PAST SUCCESSES

Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, Western Ghats, India
Project dates:

The Western Ghats is a global biodiversity hotpot. There are over 3,000 endemic plants in the fragmented forests which extend for 1,600 kilometers from India’s southern tip to Gujarat in the north. Less than fifteen percent of the Western Ghats is protected in national parks and other areas set aside for conservation and the pressure on natural resources is immense.

The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, managed with the cooperation and participation of local people, is particularly important for the in situ conservation of rare and threatened trees. With support from the Global Trees Campaign, an arboretum is being developed by the Coimbatore Zoological Park and Conservation Centre as part of the Reserve.

Outcomes

Specific successes include:

• Over 70 woody species collected and established in the arboretum. Species established include the endemic and Endangered Diospyros malabarica, which provides medicine and a valuable natural dye; Gluta travancorica, an Endangered tree with edible fruits and Euonymus serratifolia, a narrow endemic species which is thought to have ornamental potential.

• Propagation techniques recorded for 22 species.

• Development of a small interpretation center.


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