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{{Short description|Ecoregion in India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}

{{Infobox ecoregion
|name = South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests
|image = Large Chital herd at Bandipur National Park.jpg
|image_size =
|image_alt =
|caption = [[Chital]]s in [[Bandipur National Park]], Karnataka
|map = Ecoregion IM0150.png
|map_size =
|map_alt =
|map_caption = Ecoregion territory (in purple)
|ecozone = [[Indomalayan realm|Indomalayan]]
|biome = [[tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests]]
|animals =
|bird_species =
|mammal_species =
|border1 = [[Deccan thorn scrub forests]]
|border2 = [[Malabar Coast moist forests]]
|border3 = [[North Western Ghats moist deciduous forests]]
|border4 = [[North Western Ghats montane rain forests]]
|border5 = [[South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests]]
|border6 = [[South Western Ghats montane rain forests]]
|area = 23,676
|country = [[India]]
|state1 = [[Karnataka]]
|state2 = [[Kerala]]
|state3 = [[Tamil Nadu]]
|region_type = States
|elevation =
|geology =
|seas =
|rivers =
|climate =
|soil =
|conservation = critical/endangered<ref name = wwf>{{WWF ecoregion|name=South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests|id=im0150}}</ref>
|global200 =
|habitat_loss =
|habitat_loss_ref =
|coordinates ={{Coord|display=inline,title}}
|protected = 6,645 km² (28
|protected_ref = )<ref name = dinerstein>Eric Dinerstein, David Olson, et al. (2017). An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm, BioScience, Volume 67, Issue 6, June 2017, Pages 534–545; Supplemental material 2 table S1b. [https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/bix014]</ref>
|embedded =
}}

The '''South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests '''is an [[ecoregion]] in the [[Western Ghats]] of southern [[India]] with [[tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests]]. This [[biome]] covers the [[Nilgiri Hills]] between elevation of {{cvt|250|and|1000|m}} in [[Kerala]], [[Karnataka]] and [[Tamil Nadu]] states.

==Geography==
The [[ecoregion]] has an area of {{convert|23,800|km2|sqmi|sp=us}}. It includes the southern ranges of the [[Western Ghats]], including the [[Agastyamalai]] and [[Anaimalai Hills|Anamalai]], and the eastward spurs or slopes of the [[Nilgiri Hills]] and [[Palani Hills]]. The forests of [[Wayanad]] in northern [[Kerala]] mark the transition to the [[North Western Ghats moist deciduous forests]] to the north. To the west, the [[Malabar Coast moist forests]] ecoregion lies in the coastal strip between the 250 meter contour and the [[Malabar Coast]]. To the east, the ecoregion transitions to the [[South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests]] ecoregion in the drier [[rain shadow]] of the Western Ghats. It surrounds the [[South Western Ghats montane rain forests]] ecoregion, which lies above 1000 meters elevation.<ref name = wwf/>

==Climate==
The climate of the ecoregion is tropical, and varies with elevation and exposure.

The western slopes of the mountains intercept moisture-bearing winds during the June to September southwest monsoon, when 65% to 80% of the annual rainfall occurs. The northeast monsoon brings additional rain between October and November. [[Evapotranspiration]] from the forests and moist sea air from the Arabian Sea provide additional humidity. December to May are the driest months. Rainfall on the west side of the range averages 2,000–3,000 mm annually. The eastern slopes are on the rain shadow of the mountains, and rainfall averages 1000 to 2000 mm annually.<ref name="iucn-unep">"Western Ghats". World Heritage Datasheet. International Union for Conservation of Nature and UN Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre, 2017. Accessed 12 November 2020. [https://yichuans.github.io/datasheet/output/site/western-ghats/]</ref>

Average temperatures are generally cooler than in the adjacent lowlands, and decrease with increasing elevation.

==Flora==
Many forest trees lose their leaves during the dry season. Typical tree species include ''[[Adina cordifolia]], [[Albizia odoratissima]], [[Albizia procera]], [[Alstonia scholaris]], [[Bombax ceiba]], [[Toona ciliata]], [[Dalbergia latifolia]], [[Grewia tiliaefolia]], [[Holoptelea integrifolia]], [[Hymenodictyon excelsum]], [[Lagerstroemia microcarpa|Lagerstroemia lanceolata]], [[Lagerstroemia speciosa]], [[Lannea coromandelica]], [[Miliusa velutina]], [[Pterocarpus marsupium]], [[Schleichera oleosa]], [[Spondias pinnata]], [[Radermachera xylocarpa]], [[Tectona grandis]], [[Terminalia bellerica]], [[Terminalia paniculata]], [[Terminalia tomentosa]], [[Vitex altissima]], [[Xylia xylocarpa]]'', and ''[[Machilus macrantha]]''.<ref name = wwf/>

==Fauna==
There are 89 native mammal species in the ecoregion. Larger mammals include the [[tiger]] (''Panthera tigris''), [[Asian elephant]] (''Elephas elephas''), [[gaur]] (''Bos gaurus''), [[Nilgiri langur]] (''Semnopithecus johnii''), [[dhole]] or Asian wild dog (''Cuon alpinus''), and [[sloth bear]] (''Melursus ursinus''). Among the smaller mammals are several threatened species, including [[Jerdon's palm civet]] (''Paradoxurus jerdoni''), [[Gray slender loris]] (''Loris lydekkerianus''), [[grizzled giant squirrel]] (''Ratufa macroura''), and [[Indian giant squirrel]] (''Ratufa indica''). There are no strictly endemic mammals. The ranges of the Nilgiri langur, Jerdon's civet, and [[Malabar large-spotted civet]] (''Viverra civettina'') extend upwards into the montane rain forests and downwards into the Malabar coastal forests. [[Day's shrew]] (''Suncus dayi'') is also found in the coastal forests, and [[Layard's striped squirrel]] (''Funambulus layardi'') extends into the montane rain forests.<ref name = wwf/>

The ecoregion has 322 native species of birds. There are nine near-endemic species, which are also found in the adjacent montane rain forests: the [[Nilgiri wood pigeon]] (''Columba elphinstonii''), [[Malabar grey hornbill]] (''Ocyceros griseus''), [[grey-headed bulbul]] (''Brachypodius priocephalus''), [[rufous babbler]] (''Argya subrufa''), [[white-bellied treepie]] (''Dendrocitta leucogastra''), [[black-and-rufous flycatcher]] (''Ficedula nigrorufa''), [[Nilgiri flycatcher]] (''Eumyias albicaudata''), [[yellow-throated bulbul]] (''Pycnonotus xantholaemus''), and [[Malabar parakeet]] (''Psittacula columboides'').<ref name = wwf/>

==Protected areas==
A 2017 assessment found that 6,645 km², or 28%, of the ecoregion was in protected areas. Another 50% is forested but outside protected areas.<ref name = dinerstein/> In 1997, the [[World Wildlife Fund]] identified fourteen protected areas in the ecoregion, with a combined area of approximately 4,960 km², that encompassed 21% of the ecoregion's area. The adjacent protected areas of Bandipur, Nagarhole, Mudumalai, and Wyanad are home to India's largest protected population of elephants, with over 2500 individuals.<ref>Wikramanayake, Eric; Eric Dinerstein; Colby J. Loucks; et al. (2002). ''Terrestrial Ecoregions of the Indo-Pacific: a Conservation Assessment.'' Island Press; [[Washington, DC]]. pp. 313-315</ref>

* [[Bandipur National Park]], Karnataka (1,110 km²)
* Bilgiriranga Swamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary, Karnataka (370 km², partly in the [[South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests]])
* [[Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary]], Kerala (50 km²)
* [[Eravikulam National Park]], Kerala (90 km², partly in the [[South Western Ghats montane rain forests]])
* [[Indira Gandhi National Park]] (Anamalai), Tamil Nadu (620 km² partly in the South Western Ghats montane rain forests)
* [[Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve]], Tamil Nadu (895 km², partly in the South Western Ghats montane rain forests)
* [[Megamalai Wildlife Sanctuary]], Tamil Nadu (310 km², partly in the South Western Ghats montane rain forests)
* [[Mudumalai National Park]], Tamil Nadu 400 km²)
* [[Nagarhole National Park]], Karnataka (620 km²)
* [[Neyyar Wildlife Sanctuary]], Kerala (128 km²)
* [[Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary]], Kerala (285 km²)
* [[Periyar National Park]], Kerala (470 km², partly in the South Western Ghats montane rain forests)
* [[Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary]], Kerala (40 km² partly in the South Western Ghats montane rain forests)
* [[Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary]], Kerala (430 km²)

In 2000 a portion of The Nilgiris was designated a [[biosphere reserve]] under [[UNESCO]]'s [[Man and the Biosphere Programme]]. In 2012 a [[World Heritage Site]] was designated in the Western Ghats, covering seven groups of protected areas in the range. Four of those areas - Agasthyamalai, Periyar, Anamalai, and Nilgiri – extend through the ecoregion.<ref name = iucn-unep/>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*{{WWF ecoregion|name=South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests|id=im0150}}

{{Ecoregions of India}}

[[Category:South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests| ]]
[[Category:Ecoregions of India]]
[[Category:Forests of India]]
[[Category:Indomalayan ecoregions]]
[[Category:Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests]]

South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests - Revision history

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