Language: English
The Western Ghats, a global biodiversity hotspot and a world heritage site, are a series of mountain ranges that extend for more than 1,600 km travelling almost parallel to the west coast of India, 15-50 km inland. Home to more than 1,270 endemic plant species, these mountain ranges cover an estimated area of 164,280 km2 and harbour one of the finest tropical forests in the world.
This work in two volumes comprehensively covers for the first time the flowering plants of the Western Ghats. It records 7,402 species, 117 subspecies, and 476 varieties from the area and treats 66 species, 5 subspecies and 14 varieties under doubtful occurrence. Altogether, it deals with 8,080 taxa.
Each taxon is provided with correct name, important synonyms, nature of habit (herb, shrub, tree, etc.), references to good descriptions and illustrations, distribution in the world and the Western Ghats, indigenous, endemic and exotic nature, IUCN threat categories, phenology across the Western Ghats, uses, local names in six Indian languages, and other important details.
An authentic guide for all who deal with the flowering plants of the Western Ghats, India, and the tropics, these volumes are structured in a precise manner to access any single or collective information of a taxon with the least effort. It makes this work unique and anybody's first point of reference.