Question.
Why has India a rich heritage of flora and fauna?
( Chapter - 5 Natural Vegetation and Wildlife, Cass 9 NCERT Contemporary India -I )
Answer.
India is rich in the heritage of flora and fauna as India is one of the 12 mega bio-diversity countries of the world. The following figures give an indication of the rich heritage of the flora and fauna:
India has about 47,000 plant species which is the tenth highest in the world.
There are about 90,000 animal species in India.
India has about 2000 species of birds which is 13 percent of the world's total.
About 2546 species of fish species are found in India, which is about 12 percent of the world's fish stock.
India has a rich heritage of flora and fauna due to the following reasons:
variation in climate
Variation in relief and land
variation in soil
Variation in Ecosystem
India is full of biodiversity which includes climate diversity, relief diversity (plains, plateaus, mountains), soil diversity (alluvial soil, sandy, marshy soil, black soil, laterite soil, etc.), and ecosystem diversity (forest, grasslands, deserts, coastal ecosystems, river ecosystems, salt lakes, brackish lakes, coastal ecosystems, and marine ecosystems); Variation in these ecological diversity helps in the development of the rich heritage of flora and fauna.
India has almost all types of climates which leads to the growth of heritage varieties of flora and fauna.
The Tropic of Cancer (23.5°N) passes almost through the middle of India, India has both tropical and subtropical climates. This leads to the development of vegetation such as tropical rainforests and tropical deciduous forests, and a variety of wildlife such as elephants, lions, tigers, monkeys, deer, birds, and microorganisms. The presence of the Great Himalayas, which have an average height of 600 meters, led to the growth of montane forests. In the Himalayas, the foothills of the Himalayas have tropical forests, temperate forests and grasslands in the central part, and alpine and tundra vegetation in the higher reaches of the Himalayas.
Variation in relief and lands like mountains, plains, and plateaus. Coastal areas etc. lead to the development of diverse flora and fauna. For example, dense forests are found in hilly regions.
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