BookChandrakasan Sivaperuman, Krishnamoorthy Venkataraman, editors.
Summary: This book offers a comprehensive account of India's four biodiversity hotspots: the Himalaya, Indo-Burma, Western Ghats and Sri Lanka and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. With a focus on tropical rainforests, it includes more than 30 chapters covering different vertebrate fauna e.g. fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, as well as topics such as conservation and management aspects. Written by experts in the field of biodiversity conservation and management, it offers ample new insights into a number of subjects related to the faunal communities of tropical forest ecosystems, providing a valuable resource for conservationists and researchers in the field of flora and fauna diversity.
Contents:
Intro; Foreword; Preface; Acknowledgements; Contents; About the Editors;
1: Biodiversity Hotspots in India; 1.1 Introduction; 1.2 Biogeographic Zones of India; 1.3 Biodiversity in India; 1.4 The Biodiversity Hotspots Concept; 1.5 Indian Biodiversity Hotspots; 1.6 Hotspot: The Himalaya; 1.7 Biodiversity; 1.8 Hotspot: Indo-Burma; 1.9 Biodiversity; 1.10 Hotspot: Western Ghats and Sri Lanka; 1.11 Biodiversity; 1.12 Hotspot: Sundaland; 1.13 Important Major Fauna of Sundaland Hotspots (Nicobar Islands); 1.13.1 Coconut Crab, Birgus latro (Linnaeus, 1767). 1.13.2 Nicobar Megapode Megapodius nicobariensis (Blyth, 1846)1.13.3 Nicobar Tree Shrew Tupaia nicobarica (Zelebor, 1869); 1.13.4 Nicobar Long-Tailed Macaque Macaca fascicularis umbrosa (Miller, 1902); 1.13.5 Leatherback Turtle Dermochelys coriacea; 1.14 Major Threats to the Biodiversity; 1.15 Threats to Species and Genetic Diversity; 1.16 Government of India Efforts for Conservation of Biodiversity; 1.16.1 Protected Areas; 1.16.2 Project Tiger; 1.16.3 Project Elephant; 1.17 Biosphere Reserves of India; 1.18 Marine Protected Areas in India; 1.19 The Ramsar Convention. 1.20 Species Recovery Program for Saving Critically Endangered Animals1.21 Legislative and Policy Framework; 1.22 National Biodiversity Authority; 1.23 Other Important Central Acts Relevant to Biodiversity; References;
2: Endemic, Endangered and Threatened Vertebrates in the Indian Hotspots; 2.1 Introduction; 2.2 Endemism; 2.3 Threatened Species; 2.4 Distribution of Amphibians of India; 2.5 Distribution of Reptiles of India; 2.6 Birds of India; 2.7 Mammals of India; 2.8 Few Threatened Animals of India; 2.8.1 Jerdonâ#x80;#x99;s Courser Rhinoptilus bitorquatus (Blyth, 1848). 2.8.13 Malabar Large-Spotted Civet Viverra civettina (Blyth, 1862)2.9 Endemic Birds Species of India; 2.10 Hotspot: Western Ghats; 2.11 Vertebrate Fauna of Western Ghats; 2.12 Endemic Birds of Western Ghats; 2.13 Endemic Mammals of Western Ghats; 2.14 Hotspot: Indo-Burma; 2.15 Endemic and Threatened Birds of Indo-Burma Hotspot; 2.16 Endemic and Threatened Species of Fishes; 2.17 Hotspot: Sundaland (Nicobar Islands); 2.18 Endemic Birds of Sundaland Hotspot (Nicobar Islands); 2.19 Endemic and Threatened Species of Mammals of Sundaland Hotspot; 2.20 Hotspot: Himalaya. 2.8.2 Forest Owlet Heteroglaux blewitti (Hume, 1873)2.8.3 White-Bellied Heron Ardea insignis (Hume, 1878); 2.8.4 Vultures; 2.8.5 Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis (Gmelin, 1789); 2.8.6 Himalayan Quail Ophrysia superciliosa (Gray, JE 1846); 2.8.7 Pink-Headed Duck Rhodonessa caryophyllacea (Latham, 1790); 2.8.8 Spoon-Billed Sandpiper Eurynorhynchus pygmeus (Linnaeus, 1758); 2.8.9 Siberian Crane Grus leucogeranus (Pallas, 1773); 2.8.10 Sociable Lapwing Vanellus gregarius (Pallas, 1771); 2.8.11 Pygmy Hog Porcula salvania (Hodgson, 1847); 2.8.12 Andaman and Nicobar Shrew.