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Impact of invasive alien species-Prosopis juliflora on floral diversity of Sathyamangalam tiger reserve, Tamil Nadu, India

The Bhavanisagar Range of Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve in the foothills of the Nilgiris is one of the most famous preferred breeding grounds for the Elephants in the Western Ghats and it is known for its landscape beauty, varied of forest ecosystems and wildlife diversity. Unfortunately, during the last decades, there has been a drastic reduction in the diversity of the natural vegetation. The available niches have been occupied by invasive exotic species especially Prosopis juliflora. The present study deals with the impact assessment of Prosopis juliflora in Bhavanisagar range of Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve, Tamil Nadu. The parameter assessed are floral diversity and its diversity indices. For floral diversity sample plot technique was followed in three different sites viz., Prosopis juliflora eradicated and effectively managed area, Prosopis juliflora invaded area and natural forest. The study results revealed that totally 79 species of trees, shrubs, herbs and grass species were recorded out of which 38 trees belonging to 22 families, 22 shrubs covering 16 families, 19 herbs and grass species relating to 14 families was recorded. In Prosopis juliflora invaded area, 24 tree species belonging to 11 families, 16 shrubs species occupying 13 families and 11 herbs & grasses belonging to 8 families were documented. The highest floral species contribution was from families like Fabaceae, Solanaceae and Astracese in tree shrub and herbs respectively in the study area. The natural forest area was more diverse in flora and fauna than Prosopis juliflora invaded and eradicated area. The Shannon–Weiner diversity index, among the three sites, reveals that natural forest (site-III) registered more diverse, and in the case of Simpson index of dominance, the natural forest (site-III) recorded the highest dominance. With respect to Pielou’s evenness index and the Margalef index, natural forest area (site-III) has registered higher index.