FLORISTIC DIVERSITY AND CONSERVATION STRATEGIES IN INDIA Volume -I CRYPTOGAMS i\ND GYMNOS PERMS Editors V.Mudgal P.K. Hajra BOTANICAL SURVEY OF INDIA BOTANICAL SURVEY OF INDIA Ministry of Environment and Forests Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 K.P. Singh G.P. Sinha Lichens represent a symbiotic association between two different groups of plants, namely, fungi and algae. In other words, certain species of fungi have developed mutualistic relationship with a number of algal taxa. Such a relationship between the two has been so successful that a large number of fungi (ca 13,500 species - Groombridge, 1992) have opted for this' symbiotic way of life. The lichen thallus is thus a composite structure, consisting of two components, the mycobiont - belonging predominantly to inoperculate ascomycetes; and the photobiont - that includes taxa of algae and/or cyanobacteria. This association is not just a rando.m mixture of any fungal taxa and any algal species but seems to be manifestation of an extremely selective process, that has undergone evolution through .ages and has developed in many directions. In absence of authentic fossil records of lichens, coupled with drastic modification of the thallus in appearance, lichens had been treated as a separate group of plants in the past. Although, universally considered as part of overall fungal domain now, mycologists and lichenologists have not been able to fully integrate the two because of certain unsurmountable barriers in this regard. And hence the lichens are still treated as a separate entity for all practical purposes. Such a situation has, therefore, necessitated consideration of diversity and conservation of this group separately form non-Iichenized fungi. Lichens are universally present and are distributed to different environmental habitats in the world. Many species are of large size and great beauty. In some cases they form dominant components of the epiphytic and ground v.egetation. From India, about 2021 species of lichens within 248 genera have been reported. As ours is a vast country, it enjoys a wide range of topographical and climatological diversity. As a consequence, it is bestowed upon rich vegetation and diverse flora. Unfortunately, Indian lichens received much less attention as compared to other groups of plants. Poor reporting of lichens from here can be understood in this light. However, later researches starting from fifties or sixties of this century have considerably swelled the number of species. It is felt that many more will come to light with futher explorations. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 LICHENS Initial plant studies in India were carried out by European workers. Lichens are no exception to this general trend. Some of the earlier lichen collections made in 19th century are those of Belanger from Peninsular India, Perrottet from Nilgiri hills, Wallich from Himalayas, Strachey and Winterbottom from Kumaun hills, Hooker and Thomson from Eastern Himalayas, Kurz from Bengal and Andaman Islands, J. Thomson from Assam, and G. Watt from Manipur. Subsequently, these collections were worked out by Iichenologists like C. Montagne, T. Taylor, C. Babington, W. Nylander, J. Stirton, J. Mueller Arg., etc. These historical developments have been discussed in detail by Awasthi (1965) and need no repetition. Studies carried out by contemporary workers during 196677 were reviewed by A. Singh (\ 980). More recently, Awasthi (\ 988, 1991) has keyed out all Indian, macro and micro-lichen taxa based on his own studies as well as on that of other lichenologists. We have thus, a much better understanding of the Indian lichen flora now, which can provide a base to a somewhat detailed discussion on the topic of diversity ofindian lichens. VEGETATION Lichen vegetation in India is rich both in luxuriance and variety. It is found on various substarata wherever suitable conditions are available for its growth. Lichens may be saxicolous, corticolous, terricolous, ramulicolous or muscicolous. They may also grow on walls, decaying woods, iron pipes, etc. The nature of lichen vegetation of an area is determined mainly by the variations in the altitude and climate. Keeping this aspect in view, the lichen vegetation of India can broadly be classified into 3 major types viz. (I) tropical and subtropical lichen vegetation, (2) temperate lichen vegetation, and (3) alpine lichen vegetation. For the discussion of vegetation, the localities mostly explored by the authors in different states are taken into consideration. Tropical and subtropical lichen vegetation This type of lichen vegetation is usually found below an altitude of 1500 m. The so far explored areas from this type of climate are Andaman and Nicobar islands; Manipur; Meghalaya; Assam; Nagaland; Arunachal Pradesh; Sunderbans, Howrah, 24-Parganas and Darjeeling districts in West Bengal; Pachmarhi hills in Madhya Pradesh; Mount Abu in Rajasthan; parts of Himachal Pradesh; Mussoorie, Dehradun, Chakrata, Nainital in Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 196 Uttar Pradesh; Some specific localities like parts ofNilgiri and Palni hills. South Canara, Coorg, Cardamom hills, Agastiar hills and Silent valley etc. For a better knowledge of tropical lichens, howeve r, more areas need exploration. The arboreal elemems. rot:ks, boulders. elc. provide suitable habitats for growth of lichens. The foot hills below an altitude of 700 m usually have fewer lichens except in moi st areas, such as Andaman and Nicrobar islands, Kerala, etc. where luxuriant growth of lichen is encountered even at sea level. The lichen vegetation changes as the altitude increases. The evergreen moist fore sts have more luxuriant vegetation than dry deciduou s forests. The tree trunks of 7erminalia, Dipterocarpus, Elaeocarpus, Pterocarpus, MelioslHa, Eurya, A1alln/lis. Trema, Schima. Pinus. Quercus, Michelia, Albizia, etc. are covered usually by the crustose genera of families Pyrenocarpaceae , Cal ic iaceae , Graph idaceae . The lotremataceae , Arthoniaceae, Cyphelliaceae, etc . It is observed that smooth bark of Cit- rus, Artocarpus heterophyl/us, Cocos nuci/era, Areca catechu, Hevea brasiliensis, etc, is much preferred by many crustose species of Graphina, Arthania, Cryptothecia, Thelatrema. etc. The foliose form s of f'hysc ia , Dirinaria, f'armotrema and Heterodermia also grow in moist places in assoc iation with crustose form s. In more moist places Col/ema, Leptogiw/J, Coccocarpia, Sticta, etc , grow on stones, trees or on Ihe ground, In interior portions of dense forests, lichens are confined to Ihe fringes o f forests or on upper portions of trees, where enough light and wind currents are available. The roadside trees and exposed road clIttings al so possess many species o f foliose forms . The fruticose form s are very few except few cosmopolitan species of Usnea and Ramalinu which usually occur on upper portions of trees or on exposed rocks. Cosmopolitan species of fruticose Cladonia spp , usuall y grow on the ground in shady places. Species of Raceel/o are confined to coastal areas. growing on trees and stones. Certain lime loving I ichens of genera Endocarpon, f'eltula and Arthopyrellia stilllhrive well in the polluted atmosphere of the cities of Uttar Pradesh plain s (A, Singh and Upreti , 1984). They can withstand extreme xeric conditions. Similarly in drier zones of Rajasthan, the cyanophilous members of families Heppiaceae, Lichinaceae, Collemataceae and Pyrenopsidaccae grow abundantly in association with Teloschistaceae, Lecideaceae, Lecanoraceae and Physciaceae, Another rich area of tropical lichens is Mangrove forests in Sunderbans, the biggest Gangetic delta between the river Hoogly on the wesl and the Meghna river on the east. The Cfustose forms dominate here and thrive well on trees of Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 197 Avicennia alba, Sonneratia apetala, Mangifera indica, Phoenix paludosa, Heritiera minor, Coccus 11ucifera, Nipafruticans, etc. The Sholas (evergreen patches of forests) which are present here and there on the rolling down of hills occupying sheltered folds of streams or hollows or depressions in Western Ghats, exhibit luxuriant growth of lichen vegetation. Foliose forms are usually present on the outer edges ofShola trees. Tropical vegetation is also chracterised by the presence of many foliicolous species, which thrive in moist, warm and shady places along the banks of streams, lakes, rivulets or ravines on the leaves of lower branches of evergreen herbs, shrubs and under-trees. Usually more than one species grow on the same leaf or on different leaves of the same plant. The common genera of these Iichens are A ulaxina, Byssoloma, Ca/opadia, Echinoplaca, Fellhanera, Gyaleclidium, Mazosia, Porina, Slrigu/a, Tricharia, etc. Temperate lichen vegetation The temperate vegetation is found between 1500 - 3600 m, in Western and Eastern Himalayas, higher reaches of North-Eastern states, and hills of South India. The temperate climate offfers the optimum conditions for luxuriant growth of foliose and fruticose forms. The forests in temperate zone are not dense and are exposed to rain, open to sun light and wind currents. These factors usually promote the rich growth of lichens. The tree trunks of Magnolia campbelii, Caslenopsis indica, different species of Rhododendron and Quercus, Acer, Symp/ocos, Ascll/us indica, Cornus capitola, Abies speclabilis, Cupressus species, Tsuga species, Pinus roxburghii, Pinus kesiya, Cedrus deodara etc. provide suitable habitat for growth of different species of Parmotrema, Lasa/Uo, Col/ema, Leplogill!"- (MalloliulII group), Physcia, Physc(}nia, Lobaria, Pseudocyphellaria, Hypogymnia, Menegazzia, Celrelia, Bryoria, etc. The Crustose forms of Rinodina, DiplOlomma, Aspicilia, Acarospora, Perlusaria, Ca/op/aca, Dip/oschisles, Ochro/echia, Leconia, Buellia, etc. are prevalent on exposed rocks, boulders, on bark of trees and on the ground. Certain crustose species are endolithic or endophloedal according to the development of their thallus. Thus, their presence can be detected only when they produce fruiting bodies. The fruticose forms of Usnea, Ramalina, Bryoria, and Te/oschistes hang from the coniferous trees. Fruticose genera Stereocau/on and Cladonia grow abundantly on the ground as well as on exposed rocks in moist shady places. Similarly species of Pelligera, Slicta and a few Lobaria species are well represented in this region and grow on the ground Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 198 or on stones, inside forests in association with mosses along the streams and rivulets. Temperate lichens are also found growing in abundance in high level Shola (1600 tc 2400 m) trees in south Indian hills. Alpine lichen vegetation This type of lichen vegetation usually occurs at an altitude of about 3600 m and above in the areas like Gomukh, Pindari glacier, Kedarnath, etc. in Western Himalayas; Nathula pass, Jelepla in Sikkim, Sela pass, Pangeteng Show, Bumla, Womingla, Nagula pass, higher ridges ofDichu and Dallai valleys, Taluk pass, Jachup, etc. in Arunachal Pradesh and Saramati hill ranges in Nagaland. Generic composition of alpine lichen vegetation is almost the same as found in higher temperate areas but the species components are different. Large trees are altogether absent, but species of bushy Rhododendrons, Cotoneaster, Juniperus, Caranga, etc. provide suitable substrata for growth oflichens. A majority of alpine lichens are saxicolous or terricolous. On exposed rocks big patches of Crustose genera Acarospora,. Diplotomma, Lecidea, Lecanora, Rinodina, Rhizocarpon, etc. are a common sight. The species of Rhizocarpon and Lecidea are more common near glacier moraines. Other genera found there, are Hypogymnia, Cande/ariella, Cladonia, Cetraria, Umbilicaria, Lethariella, Stereocaulon, Thamnolia, etc. Lichenologically alpine zone is interesting and needs extensive exploration for its detailed knowledge. LICHENOGEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS VIS-A-VIS DIVERSITY Clarke (1898) and Hooker (1907) divided British India into nine different botanical provinces based chiefly on the sudies ofvascular plants. While discussing general vegetation, Jain (1990) divided India into nine botanical regions. Pande (1958) recognized nine Bryogeographical units in India based on the studies of Bryophytic flora of India. Recent studies on lichens from various regions similarly show that each region has a somewhat distinct flora of its own. Accordingly, Indian region can be divided into 8 lichenogeographical regions (see map). For each lichenogeographical region, we have taken into account 10 dominant families, 10 largest genera and other interesting features for considering the diversity of the Indian lichen flora. However, this statistics may change gradually in near future when new discoveries, additions and revisions of families and genera are made ｴｾｭ･＠ to time. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 199 200 It includes Kumaun and Garhwal regions of Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir. The topography of the area is irregu lar due to valleys and plateaus of various dimensions. The lofty snow clad mountain ranges of this region are far more complex than similar areas of Eastern Himalayan region, and have a general direction from South-West to NorthEast. Karakoram ranges have several peaks that are more than 7500 m high. C limate varies from place to place. It is mainly tropical below 1500 m, but from 1500 to 3600 m it becomes temperate and above 3600 m it is alpine. Lichen fl ora has great di ve rsi ty due to great altitudinal variations co upled with ra infall factor which becomes lesser and lesser from east to west. The lower altitude has less number of spec ies, but their max ium diversity is discernible at altitudes ranging between 1800 to 2600 m. Important contributions on this area are made by C. Babington, A.A. Quraishi , Y. Riisiinen, R. Schubert and O. Klement, D.o. Awasthi, Mamta Joshi, S.R. Singh, and Krishna Dange. ln spite of these studies, many spec ies still remai n to be added from unexplored areas of the reg io n. So far, about 550 spec ies under 119 genera are known to occur here and that form about 27.2% of total Indian lichen flora . OUbese, ca 159 ta xa are common with Eastern Himalayan region and ca 197 taxa with Western Ghats. Foliose form s are more dom inant than crustose and fruticose-forms . The ratio of crustose foliose and fruticose species is 2.2 1 : 2.56 : 0. 73. Considering the speci es di versity, we find that family Parrneliaceae is largest and represented ｬｯｷ･､＠ by Physc iaceae (81 spec ies, 12 by 86 species f!nd I ｌｧｾＡｲ｡Ｌｊｯ genera), Co llemataceae (44 spp. , 3 genera), Lecanoraceae (42 spp., 5 genera), Teloschistaceae (34 spp., 3 genera), Csneaceae (32 spp., 6 genera), Ramalinaceae (15 spp. , I genus), Lecideaceae (14 spp ., 3 gene ra), Pertusariaceae ( 14 spp ., 2 genera), and Peltigeraceae (13 spp ., I genu s). Out of 11 species of Acarospora known fro m India, 9 spec ies occur in temperate and alpine areas of Western Himalayan region. Similarly out of 17 spec ies of Rhizocarpon, 12 species occur_here . The largest genus Lecanora comprises 32 spec ies, followed by Ca/op/aca (26 spp.), Leptogiul11 (22 spp.), Col/ema (2 1 spp.), Usnea (21 spp.). Heteroderl11ia (20 spp.), Rama/ina (15 spp.), Parmotrel11a ( 14 spp.), Buellia (\3 spp.), Cetraria (13 spp.). Besides about 22 genera viz. Anaptychia, Aspicilia, Cande/ariel/a, Carbonea, Coniocybe, Cornicu/aria, Dime/aena, Eig/era, Evernia, G/ypho/echia, Lempho/emma, Me/anolecia, Peccania, Physconia, Placodiull1, Placyn thium, Psi/o /ech ia , Rhizop /aca, Th e /en el/a. The/ediopsis. Toninia, Xy/ographa are confined only to this region. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 The Western Himalayan Region 201 number of genera with I species number of genera with 2 species number of genera with 3 species number of genera with 4 species number of genera with 5 species number of genera with 6 - 10 species number of genera with II - 15 species number of genera with 16 - 35 species = 46 21 10 7 - = - 6 II 12 6 Thus, it is interesting to note that maximum number of genera belong to I or 2 species categories, while maximum species diversity occurs in the genera belonging to II - 15 and 16 - 35 species categories. The species having restricted distribution confined to this region are - Aspieilia a/phop/aea. Allaplyehia eiliaris, A. fusca, Cornieu/aria aeu/cata, C. odaniel/a. Cetraria is/al1dica. Co/lema cal/ibolrys. Dermalocarpon minimulII. Evernia divari cara, E. prul1asrri, Hypagylllnia a/pina, HyporraehYl1a p/urifarmis, LepragiulI1 bul/mull1, Lobaria quereizans, Me/al1elia g/abratu/a, M sorediosa. Nephroma expal/idum, Panno/rema mel<lI1olhrix. Peiligera venosa, Physconia lIIuscigena, Siereocau/on lIIaerocephal/ulII , Xalllharia candelaria, etc. The Eastern Himalayan Region It includes Sikkim , Darjeeling district of West Bengal, states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya. Mizoram, Naga land and Tripura. Phytogeographically, these areas fall under two botanical regions (Jain 1983. 1990), the Eastern Himalaya and the Eastern Indiac However, for the purpose of lichenological discussions both regions are considered under one lichenogeographical region, namely the Eastern Himalayan region. Compared with the Western Himalayan region, the Eastern Himalayan region has higher rainfall and warmer conditions. The tree line and snow line are at higher a ltitude by about 300 m. The region consists of high mountains as well as small to large sized va ll eys with varied climatic conditions. The majority of peaks average 1800 to 3000 m and some peaks even rise upto 7500 m. The specia l horse-shoe-shaped arrangement of the fold of mountains coupled with moisture laden monsoon winds, blowing across the Bay of Bengal, ensure plenty of rain in most of the places. This creates high humid climate, conducive for great diversity in the lichen flora. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 An analysis of species diversity in Western Himalayan region leads to the following categorization. So far, only a few areas in the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Nagaland, Sikkim and Darjeeling district of West Bengal have been explored and studied, while major part of the region remains to be explored yet. The main contributions made from this region are by J. Stirton, Mueller Arg., G.L. Chopra, S. Kurokawa, D.D. Awasthi, M. Agarwal, P.G. Patwardhan, M.B. Nagarkar, K.P. Singh, and G.P. Sinha. The flora comprises a total of ca 759 species disposed in 147 genera, that constitute about 37.5% of total Indian lichen flora. The ratio of crustose, foliose and fruticose species is 4.18 : 2.15 : 1.26. The flora closely resembles Western Ghats as evidenced by 224 species that are common to both the regions. The flora shows great diversity in its constituent elements. The largest family is Parmeliaceae, represented by 95 species and 15 genera, followed by Graphidaceae (90 spp ., 8 genera), Usneaceae (45 spp., 4 genera), Pyrenulaceae (40 spp., 2 genera), Co llemataceae (25 spp., 2 genera), Arthoniaceae (24 spp., 4 genera), Lecanoraceae (22 spp., 2 genera) and Pertusariaceae (23 spp. , 2 genera). Genuswise, the diversity is different. Genus Cladonia is the largest with 48 species, followed by Graphis (36 spp .), Usnea (34 spp.), Heterodermia (29 spp.), Graphina (26 spp.), Lecanora (21 spp.), Buellia (20 spp.), Parmotrema (19 spp.), Leptogiul1l (19 spp.), and Anlhracothecium (18 spp.). About 16 genera including a monotypic Awasthiella are confined only to this region . They are Acroschyphus, Asterolhyriul1l, Echinoplaca, Gyalideopsis, Gymnoderma, Hymen elia, Lasal/ia, Leprocaulon, Mycocaliciul1l , Mycoporllm , Mycoblastus , Ph/yetis, Pilophorus, Plalismatia, and Siphula. An analysis of species diversity in Eastern Himalayan region leads to the following categorisation. number of genera with I species number of genera with 2 species number of genera with 3 species number of genera with 4 species number of genera with 5 species number of genera with 6 - 10 spec ies number of genera with II - 20 species number of genera with 21 - 30 species number of genera with 31 - 50 species - - = - = 61 20 20 6 3 19 12 3 , 0 Thus, it is interesting to note that majority of the genera belong to I, 2,3 and 6-10 species category while maximum species diversity occurs in the genera belonging to last two categories. Some characteristic crustose Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 202 taxa occur only in this region are - Anthracothecium assamiense, A. maculalum, Arthonia Iranslucens, AlVasthiel/a indica, Aulaxina uniseptata, Crypwthecia candida, Celraria delavayi, C. isidiophora, Coenogonium himalayense, Graphina acharii. The foli ose species are Heterodermia lutescens. Hypogymnia lValliana, HYPolrachyna rigidula, H. scywdes, Parmotrema zol/ingeri, Peltigera lIIalacea. Platismatia erosa, Sticla platyphylloides, Umbiliearia yunana, etc. and fruticose spec ies are Acroscyphus sphaerophoroides, Bryoria confusa, B. himalayana, Baeolllyces pachypus, Cladonia farinacea. Pilophorus awasthianum, Ramalina himalayensis. Slereocauion togashii. Usnea pectillata, etc. The Western Dry Region It covers the states of Punjab and Rajas than. Lichen reports are not known from the Punjab area. In Rajasthan , the Aravalli hills lie across the state, but have not been well explored lichenologically except a sporadic collection frolll a plateau, Mt. Abu. The low and irregular rainfall and extremes of temperatures both during summer and winter months give rise a somewhat entirely different climate for growth of a different kind of lichen flora in comparison to ot her region s of th e country. Saxicolous cyanophilous lichens belonging to genera Col/ema, Leptogiu1l1, Peltula, Phyl/iscum, etc. are more dO,!,inant here. So far, 39 species di sposed in 24 genera are recorded. In term s of lichen diversity, the area is interesting as ce rtain ge nera viz. Anema. Astroplaea, Heppia, Plaeolecis , Zahlbrucknerella. etc. occur only in this region . However, more explorations from other ranges of Aravalli hills may unfold the existence of many more taxa. The Gangetic Plains Gangetic Plains stretch from eastern R'!iasthan through plains of Uttar Pradesh to Bihar and Bengal. The lichen fl ora of this region has also not been worked out thoroughly. The Upper Gangetic Plain has only few spec ies of crustose genera viz. Lecanora, Endocarpon, Lecidea, etc. here and there on the walls as well as on stones where some humidity is avai lab Ie. The lichen flora in Lower Gangetic Plains particularly in 24-Perganas of West Bengal, show a great divers ity due to high humid conditions. The islet forests of Sunderbans are full of crustose forms. A total of ca 224 species, distributed in 63 genera are reported from thi s region. Of these 208 species are crustose, 8 are foliose and remaining 8 are fruticose species. Some statistics abo ut the species diversity show that family Graphidaceae is the Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 203 largest with ca 29 species, followed by Opegraphaceae with ca 24 species, Trypetheliaceae again with 24 species, Physciaceae and Pyrenulaceae both with 18 species each. Amongst the genera Opegrapha is the largest genus with about 13 species, followed by Arthonia with ca 12 species, Anthracothecium with 11 species, Bacidia and Trypethelium with 9 species in each . Besides, 3 genera Crypto/echia, Enterographa, Gyrostomum are known to grow only in this region. The Central India The Central India comprises Madhya Pradesh, parts of Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat. The lichen flora of this area is also not fully known. Only Pachmarhi, a summer hill station in Madhya Pradesh, has been investigated by S.R. Singh and D.D. Awasthi . About 48 species, distributed in 23 genera are known to occur here. There is not much diversity in the flora. The common species of common genera viz. Bacidia, Buellia, Caloplaca, Diplotomma, Graph is, Graphina, Parmotrema, Pyxine, etc. grow on the stones as well as on trees . • The Western Ghats The Western Ghats cover a distance of about 1600 km ., extending from the Tapti ValIey in the north of Gujarat to Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, and consist of series of hill ranges running north-south along the west coast traversing the states ofGujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamilnadu. These hill ranges are more or less continuous with a major discontinuity in the Palghat gap separating the Nilgiri ranges from the Anamalais. The exact boundaries of Western Ghats are not sharp, as many spurs of Western Ghats enter into Deccan and merge with the mountains of Eastern Ghats. However, for boundary delimitations, the concept of Sub ram ani am . and Nayar (1974) and Nair and Daniel (1986) has been adopted. The climate is mainly tropical with annual rainfaII varying from 2350 mm in the north to 7450 mm in the south. These conditions help to sustain luxuriant and diverse lichen flora. Lichens grow profusely in evergreen forests called Sho\as, as mentioned earlier. The low hilI ranges of Western Ghats have comparatively poor lichen diversity in drier places, but in moist shady places macrolichen forms ofPhysciaceae, Parmeliaceae grow in association with microliooen forms of Arthoniaceae, Physciaceae, Lecideaceae, etc. The Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 204 optimum growth of lichen di versity is found between 1000 to 2400 m in the high hill ranges of the south Western Ghats. The crustose forms of families Graphidaceae, Lecanoraceae, Thelotremataceae, Pyrenulaceae and foliose and fruiticose form s of Parmeliaceae, Lobariaceae, Usneaceae, Cladoniaceae, Stereocaulaceae, etc. predominate in most of the places. The lichen diversity may be evident from the fact that ca 800 species disposed in 519 crustose, 220 foliose and 61 fruticose forms within 140 genera, are known to occur in Western Ghats, and that is the highest estimate recordced so far for any lichenogeographical region in India. The flora of this region comprises ca 39.5% of the total Indian lichen flora. The fl ora ofPalni Hills comprises about 3 18 spec ies in 75 genera and that ofN ilgiri hills, 117 species within 2 1 genera of macrolichens. A sma ll collecti on of lichens from the rain forests of Silent Valley revealed 77 species. During the last two decades D.o . Awasthi, K. P. Singh, P.G. Patwardhan, C.R. Kulkarni , A.V. Prabhu, and U. Makhija also added numerous taxa to the fl ora of Western Ghats. If we see the diversity of species at family and generic leve l we find that the largest family in this region is Graphidaceae with about 97 species and 5 genera ranks first in order of dominance. It is followed by Parmeliaceae with about 95 spec ies and 12 genera; Physciaceae with about 76 species and 10 genera; Pyrenulaceae with about 57 species and 6 genera ; Thelotremataceae with about 5 1 species and 4 genera; Trypetheliaceae with about 42 species and 6 genera; Co llemataceae with about 40 species and 3 genera; Usneaceae with about 28 species and I genus; Pertusariaceae with about 26 species and 2 genera; Arthoniaceae with abo ut 20 species and 4 genera. Graphis is the largest genus with about 38 species, followed by Ocellularia and Parmotrema with about 31 species each ; Thelolrema with about 30 species; Usnea with about 29 species; Lep logium with about 26 species ; Graphina with about 25 species; and Pelligera with about 23 species. An analysis of species diversity in this region leads to the following categorisation: number of genera with I spec ies number of genera with 2 species number of genera with 3 species number of genera with 4 species number of genera with 5 species number of genera with 6 - 10 species number of genera with II - 20 species number of genera with 21 - 30 species number of genera with 3 1 - 40 species = 67 15 II 7 6 9 15 = 7 3 Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 205 Thus, it is interesting to note that maximum number of genera belong to 1, 2, 3, 6-10, 11-20 species categories. The diversity ofthis region is further enriched by the occurrence of numerous genera viz. Byssophragmia. Catapyrenium. Catinaria. Conotrema. Cyphelium. Dendriscocaulon. Diploicia. Heppsora (monotypic). Heterocyphelium. Leioderma. Leptorhapis. Physcidia. Physma. Pyrgillocarpon. Pyrgillus. Relicina. Thelocarpon. etc. and characteristic species viz. Brigantiaea ionexcipula. Bulbothrix bulbochaeta. Candelaria indica. Catillaria nilgirienSis. Gyalecta tropica. Hypotrachyna revoluta. Pannaria stylophora. Parmelina indica. P. simplicior. Pseudocyphellaria argyracea. Physcidia cylindrophora. Pyxine nilgiriensis. Sticta cyphellulata. Stereocaulon austroindicum. Thelotrema thelotremoides, etc. which are confined to this region only. The Eastern Ghats and Deccan Plateau Unlike the Western Ghats, this region has not high ranges of mountains and consists of much broken isolated hills. The lichen flora of this area has not been extensively worked out. However, from the data available, this region has about 31 species distributed in 23 genera. An economically important genus Roccella is widely distributed here. Andaman and Nicohar Islands Oceanic islands have always been interesting for botanical studies. They have contributed much to our knowledge on speciation, adaptability, colonisation, evolution, extinction and conservation of endemic species. Andaman and Nicobar archipelago in Bay of Bengal form an arched SIting of about 300 islands, covering ｾ＠ area of about 8300 sq. kms. The lichen flora of these places is typicallY a tropical one and starts right from the beach forests. The unique feature of the lichen flora is the occurrence of numerous endemic species. This uniqueness and diversity of the flora is due to heavy mist over the forests during morning hours, high rainfall from May to November and constant sea currents on accounts of high winds that keep the forests moist throughout the year. These factors help in colonization of the various corticolous and foliicolous communities belonging to crustose families Arthoniaceae, Pyrenulaceae, Thelotremataceae, Graphidaceae, etc. and few foliose forms of Physciaceae. In fact, these small islands are the store houses of various novelties and need to be explored thoroughly to uncover the hidden lichen wealth. The diversity of lichens in these islands is so high that a small collection of Sulpiz Kurz. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 206 made during 1867, revealed 63 species. Foliicolous taxa al so occur in variety and abundance, Important contributions made from this area are by Ajay Singh , P.G . Patwardhan, U. Makhij a, M.B . Nagarkar and P.K. Sethy. Crustose forms are the dominant component of the forests of these islands. So far, a total of about 307 species distributed in 66 genera are known to occ ur here. Of these 283 species are crustose and 24 species are foliose forms. About 66 taxa are common in distribution with Western Ghats. Some stati st ics on the di versity of lichens in th is region show that family Pyrenulaceae is the largest with 44 species distributed in 5 genera. This is followed by Thel otremataceae (38 spp. , 5 genera), Graphidaceae (36 spp" 4 genera), Trichothe liaceae (36 spp., 4 genera), Trypetheliaceae (35 spp., 6 genera), Opegraphaceac (16 spp., 5 genera), Arthoniaceae (15 spp., 5 ge nera), Physc iaceae ( 10 spp., 2 genera), Col lemataceae (9 spp., 3 genera), Ecto lechiaceae (9 spp., 4 genera), etc. Amongst the genera. Parina is the largest genus with about 32 species, followed by Pyrenula (24 spp.), Ocelllliaria (19 s pp. ), Graphina and Th elotrema (17 spp. each), Trypethelillm ( 14 spp .), Myreatrema (12 spp.), Opegrapha (11 spp.), Graphi5 (10 spp.), Anthracathecium ( 10 spp,), Cryptothecia (8 spp,), Parmentaria (8 spp,), Laurera (7 spp.), etc, A look on the species diversity leads to the following categorisation: number of genera with I species number of genera with 2 species number of genera with 3 species number of genera with 4 species number of genera with 5 species number of genera with 6 - 10 species number of genera with II - 25 species = 28 = \I = 6 5 5 - 5 - 6 - Thus, it is evident that maximum number of genera of the region belong to I and 2 species category. This divers ity is furthe r enriched by the occurrence of numerous species of genera viz. Aspidathelium, Bot/aria, Chroodisclls, Cryptolhelium, Laisalama, Lafflammia. MelampylidiZlln, Millksia, Nadvornikia, Phylloblastia, Raciborskiella, etc . which are confined here only. PHYTOGEOGRAPHICAL AFFINITIES Like higher plants, lichens also show significant affinities with the flora of adjacent and di stant regions. This has contributed much to the richness and di versity of the flora , There are many lichen species in Indian Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 207 flora that have fairly widespread distribution on the global level, while on the other hand some species have limited distribution in India and adjoining regions. In the absence of a complete knowledge of the flora, in general, we can say that the Eastern Himalayan lichens show closer affinity with the lichens of Sino-Japanese and South-East Asian countries . Some of the lichens common to India and China are: Caloplaca handelii, Bulbolhrix selschwanensis, Celraria delavayi, Leptogium pedicel/alum, Slicla henryana, S. nylanderiana, S. platyphyl/oides, etc. Similarly taxa common with Japan are: Bacidia hakonensis, Col/ema japonicum, lcmadophyl/a coronata, Lobaria kurokawae, Pyrenula impressa, Sulcaria virens, Usnea orientalis, Parmelina rhytidodes, etc. Resemblance with South-East As ian elements is exhibited by : Celraria latejlava, Celrelia sanguinea, HYPolrachyna koyaensis, H. physcioides, Phlyclel/a himalayensis, Parmelina expal/ida, P perisidians, etc. The lichens from the Western Himalayas show a closer affinity to the European elements. This is indicated by the species : Catraria laureri, Dermalocarpon hepalicum, Aspicilia caesiocinerea, Pelligera horizomalis, Col/ema auriculawm, C. subnigrescens, Evernia divaricala, Leplogium subtile, L. lenuissimum, Chrysolhrix chlorina, etc. African elements are also common among the lichens found in our country, particularly in Western Ghats. Cryplolhecia stirlonii, HYPolrachyna degelii, Parmelina wal/ichiana, Parmo/rema pseudonilgherrense, P cooperi, P direagens, Pseudoparmelia malaccl!l1sis, P pustulescens, etc. are some selected examples of such species. Certain species show disjunct distribution. Glypholechia scabra, Lecanora pellala, which occur in the dry Western Himalayas, Central Asia and rocky mountains of America and Peru in South America; Hypotrachyna dactylifera in Meghalaya (India) and South America; Leplogium papil/osum in Western Ghats and Central America; Haemalomma leprarioides in Darjeeling and Brazil; Parmotrema margarilalum in Western Ghats and North America; Parmelina mulleri in Himachal Pradesh and South America; Thelolrema velalum in Andamans and Central America, etc. can be cited as examples for this. Besides, there are numerous pantropical, cosmopolitan and temperate circumpolar elements in the flora. Cosmopolitan elements which occur widely in Europe, Asia, Africa and America are Calicium abielinum, Caloplaca cilrina, Candelaria concolor, Cladonia bacillar is, C. grayi, Collema subjlaccidum, Helerodermia obscurala, Nephroma helvelicum, Parmelia sulcala, Pqrmolrema reliculalum , Pelligera spuria, Phaeographis inusla, Phaeophyscia hispidula, P orbicularis, Physcia Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 208 aipo/ia, Physconia enleroxanlha, Punclelia rZidecla, P borreri, Ramalina pacifica, Te/oschisles jlavicans, The/olrema /epadinum, Umbilicaria po/yphy//a, etc. Bu/bolhrix goebe/ii, B. is idiza, Dirinaria piC la, Parmotrema subtinclorwn, P mellissii, Phaeophyscia endococcinoides, Sirigu/a e/egans and The/olrema /epadodes are some species with pantropical distribution . The temperate elements met in the flora are re presented by Celraria ocullala, Leptogiun salurninum, Parmelina Guru/enta, Heterodermia comosa, Menegazzia lerebrata, Pseudoparmelia caperala. Puncle/ia rudecta, Dermatocarpon hepaticum, etc. The above examples of taxa are based on the studies made in the past.. Howevere, extensive survey and a detailed study of the distributional pattern of individual species are required for a better understanding of the phytogeographical affinities of the Indian lichens. ENDEMISM Endemism is the phenomenon of confinement of species, genera or other groups to a particular area or habitat beyond which they do not exist. The significance of flora of any region or country is enhanced by the presence of its endemic elements. The concept and importance of endemism pertaining to South Indian flowering plants have already been discussed by Ahmedullah and Nayar (1987) in detail. However for Indian lichens, no data are yet available. In general, lichens do not show high degree of endemism as compared to flowering plants, because their spores and vegetative propagules that can withstand extreme conditions for a long periods are easily blown off to distant places. They can easily germinate and start colonisation even if minimum favourable conditions are available. That is probably the reason why lichens are found even at very high altitudes, where other plants generally do not grow. It will be premature to discuss endemism in lichens at a greater extent, because large tracts of the country still lie unexplored. The exact di stribution of many species is not known. Many species are known only by a single gathering or from a single habitat only. However, some data gathered are presented here on which future studies can be based. The diverse climatic and habitat conditions in our country provide favourable conditions for speciation. The probable factors that contribute to high degree of endemism in Indian flora, as mentioned by Jain (1983) are : (a) the barrier of high mountain region in the north ; (b) separation of Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 209 southern region of the country by large water mass of the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean; (c) the extremely arid condi t ions in the Western region blocking colonisation ofp ropagules coming through westerly w inds fro m middle-eastern regions and (d) humid tropical condit ions in Western Ghats and North- Eastern region. An analys is of endemi c taxa shows that out of the estimated about 202 1 species of Indian lichens, 23%, w hi ch means a bo ut 46 6 spec ies seems to be e ndemic w ithin Indi an bo un da ri es. High degree of endemi sm is observed amongst the crustose ge nera, probabl y because of the simple nature of the ir tha llus. The distribution and concentration of endemic species in a part ic ular region is an index to the overall biogeography of the area. A large number of endemic spec ies occur in moist tropica l and subtropical forests and have restricted di strib ution in a partic ular lichenogeographi cal region. However, certa in s pec ie s s how ex te nde d di s tributi on and gr ow in m o re t ha n o ne li chenogeograph ical zone, therefore, inc reas ing the number of endemic species in a particular lichenographi cal zone. A region wise d istribution of endemic taxa in eac h Iichenogeographical region is listed be low : Name of the Lichenogeographical region Total No. of species in India No. of Endemic species Percentage of endemism I. Western Hi malayan Region 550 22 4 2. Eastern Hima layan Region 759 133 17.5 3. Western Dry Region 39 6 15.3 224 14 6.2 48 4 8.3 800 16 1 20. 1 7. Easte rn Ghats & Deccan Pl ateau 31 4 12.9 8. Andaman & Nicobar Islands 307 73 23.7 4. Gangetic Plain 5. Cent ral India 6. Weste rn Ghats Thus, it is interesting to note that the highest number of e ndem ic species occur in Western Ghats, followed by Eastern Hima layan region, Andaman and Nicoba r Islands, Weste rn H imalaya n region, etc., and therefore, these regions can be considered as centres of ri ch lichen Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 2 10 endemism. The first ten lichen families showing high degree of endemism according to their number of species on all India level are Graphidaceae with 70 species, followed by Trypetheliaceae (45 spp.), Pyrenulaceae (44 spp.), Arthoniaceae (40 spp.), Thelotremataceae (39 spp.), Physciaceae (34 spp.), Trichotheliaceae (34 spp.), Parmeliaceae (24 spp.), Opegraphaceae (15 spp.), and Pertllsariaceae (9 spp.). At the generic level, lichens show little endemism. There are only two monotypic genera viz. Awasthiella and Heppsura. occuming in Eastern Himalayan region and Western Ghats respectively. An analysis of the first ten genera showing high degree of endemism according to their number of species on all India basis are Graphina (26 spp.), Trypethelium (19 spp.), Graphis and Purina (18 spp. each), Laurera (17 spp.), Ocellularia (17 spp.), Buellia (16 spp.), CiJ'pt()thecia (15 spp.), Ditremis and Parmenlaria (IS spp. each). Some of the genera containing high number of endemic species and individual endemic species occurring in differnet lichenogeographical regions are listed below: Western Himalayan Region Genera: Lecanura (4 spp.), Caluplaca (2 spp.). Species : Anaptychia pselldurumeri. Aspicilia almorensis, Caloplaea almorensis. C. p indarel1sis. Jrrpogymnia alpina. Lecannra dwaliensis. Parmelia lI1ussooriensis. Physcia gomukhensis, Stereocau/on himalayanse. Umbilicaria j il/gralensis. Eastern Himalayan Region Genera: Graphina (12 spp.). Graphis (12 spp.), Arthonia (5 spp.), Lecidea (4 spp.). Arthothelium. Bacidia, Buellia, Cetraria, Cryptolhecia and Hypogymnia all with 3 species each. Species: Acarospora indica, Anthracotheciwn cristate/lum, A. pustuliferum, Arthonia collect iva, A. recedens. A ulaxina uniseptata, Baeomyces pachypus, Buellia pinicola, Cetraria isidioidea, C. melaloma, Coenogonium himalayense, Col/ema hookeri, Graphis assamensis, Heterodermia indica, H. togash;;, Hypogymn;a thomsoniana, Hypotrac- Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 2I I hyna rigidula. Nephroma sikkimense, Parmelina manipurensis, Phaeographis indica, Usnea mekista, etc. Western Dry Region Species,' Heppia trichophora, Phylliscum abuense, Physcia abuensis, Thyrea indica, Zahlbrucknerella indica. Gengetic Plain Species,' Buellia diorista, Endocarpon nigrozonatllm, E. rosellllm, E. subrosellum. Central India Species: Buellia quartziana, B. subgalaziouana, Diplotomma egasporum, Rinodina makenziei. Western Ghats Genera,' Ocellularia (12 spp.), Parmentaria (9 spp.), Ditremis (8 spp.), Laurera (8 spp.), Usnea (8 spp.), Phaeographis (7 spp.), Buellia (6 spp.), Cryptothecia (6 spp .), Pertusaria (6 spp.), Graphina (5 spp.). Species: Anlhracothecium awaslhii, A. nanosporum, Arlhonia inconspicua, Arthothelium awasthii, Brigantiaea nigra, Bulbothrix bulbochaeta, Catillaria ni/giriensis, C. obscura, Heppsora indica, Hypotrachyna coorgiana, Lethothelium indicum. Leptogium indicllm, Parmelina simplicior, P dodapella, Parmotrema kamatii, Usnea nilgirica. U allstroindica. Stereocaulon indicllm, etc. Eastern Ghats and Deccan Plateau Species : BlIellia hemispherica, Caloplaca orissensis, Naevia pandani, Roccella belangeriana. Andaman and Nicobar Islands Genera : Pyrenula, (8 spp.), Cryptothecia and Ditremis (6 spp. each), Stirtonia, Thelo trema, Ocellularia and Parmentaria, (4 spp. each), Pleurotrema, Laurera and Myreotrema, (3 spp. each), etc. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 212 Species: Arthonia catenatula, Arthothelium bessale, Astrothelium subvariolosum, Bottaria awasthii, Clathroporina duplicans, Ditremis andamanica, Laurera alboverruca, Minksia alba, Ocellularia guptei, Pleurotrema corticola, Pyrenula andamanica, P. mestophoriza, Thelotrema rugetulum. RARE LICHENS Our knowledge on the rare lichens is indeed poor. This is because of inadequate knowledge on the full flora of the country. We do not have complete data on exact location and distribution of individual species. Population studies on Indian lichens are also completely lacking. We have also not analysed fully even the available data from literature and collections in herbaria. In spite of all these lacunae, some informations on rare and interesting lichens of India are available. Patwardhan (1983) has already made some observations on the rare and endemic lichens from Western Ghats, South Western India. Similar type of studies are needed on other regions of the country also. What is required in the present situation is concerted efforts by individuals and institutions to make vigorous searches for specific lichens and to confirm whether they are really rare. According to the present estimation about 20% species, that is about 404 species are rare in Indian flora. Most of these are neoendemics having restricted distribution in a small area in a lichenogeographic region, while certain ｯｴｾ･ｲ＠ species have a wide distribution in India. Some of the rare lichens are listed below, alongwith an indication of their presently known distribution. Acroscyphus sphaerophoroides, Corticolous; alpine region of Sikkim. Anaptychia pseudoromeri, Terricolous; Uttar Kashi (Uttar Pradesh) . Anthracothecium assamiense, Corticolous; Assam, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Arthonia arctata, Corticolous; Assam. Aspicilia aimorensis, Saxicolous; Almora (Uttar Pradesh). Aulaxina uniseptata, Foliicolous; Barduar Reserve forest, Kamrup (Assam). Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 213 214 Buellia indica, Saxicolous; Palni hills (Tamil Nadu) and Manipur. Bu/bothrix bu/bochaela, Corticolous; Shembaganur, Kodaikanal (Tamil Nadu). Ca/enia conspersa, Follicolous; Manipur and Nagaland . Ca/op/aca pindarensis, Saxicolous; Pindari glacier (Uttar Pradesh). Cetraria hypotrachyna, Corticolous; Manipur. C. isidioidea, Corticolous; Darjeeling (West Bengal). Collema hookeri, Corticolous; Lachen (Sikkim). Diplotomma manipurense, Saxicolous; Manipur and Nagaland. Glyphis duriscu/a, Corticolous; Assam. Heppsora indica, Saxicolous; Palni hills (Tamil Nadu). Heterodermia logashi, Corticolous; Sikkim. Hypogymnia thomsoniana, Corticolous; Sikkim. H walliana, Corticolous; Manipur. Hypotrachyna rigidu/a, Corticolous; Nagaland; Lachen (Sikkim) and Darjeeling (West Bengal). H scytodes, Corticolous; Darjeeling (West Bengal). Maronea manipurensis, Rhamnicolous; Manipur. Me/anolheca coaclella, Corticolous; Assam. Me/aspilea insitiva, Parasitic on Pertusaria; Assam. Mycobilimbia ca/cullensis, Corticolous; Calcutta (West Bengal). Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 Awasthiella indica, Saxicolous; Manipur and Nagaland. 215 Parmelina manipurensis, Saxicolous and corticolous; Manipur. P. simpliciar. Corticolous; Maharashtra. Parmolrema larissima, Corticolous; Calcutta (West Bengal). P. zollingeri, Saxicolous; Manipur. Peltigera pindarensis, Saxicolous; Phurkia, Pindari glacier (Uttar Pradesh). Phaeographis manipurensis, Corticolous; Manipur. Physcia abuensis, Corticolous; Mount Abu (Rajasthan). P. gamukhensis, Saxicolous; Uttar Kashi (Uttar Pradesh). Pilophorus awaslhianum, Saxicolous; Darjeeling (West Bengal). Pyxine palniensis, Saxicolous; Palni hills (Tamil Nadu). Rhizocarpon alpicola, Saxicolous; Himachal Pradesh. Usnea picloides, Corticolous; Nilgiri hills (Tamil Nadu). ECONOMIC USES The economic uses oflichens are well known since time immemorial. These varies from place to place. Lichens and the lichen substances derived from them have great economic value as food, antibiotics, UV absorbers, antioxidants, anti-cancer agents, dye stuffs, fodder, perfumes, etc. In India, they are mainly used in dyeing, flavouring, smoking tobacco and cigars, sambar masala, scenting soaps and cosmetics and the manufacture of 'Dhoop' and 'Hawan Samagri '. Besides, a large number of tribal population in Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Santhal Parganas in West Bengal, and Chotanagpur in Bihar, use many species such as Helerodermia tremulans, EvemiaslrUm cirrhatum. Parmolrema reliculalum, P. linc/orum, Ramalina subcomplanala. Usnea longissima, Roccella monlagnei, R. belangeriana, etc. as spices and flavouring agents to increase the taste and Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 Nephroma sikkimense, Terricolous & Corticolous; Sikkim. fragrance of non-vegetarian preparations, pulses and other vegetables. It is also interesting to note that a large number of tribal population (Brij Lal et al., 1985) ofBaiya, Bhit, Bhielala, Gond, Korka and Muria communities inhabiting Bastar, Bilaspur, Dhar, Jhabua, Mandla, Shahdol and Surguja districts of Madhya Pradesh, bring lichens to their local markets for sale to earn money for their livelihood. It is also reported (Saklani and Upreti, 1992) that the Lepchas and Nepalese in certain localities in Sikkim state use lichens in many ways. The thalli of Heterodermia diademata and Peltigera polydactyla are used for cuts and injuries to stop bleeding and also as antiseptic. The thallus of Everniastrum cirrhatum is boiled, fried and eaten as vegetable. Similarly thalli of Stereocaulon himalayense are widely used for curing the blisters of the tongue and urinary trouble. Lichens are also used in industry because they contain aromatic resinoids (Sarin and Atal ,1976). The bulk ofIndian lichens for this purpose, commercially known as 'Charilla' or 'Jhoola'. 'Salaj phool' and 'Haraphool' are transported from Western and Central Himalayas and are sold in the market at a rate of about Rupees 2500 to 4000 per tonne. About 1000 tonnes of lichen material are collected from the nature to meet the industrial requirements every year. 'Charilla' consists of Everniastrum nepalense and E. cirrhatum and is utilized by the manufacturers of smoking tobacco, kitchen masalas and 'dhoop'. Parmotrema nilgherrense popularly known as 'Salajphool' is used in leather industry. The 'Haraphool' which is a mixture of Usnea lucea and Ramalina subcomplanata is used as an adulterant of 'Charilla' or as an ingredient in 'dhoop' mixtures. In the folklores also, the medicinal uses oflichens are often mentioned. Peltigera can ina is eaten as a remedy for liver ailments. Lichens have also been used as bio-indicators of air pollution. Apart from these, there are many lichen species in India, which have minor uses. A list (Anonymous, 1962) of some such lichens along with their distribution, chemical composition and uses are appended below in tabular form. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 216 Name of species Distribution Chemical components Anaptychia ciliaris Kashmir Atranorin, arabitol and mannitol. As scent and for cleansing and whitening hair. Aspicilia calcarea Kumaun (Uttar Pradesh) Erythrin Red brown dye. Caloplaca saxicola Pindari Glacier (Uttar Pradesh) Emodin, Parietin and Teloschistin. Yellow dye Candelariella vitellina Jammu & Kashmir. Calycin & Pulvic anhydride Yellow dye. Cetraria islandica Almora and Uttarkashi (Uttar Pradesh) Fumarprotocetraric acid, protocetraric acid and protolichesterinic acid. Used as human food in Scandinavian countries and Iceland in mixture with cereals and mashed potatoes. C. pinaslri Uttarkashi (Uttar Pradesh) Pinastric acid, Vsnic acid and vulpinic acid. Green dye; for poisoning in Northern Europe. Chrysolhrix chlorina Himachal Pradesh Leprapinic acid, calycin, arabitol and mannitol. Brown dye. Cladonia arbuscula Sikkim Fumarprotocetratric acid. Fodder for reindeer; hot aqueous solutions used in Finland for Tuberculosis. Uses Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 N - ../ - tv Name of species Distribution Chemical components C/adonia pyxidala Darjeeling (West Fumarprotocetraric acid. Ash green dye; expectorant, used Bengal) & Uttar Pradesh. for whooping cough. Dermatocarpon villereum Mt. Abu (Rajasthan), Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Tam il Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. Ergosterol. Thall us used as cork substitute for lining insect collection boxes. Dip/aschislis scrupasus Widely distributed. Diplosch istic acid. Brown dye for calico printing. Evernia prunaslri Jammu & Kashmi r Evemic acid. For scenting soaps and in preparation of perfumes. Hypagymnia physodes Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh Atranorin, physodic acid, physodalic acid, arabitol and mannitol in traces. Brown dye; mucilage used as substitute for gum arabic in dyeing and in parchment and cardboard . Lasallia puslu/ala Himachal Pradesh, and Nagaland. Gyrophoric acid. Red brown dye. Uses Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 oc Name of species Distribution Chemical components Parmotrema abessinicum Tamilnadu Atranorin, norlobaridone, loxodin and protolichesterinic acid. Used as food material and condiments; source of orcinol and litmus. Physconia pulverulenta North-West & Western Himalayas. Atranorin Yellow dye. Pseudocyphellaria crocata Arunachal Pradesh, Tamilnadu, Uttar Pradesh and N agaland. Calycin and pulvic dilactone. Source of gam bose; brown dye. Pseudoparmelia caperala Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashm ir, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tamilnadu & Uttar Pradesh, Caperatic acid, protocetraric Brown orange to lemon ye llow dye. PuncteJia saxatilis Ramalina farinacea ac id, usnic acid, arabitol and mannitol. Uses Sikkim and Uttar Prades h Atranorin and Orange yellow and red brown salacinic acid. dye; in calico printing. Manipur, Tam ilnadu, Usnic acid, sekikaic acid, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal norstict ic acid and mannitol. Light brown dye; in perfumes and cosmetics. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 '" N Name of species Distribution Chemical components R. jraxinea Coromandal, Himachal Pradesh, Manipur and West Bengal. usn ic acid and arabitol. Grey white dye; in perfumes and cosmetics; mucilage used as substitute for gum arabic. R. subcomplanata Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Uttar Pradesh. Salacinic acid and usnic acid. As spices. Solorina crocea Western Himalaya. Solorinic ac id. Yellow dye. Teloschistes f1avicans Karnataka and Tami lnadu. Parietin and vicanicin. Source of gam bose; yellow dye. Umbilicaria cylindrica Darjeeling (West Bengal) Arabitol and mannitol. Green brown dye. Usnea longissima Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and West Bengal. Usnic, Barbatic, Barbatolic, diffractic, squamatic, fumarprotocetraric and evernic acids. In smoking tobacco; as dhoop and spices; for filling cushions; source of antibiotics. U. lucea Tamilnadu. Stictic acid. As spices. Xanthoria parie/ina Kashmir. Physcion, mannitol, lichenin, Yellow dye. Uses isolichenin and parietinic acid. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 IV IV 0 221 Like other group of plants, the lichens are also under various types of threats. But at present we do not have sufficient data on the subject. The threats to lichens can be grouped into two categories viz. (i) natural and (ii) man made or biotic. The main natural causes include landslides, floods, forest fires, etc. During rainy season landslides are frequent in hilly areas particularly in the Himalayas and north-eastern states. These cause great damage to the plant communities as a who le and the lichen communities in particular. Continuous landslides and floods do not allow lichens to establish themselves on the soil. In this way many terricolous species of Diploschistes, Cladonia, Pyxine, Lecidea, Lecanora, etc. become vulnerable. However, a proper study of this aspect is lacking. The forest fires often destroy trees and virgin forests, resulting in the elimination of many corticolous species of Parmelia, Hypogymnia, Usnea, Ramalina, etc. Regeneration of other trees also is affected thereby reducing the chances of growth of lichen communities in general. The man-made threats are very apparent particularly because the traditional life in hilly and forest areas is closely associated with the vegetation, domesticated animals and wi ldlife. Lichens have very limited ability to adapt themselves to abrupt environmental changes. Consequently in any particular habitat they show abundance and diversity only when various conditions are stable over a long period of time. The major threat caused by man is the destruction of habitats brought about by various anthropogenic activities such as construction of roads and dams in the hills, industria l set ups, urbanisation, agriculture, mineral extraction, etc. As a result of these many terricolous habitats especially at lowland areas appear to be at a g"eater risk. Recent surveys have shown that the forests in and around Ukhrul, Kongpokrnpi and Churachandpur in Manipur; Bomdila, Tawang, Seppa, New ltanagar, Along and Yingkiong in Arunachal Pradesh; Kohima, Kephire, Zunheboto, Wokha, etc. in Nagaland and Kolasib in Mizoram, which were once dense and possessed with rich lichen diversity have now been eliminated for various reasons. There are records of certain trees harbouring up to 30 lichen species on their trunks and twigs. A leaf of Musa or Palm may have up to 12 species offoliicolous lichens growing on it. The cutting or removal of such plants will naturally invite the risk of depletion of the species growing on them. The shifting cultivation, a common practice adopted by tribal societies in certain parts of the country is another cause responsible for depletion of Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 VULNERABILITY AND MAJOR THREATS many rich lichen habitats. This causes great threat to corticolous and foliicolous lichen communities in general, particularly in tropical and subtropical areas. The foliicolous species of Strigula, Porina, Fellhanera, Mazosia etc. becoming rarer day by day due to burning of virgin forests and loss of habitats. Besides, excessive use of fire-wood in hilly regions, preparation of charcoal by burning of trees (a practice common in the hill of Meghalaya) and stone quarrying for construction purposes specially in hills, are the other factors that lead to deforestation and resultant habitat destruction of species leading to degradation, depletion and disappearance of lichen deversity in general. Environmental pollution caused by the thermal power stations, industries, etc. is also another threat which affect the lichen vegetation in certain areas. Its increased quantum is responsible for creating unfavourable conditions for lichen growth. The Indian Botanic Garden at Howrah and suburban areas of Calcutta, Bangalore and Lucknow were once richly inhabited by corticolous conimunities, but now due to atmospheric pollution, the number of such species has decreased in Lucknow (A. Singh & Upreti, 1984), and the growth of lichens is greatly affected in the Indian Botanic Garden, Howrah (Das el al., 1986). However, for a detailed knowledge on the impact of pollution on lichen flora, much more work has to be carried out. The over exploitation of many economically important species such as Parmotrema reticulatum, P. nilgherrense, Everniaslrum nepalense, E. cirrha/um, Usnea, Ramalina species, etc. in Sikkim Himalaya and recently from Arunachal Pradesh for various industrial purpose is another major cause of threat to these species. According to an estimate, about 1000 tonnes of lichen material is collected every year from the Western and Central Himalayas. CONSERVATION Lichen conservation has not received any attention in India, though we discuss much about the conservation of biodiversity of different plant groups from various platforms. This is regrettable in view of their role in ecosystem function and other similar values like pollution indicators, etc. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 222 Name ofthe state Name of the site Nature of the lichen community Shergaon forests Foliose and Fruticose forms particularly of Loharia species Jung and Bomdir forests Usneaceae Yingkiyong forests Foliicolous Manipur Ukhrul, Sirohi Foliose Meghalaya Shoraraim and old Cherapunjee Crustose and foliose (saxicolous) Mizoram Ngengpui Foliose and foliicolous Nagaland Japho hills, Thanamere, Foliose and fruticose Saramati forests. Similarly more lichen rich habitats can be identified throughout the country for conservation. In situ conservation can also be effected by further demarcation of lichenologically rich areas as ' lichen sites' within earlier demarcated boundaries of Biosphere Reserves arNational Parks in the country. While preparing inventories of species of such areas, lower plants should also be taken into account for conservation strategies. Ex situ conservation oflichens has no base line in our country. This is a difficult task because lichens can not be easily multiplied or regenerated. However, to some extent the bark inhabiting communities can be grown in Botanical Gardens under suitable environmental conditions in different climatic zones. In these gardens, rare, interesting or otherwise threatened species from disturbed habitats can be rehabilitated by means of transplantation method for which detailed ecological studies are required. Transplantation of saxicolous communities appears to be simple and some success has already been achieved (Richardson, 1967) in case of foliose species. A technique to transplant intact saxicolous communities is already Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 224 known (Seaward, 1976). Recently some reseaches have been carried out (Yamamoto 1991) in the field of tissue culture through which in vitro culture can be developed and maintained for preserving the diverse gene bank in lichens. The excessive collection of lichens can be regulated by making some legislations. This provision is known to be available in some European countries like Britain and Poland. Besides there are many other aspects of conservation which need not be emphasised except most important one is to create public awareness about lower plants in general by giving wide publicity through available media. Lastly, a judicious planning and use of resources would help long way to conserve biodiversity for posterity. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 225 226 Ahmedullah, M. & Nayar, M.P. 1987. Endemic Plants ofthe Indian Origin Vol. I. Botanical Survey of Indiar Calcutta : 1-263. Anonymous 1962. The Wealth of India 6 L-M: 81-90 CSIR. Awasthi, D.O. 1965. Catalogue of the lichens from India, Nepal, Pakistan & Ceylon. Beiheft zur Nova Hedwigia 17: 1-137. Awasthi, D.O. 1988. A key to the Macrolichens of India and Nepal. J Hallori Bot. Lab. 6S : 207-302. Awasthi, D.o. 1991. A key to the Microlichens ofindia, Nepal & Sri Lanka. Biblio. Lichenol. 40: 1-337. Brij Lal e.t. al. 1985. Ethnobotanical utilization of lichens by the tribals of Madhya Pradesh. J Econ. Tax. Bot. 7(1): 203-304 . Clarke, C.B . 1898. On the Botanical sub areas of British India. J Linn. Soc. Bot. 34 : 1-146. Das, T.M., K.N. Roychowdhury and Siddhartha Roy 1986. Occurrence and growth of lichens in the Indian Botanic Garden. Howrah, with special reference to temperature, relative humidity, rainfall and chemical constituents oflichenlbark. Indian Biologist 18(1): 1-10 Groombridge, B. (ed.) 1992. Global Biodiversity: Status of the Earth's LiVing resources. Report Compiled by the world Conservation Monitoring Centre. Chapman & Hall, London. Hooker, J.D. 1907. Sketch of the Flora of British India. Imperial Gazetteer of India (3)1. (4) : 157-212. Jain, S.K. 1983. Flora and Vegetation of India, an outline. Pub. & Information Directorate, C.S.I.R., New Delhi. 1-24 pp. Jain, S.K. 1990. Botanical regions and flora of India. Everyman:S Science 90: 213-233. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 REFERENCES Nair, N.C. & P. Daniel 1986. The fl oristic diversity of the Western Ghats and its conservation. Proc. Indian Acad. Sci. (Animal/Plam Sci) Suppl. Nov. 127- 163. Pande, S.K. 1958. Some aspec ts of Indian Hepaticology. J Indian Bot. Soc. 37 : 1-26. Patwardhan, P. G. 1983 . Rare and Endemi c lichens in the Western Ghats, South Western India. In : Jain, S.K. and R.R. Rao (eds.), An assessment of threatened plants of India . 3 18-322. Howrah . Richardson, D.H.S. 1967. The transp lantat ion of li chen thalli to solve some taxono mi c problem s in Xanthoria parielina (L.) Th. Fr. U chenologist 3: 386-391. Seaward, M.R.D. 1976. Performance of Lecanora mum/is in an urban environment. In : D.H . Brown, D.L. Hawksworth and R.H. Bailey (eds.), Lichenology, Problems and progress, pp: 323-357 Academic Press London. Singh, A. 1980. Lichen ology in Indian su bcontinent 1966-1977. Economic Bal. Inforlll. Service. p. I-1 05. Nat. Bot. Res. Institute, Lucknow. Singh, A. & O.K. Upreti , 1984. The lichen genus Endocarpon in India. Candollea 39: 539-548. Subramaniam. K. & M.P. Nayar 1974. Vegetation & Phytogeography of the Western Ghats. Ln : Ecology and biography in India M .S. Mani (ed .) : 178-196 . Junk publi shers, The Hague. Yamamoto, Y 1991 . Plant ce ll c uiture in Japan , progress in prod uction of usefu l plants metabolities by Japanese enterpri se usi ng plant cell culture techno logy Tokyo: 58-7 1. Saklani, A. & Upreti, O.K. 1992. FolK uses of some lichen s in Sikkim. J Ethnopharmacology 37: 229-233. Sarin, YK. & C.K. Ata l 1976. Ut il ization of Indi an liche ns for production of aromati c resin o ids. PAFAI So lv. 33-40. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 227 N , 3 ,, ............ Ｍｾ＠ .•••• " " ,. 4 '., .' -, .' " ' , .5 '.• • •••••••••• • •• , o •• •• o, .. •••• .'. •, ••••••••••••• 7 ••, •• o , • '" • •• o • 0 , o • ,o . 0 , 0 8: o 0 • gQ t : CI oo ,.. •, o·..: .. o o • 0 • 0 "·0 • '. Q • •••• I. wEST HIMALAYAN 3. WESTERN DRY 5 . CENTRAL INDIA REGION REGION 2 . EASp , HIMALAYAN 4 . GANGETIC P LA IN 6. WEASTERN 7 . EAS T RN GHATS S DECCAN PLATEAU 8 . ANDAMAN REGION GHATS a NICOBAR ISLANDS Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 LlCHENOGEOGRAPHICAL REGIONS OF INDIA 229 Hiterodermia diademata - A Tropical, Saxicolous foliose (leafy) Lichen Dirineria Dicta -A Trooical. Saxicolous foliose (Ieafv) Lichen Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 230 Species of corticolous - Ramnuna One species of temperate. saxicolous foliose (leary, Licben - Leptogium Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 Saxicolous, Crustose Lichen 231 Menegazzia tereprata - A Temperate, Saxicolous foliose (leafy) Lichen Diploschistus actinostomus Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 232 One species of the genus Peltigera - A Terricolous (normaUy on mosses) foliose (leafy) Lichen Euevniastum cirvhatcum - Useful in the form of spices. Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 room of sptoos. Parmotrema rejiculatum - Useful in the form of spices. PllJOf111uliia tenet/t§JtUm1 - UseJlill in the 233 Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234 234 Epiphyllous Lichen - Species of Strigula and Bacidia Singh KP and Sinha GP 1997, Lichens, In : Floristic diversity and conservation strategies in India. Vol1 Cryptogams and Gymnosperms (Mudugal V and Hajara PK eds.), BSI, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Govt. of India,pp 195-234