are the opposite of pioneer species, also known as ruderal, fugitive, opportunistic or R-selected species, in the sense that climax species are good competitors but poor colonizers, whereas pioneer species are good colonizers but poor competitors.

Sharavathi LTM Wildlife Sanctuary:

Located in Western Ghats of Karnataka state in India.
Named after the Sharavathi River flowing through the sanctuary.
The sanctuary was expanded by adding the Aghanashini Lion Tailed Macaque Conservation Reserve and some of the reserved forests in Uttara Kannada&Shivamogga districts, to the existing sanctuary.
After expansion, the sanctuary has been renamed as the Sharavathi Lion Tailed Macaque Wildlife Sanctuary.
The expanded sanctuary is aimed at protecting the freshwater habitat of Myristica swamps that hosts many species like Lion Tailed Macaque, Leaf Nosed Bats, Hornbills etc.

Source: DownToEarth