ARCHIVES
VOL. 9, ISSUE 7 (2024)
Floristic diversity and ecological attributes of Chandra Tal and Suraj Tal – two Himalayan cold desert high-altitude wetlands (HAWs) of Lahaul-Spiti, Himachal Pradesh, India
Authors
Dipti Dey, Dhani Arya, K Chandra Sekar, Puja Bhojak
Abstract
The floristic assemblages in and around the high-altitude Trans
Himalayan cold desert lake are excellent indicators for both terrestrial and
hydrophytic communities and helps to assess the health of the wetland in a
particular area. For assessment of vegetation status, the present study has
been carried out in and around the catchment area of two glacial high-altitude
lake i.e., Chandra Tal and Suraj Tal. The sampled area was classified based on
lake distance, i.e., lower, middle and upper stretch. The result showed a total
of 146 taxa were recorded from both the wetland during ecological survey
period. Species like Potentilla argyrophylla (3.7 ind/m²), Geranium
wallichianum (1 ind/m²), Leontopodium himalayanum (1 ind/m²),
Saxifraga flagelleris (0.45 ind/m²) were the frequently occurring
species in Chandra Tal whereas Rhodiola crenulata (0.27 ind/m²), Pleurospermum
candollei (0.33 ind/m²), Corydalis meifolia (0.20 ind/m²),
Saussurea glacialis (0.70 ind/m²) were the most common species
found frequently in Suraj Tal. Overall maximum species richness was found in
lower East stretch (39) and minimum in Upper North stretch (8) in Chandra Tal
and maximum in middle North stretch (34) and minimum in lower South stretch (7)
in Suraj Tal. Total herb density found highest in lower East stretch (29.67
ind/m²) and lowest in upper North stretch (1.8 ind/m²) in Chandra Tal and
highest in lower East (5 ind/m²) and lowest in lower South stretch (2.07
ind/m²) in Suraj Tal respectively. Vegetation diversity found highest in middle
North (3.39) stretch and lowest in upper North (1.75) stretch in Chandra Tal
whereas in Suraj Tal highest diversity found in middle North (3.35) stretch and
lowest in lower South (1.93) stretch. In recent years, due to high
anthropogenic pressure, overgrazing of vegetation in and around the wetland
areas, these fragile glacial lakes are under great threat which require
sustainable conservation for maintaining the biodiversity that depends on these
freshwater sources.
Download
Pages:10-14
How to cite this article:
Dipti Dey, Dhani Arya, K Chandra Sekar, Puja Bhojak "Floristic diversity and ecological attributes of Chandra Tal and Suraj Tal – two Himalayan cold desert high-altitude wetlands (HAWs) of Lahaul-Spiti, Himachal Pradesh, India". International Journal of Botany Studies, Vol 9, Issue 7, 2024, Pages 10-14
Download Author Certificate
Please enter the email address corresponding to this article submission to download your certificate.