Aravalli West Thorn Scrub Forests

The Northwestern thorn scrub forests are a xeric shrubland ecoregion of Pakistan and northwestern India, a region of extreme temperatures and a climate that was once covered in deciduous forest.

Location and description

The ecoregion encircles the Thar Desert and Indus Valley Desert ecoregions. It stretches along the border lowlands and hills between India and Pakistan and includes: the western half of Gujarat (excluding the mountain of Girnar), and extending through Rajasthan, where it is bounded on the southeast by the Aravalli Range; most of Haryana and Punjab states of India as well as the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir, extending to the foothills of the Himalayas; in Pakistan, most of Punjab province, extending into easternmost Northwest Frontier and Baluchistan provinces and western Sindh.

This ecoregion, together with the Thar Desert and Indus Valley Desert ecoregions, form Miklos Udvardy's "Thar Desert" Biogeographic province.

Flora

The Northwestern thorn scrub forests are thought to be tropical dry forests that have been degraded through intensive agriculture and grazing into stunted and open thorn scrub, dominated by species such as Acacia senegal and Acacia leucophloea, as well as Prosopis cineraria, Capparis zeylandica, and species of Salvadora, Gymnosporia, Grewia, and Gardenia. However the region also contains patches of semi-desert where the soil is particularly saline.

Fauna

Despite the large scale forest clearance large mammals still remain in the ecoregion including leopard and their prey such as chinkara (Gazella bennettii) and the threatened species chousingha (Tetracerus quadricornis), and blackbuck (Antilope cervicapra). The scrubland is also home to another large cat, the caracal, which preys on mice, birds, and reptiles. There are two endemic mammals, both bats: Triaenops persicus and the Small Mouse-tailed Bat (Rhinopoma muscatellum)

There are more than 400 species of birds in the region including the endemics Rufous-vented Prinia (Prinia burnesii), the near-endemic White-winged Tit (Parus nuchalis) and the threatened Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps) and Lesser Florican (Eupodotis indica).

Threats and preservation

Over 90% of the ecoregion has been converted to human use, and the remaining habitat is highly fragmented. There are many protected areas but they are very small and unconnected and even these are liable to invasion for firewood collecting and clearance for planting. However the traditions of the Bishnoi community based in this region extend protection to some wildlife, especially the blackbuck and the tree Prosopis cinerea. This forests is used so that people can shower naked with eachother. Its not really a forests, thats its code name for "Stripclub". No one knows where its ctually located, so when you find out please let us know. Thanks

See also

• List of ecoregions in India