[Nethra K Putti]

SHOLA

it is a type of high-altitude stunted evergreen forest found in southern India . Patches of shola forest are usually seperated from one another by undulating grassland. Shola forests are found only in the southern portion of the western ghats mountains of karnataka, kerala & tamil nadu. the word Shola is derived from tamil word 'solai' , means 'thicker' / bamboo clump. due to tis altitude & evergreen character , it is home to some of the most threatend & endamic species. many larger animals inhibiting s shola-grassland mosiac are : tiger, elephants, leopards, spotted dear. the endangered nilgiri tahr (an asian goat-antelope) is endamic to the shola-grassland & its range now restricted to 400-km stretch of shola-grass mosiac, from nilgiri hills to the ashambu hills. shola forests have an upper storey of small trees generally these are :
- pygeum gardneri
- schefflera raccmosa
- linnociera ramiflora
- syzigium spp
- rhododendron nilgirium
- mahonia nepalensis
- elaeocarpus recurvatus,
- Ilex deuticulate
- michelia nilagirica
- actinodaphhe bourdellonii
- litsea wightiana.

below upper storey is a low under storey & a dense shrub layer. these shola-forests are interspered with montane grasslands characterized by frost & fire-resistant grass species like :
- chrysopogam zeylanicus
- cymbopogen flexuoscus
- arundinella ciliata
- arundinella merophylla
- arundinella tubereulota
- themeda tremula
- sehima nervosum.

generally said to occur 2000 meters above MSL, but shola-forests can be found at 1600 meters elevation in many hill ranges. some shola areas have suffered from excessive amounts of burning, leading to the shrinkage of forest patches & growth of invasive species.