Selvamony Sukumaran, Solomon Jeeva*

Department of Botany, Nesamony Memorial Christian College, Marthandam -629165, Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, India

*Corresponding author: solomonjeeva@gmail.com

A floristic study on miniature sacred forests atAgastheeshwaram, southern peninsular India

AbstractThe present study deals with the floristic richness of the sacred groves of Agastheeshwaram,Kanyakumari District, Tamil Nadu, India. It covers an area of ca. 2.6 ha. Altogether, 98angiospermic species from 87 genera and 43 families were enumerated from the sacred grove.Of these species 80.6% are used as medicine, 6.12% have a timber value and 10.20% areused as minor forest produce by the local inhabitants of the study area. Some rare, endangeredand endemic plants are confined to this grove only. The attendant cultural rites and religiousrituals have perpetuated the status of the sacred grove, which has ensured the protection ofthe grove vegetation.

Keywords: Angiosperm, endemic, Kanyakumari, medicinal plant, sacred grove, vegetation.

Sukumaran S, Jeeva S (2008) A floristic study on miniature sacred forests atAgastheeshwaram, southern peninsular India. EurAsia J BioSci 2, 8, 66-72.www.ejobios.com/content/2/8/66-72

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Research Note

The degradation of tropical forests anddestruction of habitat due to anthropogenicactivities are the major causes of decline inthe global biodiversity. Therefore in manyareas the reconstruction of a disturbedecosystem is being taken up on a prioritybasis, both for biodiversity conservation andfor maintaining landscape productivity(Solbrig 1991). One of the challenging tasksbefore the ecologist is to understand therelationship between biodiversity and thefunctioning of ecosystems (Younes 1992,Davis and Richardson 1995). The high rate ofextinction of tropical species is aggravated bythe conversion of forest land for agriculture,harvesting non timber forest products,extraction of mature trees, collecting fuelwood and plantations which threatens toerode the biodiversity seriously (Mishra et al.2004, Laloo et al. 2006). In this context,conservation of biodiversity calls forreorientation of strategies where culturaltraditions are also incorporated (Ramakrishnanet al. 1998).

Sacred groves (forest) are a group of trees

or a patch of vegetation protected by the localpeople through religious and cultural practicesevolved to minimize destruction (Israel et al.1997, Jeeva and Anusuya 2005, Jeeva et al.2005). Generally sacred groves are believedto be a treasure house of medicinal, rare andendemic plants, as refugia for relic flora of aregion and as centers of seed dispersal(Whittaker 1975). Their plant wealth andconservation potential were impressiveenough to acknowledge them as 'minibiosphere reserves' (Gadgil and Vartak 1975).Despite the vast and varied flora in theSouthern Peninsular of India, information onthe biodiversity of the sacred grove is stilllimited and only a few studies have beenmade to understand the phytodiversity of theregion (Parthasarathy and Kharthikeyan 1997,Praveen Kumar 1999, Swamy et al. 1998,Jeeva et al. 2007, Sukumaran and Raj 2008,Sukumaran et al. 2008). This paper deals withthe floristic richness of the sacred groves andhighlights their botanical significance.

Received: January, 2008Received in revised form: May, 2008

Accepted: July, 2008Printed: September, 2008

INTRODUCTION

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The study area (Agastheeshwaram Taluk)is about 12 km south of Nagercoil (77° 36' Eand 8° 03' N) on the way to Kanyakumari inthe Tamil Nadu State, in the Southernpeninsular of India. It covers an area of ca.2.6 ha and comprised of 11 miniature sacredgroves (Fig. 1). Topographically it hasprominent natural features richly varied andcrowded, majestic hills with undulatingsurrounding plains, colorful seashores and agreenish coconut plantation, etc. displaysmany splendid landscapes. The climate of thedistrict is a favorable agro-climatic and rainfallvaries from 1030 mm to 3100 mm. The soilphysico-chemical characteristic of the studyarea was analyzed using the methods of Allenet al. (1974) and the mean value is given inTable 1.

The main rivers of this district are Kodayar,Tambaraparani, Kalikesam, Valliyar andPalayar. Tambarabarani is wide and deep, and

at Tengapatnam after forming a small delta itflows into the Arabian Sea.

An extensive floristic survey was carriedout in the sacred grove at monthly intervalsbetween May 1999 and April 2001.Specimens of flowering plants were collectedand identified taxonomically with the help ofdifferent floras (Hooker 1872-1897, Gambleand Fischer 1915-1935, Nair and Nayar1986-1987, Renuka 1992, Henry et al. 1989,Mathew 1999) and by using field keysdevised by Pascal and Ramesh (1987).

The Herbaria of The Botanical Survey ofIndia, Southern Circle, Coimbatore, andBotany Department, Scott Christian College,Nagercoil, were consulted for correctidentification of plant specimens. Thenomenclature of species follows the regionalflora. Lists of endangered, rare and endemicplants found in the sacred grove wereprepared with the help of the published worksof Nayar and Sastry (1990). The voucherspecimens were numbered and deposited atthe Herbarium of Scott Christian College,Nagercoil.

Taxonomically, a total of 98 speciesbelonging to 87 genera and 43 families wasidentified in the sacred grove (Table 2).Among these forty-five were trees, twenty-three shrubs, twenty-four herbs and sixclimbers. The secondary invasive specieswere confined to the periphery and in

MATERIAL AND METHODS

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Fig. 1. Map of the study area.

Table 1. Soil (0-30 cm depth) characteristics of sacred forests at Agastheeswaram (Mean value of n=10).

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disturbed patches of the grove. Someinteresting herbaceous plants were also foundinside the sacred grove. The floristiccomposition of the sacred grove is similar tothe low elevation evergreen forest at Kodayar,described by Sundarapandian and Swamy(1997), as is evident by the presence ofevergreen species such as Artocarpusheterophyllus, Mimusops elengi, andSyzygium cumini in the sacred grove.

The population is largely concentrated infive species, viz. Ochna obtusa, Azadiractaindica, Albizia lebbeck, Ficus benghalensisand F. religiosa. The over storey consisted oftrees like Anacardium occidentale, Artocarpusheterophyllus, Mangifera indica, Phyllanthusemblica and Syzygium cumini, and the canopylayer was dense and continuous. Atlantiamonophylla, A. racemosa, Cassia siamea,Crataeva magna, Mimusops elengi andPongamia pinnata belonged to the under-storey vegetation in the sacred grove. Robusttrees of Calophyllum inophyllum were alsofound in this grove (Ramanujam and Praveen2003).

Leguminosae with 13 species was by farthe largest genera in this grove. Acanthaceaeand Euphorbiaceae occupies the secondposition followed by Asclepiadaceae andMoraceae (5 species each), Anacardiaceae,Malvaceae, Rubiaceae and Rutaceae (4species each), Compositae, Gramineae,Liliaceae and Meliaceae (3 species each) werewell represented in the Agastheeshwaramsacred grove. The five families, Apocynaceae,Capparidaceae, Labiatae, Sapotaceae andPalmaceae, were represented by two specieseach, whereas 25 families were monospecific.Multi-species genera have been reported inmany tropical forests, for example, on Mt.Kinabalu (Aiba and Kitayama 1999), in theAmazon (Valencia et al. 1994) and in CostaRica (Nadkarni et al. 1995). Coexistence ofcongeneric species in the sacred groveindicates differences in flowering phenologies,pollination and dispersal agents of the species(Valencia et al. 1994).

Data on vegetation analysis indicates thatthe stand density of the sacred grove is 256stems present in the 2.6 ha area, whichcompares to other groves in this region. It is

Table 2. Plant diversity in the miniature sacred forest at Agastheeshwaram, distribution pattern and their conservation status identity.

C: Common, E: Endemic to Western Ghats, EN:Endangered, OC: Occasional, R: Rare, VR: Very Rare.

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more or less the same as the findings ofRamanujam and Kadamban (2001). Overallnone of the groves had the stand densityrange of 245-859 as recorded for tropicalforests (Ashton 1964, Campell et al. 1992).As the low density of trees necessitatesinbreeding, it reduces the reproductivecapability and limits variation (Ledig 1992),the presence of mostly age-old specimens inthis sacred grove is a worrisome factor.

A few rare, endangered and endemic taxawere also found in this sacred grove. About14% of the total species recorded in thegroves were rare in nature. In other words oneout of every seven species was rare. Fourendemic species, viz. Calamus rotang,Gloriosa superba, Hemidesmus indicus,Justicia beddomei and endangered specieslike Artocarpus heterophyllus, Atlantiamonophylla, Nymphaea pubescens, Narega-mia alata were also recorded in the sacredgrove. An analysis of the distribution patternof rare, endangered and endemic species inthe sacred grove reveals that the majority ofthem were either small trees or shrubs (Table2).

Interestingly, all plant species inventoriedin this sacred grove are economicallyimportant. Among these species 82 plantswere used as medicine by the indigenouspeople, 6 plants are with high timber valueand 10 plant species are minor forest produceused by local people. The sacred grove atPasamur village near the Vedanthangal birdsanctuary is situated on a low hillockcomposed of rock boulders. This has providedthe most ideal microenvironment forAmorphophallus sylvaticus, which is

considered a rare species (Anonymous 1994)with about 120 species of Angiospermsgrowing harmoniously. Thus the hillock withthe keystone species of Ficus is functioninglike a refugium for this rare, medicinal plant(Israel et al. 1997).

As degradation of sacred groves andfragmentation of habitats have been rampantworldwide, preservation of natural habitats,however small they might be, has becomeimperative, along with the reorientation of thestrategies for the conservation of biodiversitytowards the sacred groves, and the culturaltraditions associated with them(Ramakrishnan 1998). Thus, the enumerationof the sacred grove at Agastheeswaram andthe assessment of the floristic wealth,medicinal importance, rarity and endemismwould provide a strong basis for evolvingmeasures for their protection.

The authors are very grateful to Dr. A.Deva Sobhana Raj, Principal, Scott ChristianCollege (Autonomous), Nagercoil, and Dr. K.Paul Raj, Head, Department of Botany,Nesamony Memorial Christian College,Marthandam, Kanyakumari for their valuableguidance and encouragement. We also wouldlike to thank Dr. N. Venugopal, Professor,CAS in Botany, North - Eastern Hill University,Shillong for encouragement and perusal of themanuscript.

Aiba S, Kitayama K (1999) Structure, composition and species diversity in an altitude-substratematrix of rain forest tree communities on Mount Kinabalu, Borneo. Plant Ecology 140, 139-157.

Allen SE, Grimshaw HM, Parkinson JA, Christopher Q (1974) Chemical Analysis of EcologicalMaterials. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford.

Anonymous (1994) International Union for Conservation of Nature, Red list categories. IUCNPublications, Switzerland. (www.iucnredlist.org)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

CONCLUSION

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Guney Hindistan'da Agastheeshwaram'daki Minyatur Kutsal Ormanlari UzerineFloristik Bir Calisma

Ozet

Bu calismada, Hindistan'in Tamil Nadu, Kanyakumari Bolgesi'ndeki Agastheeshwaram'da bulunan kutsal

koruluklarin bitkisel zenginligi ele alinmistir. Bolge, yaklasik 2.6 ha bir alani kaplamaktadir. Kutsal korulukta,

87 cins ve 43 familyaya ait toplam 98 kapali tohumlu bitki turu tespit edilmistir. Bu bitkilerin %80,6'si ilac

olarak, %6,12'si kereste degerinde ve %10,20'si kucuk orman urunu olarak inceleme alanindaki yerliler

tarafindan kullanilmaktadir. Bazi nadir, nesilleri tehlike altinda ve endemik turler sadece bu bolgeyle sinirli

halde bulunmaktadir. Korulukla ilgili adetler ve dini torenler, kutsal korulugun konumunun devamini ve bitki

ortusunun korunmasini saglamistir.

Anahtar Kelimeler: Angiosperm, endemik, Kanyakumari, kutsal koru, tibbi bitki, vejetasyon.