News Highlight
An invasive species, Senna spectabilis, an exotic tree, has taken over between 800 hectares and 1,200 hectares of the buffer zones of the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR).
Key takeaway
- The Forest Department is coming up with a comprehensive strategy to tackle the invasive species, which continue to spread rapidly in the buffer zone.
- Introduced as an ornamental species and for use as firewood from South and Central America, the species has become highly invasive in the Sigur plateau in both the core and buffer zones of the MTR.
Invasive Species
- What
- An invasive species can be any kind of living organism that is not native to an ecosystem and causes harm.
- Common features
- The ability to reproduce both asexually and sexually
- Fast growth
- Rapid reproduction
- High dispersal ability
- Tolerance of a wide range of environmental conditions
- Ability to live off of a wide range of food types
- Impacts
- Invasive species alter the environment they invade and are difficult and expensive to control after they colonise a landscape.
- They can harm the environment, the economy, or even human health.
- Examples
- Alternanthera philoxeroides
- Cassia uniflora
- Chromolaena odorata
- Eichhornia crassipes
- Lantana camara
- Parthenium hysterophorus
- Prosopis juliflora
Mudumalai Tiger Reserve
- About
- Mudumalai Tiger Reserve is located in the Nilgiris District of Tamil Nadu state at the tri-junction of three states, viz, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
- Location
- It is a part of Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve along with Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (Kerala) in the West, Bandipur National Park (Karnataka) in the North, Mukurthi National Park and Silent Valley in the South.
- Climate
- The climate of Mudumalai is moderate. It experiences cold weather during the month of December or the beginning of January and hot weather is experienced during the months of March and April.
- Important flora and fauna
- It has tall grasses, commonly referred to as “Elephant Grass”, Bamboo of the giant variety, and valuable timber species like Teak, Rosewood, etc.
- There are several species of endemic flora. Such a varied habitat is inhabited by a variety of animals which include tigers, elephants, Indian Gaur, Panther, Sambar, Spotted Deer, Barking Deer, Mouse Deer, Common Langur, Malabar Giant Squirrel, Wild Dog, Mongoose, Jungle Cat, Hyena, among others.
Content Source: The Hindu