Ecological Status and Socio-Cultural Significance of Sem Mukhem Temple Landscape in Garhwal Himalaya, India
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36808/if/2015/v141i5/70227Keywords:
Temple, Regeneration, Diversity, Conservation, Mythology.Abstract
The present study was an attempt to access the ecological status and influence of the socio-cultural heritage/ deities on conservation of Sem Mukhem temple landscape. The study reported 99 plant species representing 85 genera under 49 families. The recorded flora includes 23 tree, 34 shrub and 42 herb species. The species like Quercus floribunda, Quercus leucotrichophora, Berberis asiatica, Berberis aristata, Perilla frutescens and Achyranthes bidentata were dominant among different life forms. The Shannon and Simpsons diversity indices recorded for tree layer was (2.42) and (0.13) whereas for shrubs it was (3.24) and (0.05) respectively. Contagious pattern of distribution was observed for all the tree, shrub and herb species. Out of 23 tree species, 18 species were found at saplings stage, whereas only 11 showed survival at seedling stage. The temple located in the landscape is of Lord Krishna and different myths do exist among the surrounding communities. This landscape has preserved the socio-cultural heritage of the region and has kept intact local rituals in spite of growing modern culture, urbanization and other developmental activities around the region.References
Anderson J.L. (2001). Stone age minds on 21 century science: how cognitive psychology can inform conservation biology. Conservation in Practice, 2:18-27.
Berger W.H. and Parke F. (1970). Diversity of planktonic foraminifera in deep-sea sediments. Science, 168:1345-1347.
Beyond Belief. (2005). Linking faiths and protected areas to support biodiversity conservation WWF Report.
Bray D.B., Merino-Perez L., Negreros-Casillo P., Segura- Warnholtz G. and Torres-Rojo V. H.F.M. (2003). Mexico's community forests as a global model for sustainable landscapes. Conservation Biology, 17:672-677.
Callicott J.B. (1990). Whither conservation ethics. Conservation Biology, 4:15-20.
Campbell M.O. (2004). Traditional forest protection and woodlots in the coastal savannah of Ghana. Environmental Conservation, 31:225- 232.
Cao M., Zhang J.H., Feng Z., Deng J. and Deng X. (1996). Tree species composition of a seasonal rainforest in Xishuangbanna, South West China. Tropical Ecology, 37:183-192.
Chandran S. and Gadgil M. (1998). Sacred groves and sacred trees of Uttara Kannada. Lifestyle and Ecology. Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts and D.K. Printworld, Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi.
Chandrasekara U.M. and Sankar S. (1998). Ecology and management of sacred groves in Kerala. Forest Ecology and Management, 112:165- 177.
Colding J. and Folke C. (2001). Social taboos: " invisible†systems of local resources management and biological conservation. Ecological applications, 11:584-600.
Curtis J.T. and Cottam G. (1956). Plant Ecology Workbook. Laboratory field reference manual. Burgers Publication Co., Minnesota, 193.
Gokhale Y. and Pala N.A. (2011). Ecosystem Services in Sacred Natural Sites (SNSs) of Uttarakhand: A Preliminary Survey, J. Biodiversity, 2:107-115.
Heywood V.H. (1995). (eds). Global Biodiversity assessment, UNEP, Combridge University Press, pp: 1140
Kadamba D., Ramanujam M.P., Kumar C.K. and Krishnan V. (2000). Changing strategy for biodiversity conservation: rediscovering the roots in cultural traditions. Abstract, National Symposium on Environmental Crisis and Security in the New Millennium (December 14-16): 10-11. Pondicherry University, India.
Kellert S.R., Black M.C., Rush R. and Bath A.J. (1996). Human culture and large carnivore conservation in North America. Conservation Biology, 10:262-286
Khumbongmayum A.D., Khan M.K. and Tripathi R.S. (2004). Sacred groves of Manipur - ideal centres for biodiversity conservation. Conservation Science, 87: 430-433.
Khumbongmayum A.D., Khan M.L. and Tripathi R.S. (2005). Survival and growth of seedlings of a few tree species in the four sacred groves of Manipur, Northeast India. Current Science, 88(11): 1781-1788.
Khumbongmayum A.D., Khan M.L. and Tripathi R.S. (2006). Sacred groves of Manipur, northeast India: biodiversity value, status and strategies for their conservation. Biodiversity and Conservation, 15:2439-2456.
Knight D.H. (1963). A distance method for constructing forest profile diagrams and obtaining structural data. Tropical Ecology, 4:89-94.
Kothri A. (2006). Community conserved areas: towards ecological and livelihood security. Parks, 16:703-733.
Margalef R. (1958). Information theory in ecology. General Systems, 3: 36-71.
Mishra R. (1968). Ecology Work Book. Oxford and IBM publishing Co. Calcutta, 244.
Mueller-Dombois D. and Ellenberg H. (1974) Aims and Methods in Vegetation Ecology. John Wiley and Sons. New York.
Pala N.A., Negi A.K., Gokhale Y. and Todaria N.P. (2013).Tree Regeneration Status of Sacred and Protected Landscapes in GarhwalHimalaya, India, Journal of Sustainable Forestry, 32:230-246
Pala N.A., Negi A.K., Gokhale Y., Aziem S., Vikrant K.K. and Todaria N.P. (2013).Carbon stock estimation for tree species of Sem Mukhem sacred forest in Garhwal Himalaya, India, Journal of Forestry Research, DOI 10.1007/s11676-013-0341-1
Pandey D.N. (1998). Ethnoforestry: Local Knowledge for Sustainable Forestry and Livelihood Security. Asia Forest Network & Himanshu, Berkeley, New Delhi and Udaipur.
Patel E.R. (2006). Appealing to hearts and minds: silky sifaka (Propithecus candidus) conservation education in north-eastern Madagascar. American Journal of Primatology, 68:87
Pielou E.C. (1966). The measurement of diversity in different types of biological collections. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 13:131-144.
Pooley J.A. and O'Connor M. (2001). Environmental education and attitudes: emotions and beliefs are what is needed. Environment and Behaviour, 32:711-723.
Prentice C. and Parish D. (1990). Conservation of beat Swamp Forest: A forgotten ecosystem'. Proceed. of the Int. Conf. on Trop. Biodivers., In Harmony with Nature. Kualalampur. pp: 128-141
Purohit D.R. (2001). Fairs and Festivals In: Garhwal Himalaya- Nature, Culture and Society (Khundari, O.P and Gusain, O.P. Eds) pp 363-384.
Richards P.W. (1996). The Tropical Rain Forest: An Ecological Study. Cambridge University Press, New York, 575.
Rudd J. (1960). Taboo: a study of Malagasy customs and beliefs. Allen and Unwin, London.
Shannon C.E. and Wiener W. (1963). The Mathematical Theory of Communication. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Simpson E.H. (1949). Measurement of diversity. Nature (London), 163: 688.
Singh J.S. and Singh S.P. (1992). Forest of Himalaya: Structure and Functioning and Impact of Man. Gynodya Prakashan, Nainital, India
Singh G.S., Rao K.S. and Saxena K.G. (1998). Eco-cultural analysis of sacred species and ecosystems in Chhakinal watershed, Himachal Pradesh. Pages 301-314, In: Conserving the Sacred for Biodiversity Management. (Ramakrishnan, P.S., Saxena, K.G. and Chandrashekara, U.M. Editors) UNESCO and Oxford-IBH Publishing, New Delhi.
Tiwari B.K., Barik S.K. and Tripathi R.S. (1999). Sacred Forests of Meghalaya: Biological and Cultural Diversity: Regional Centre, National Afforestation and Eco- Development Board, North-Eastern Hill University, Shillong. 120 pages.
Uma Shankar R. (2001). A case of high tree diversity in a sal (Shorea robusta) dominated lowland forest of Eastern Himalaya: Floristic composition, regeneration and conservation. Current Science, 81:776-786.
UNEP., (1992). Convention on Biological Diversity CBD, (UNEP), Montreal.
Uniyal P., Pokhriyal P., Dasgupta S., Bhatt D. and Todaria N.P. (2010). Plant diversity in two forest types along the disturbance gradient in Dewalgarh Watershed, Garhwal Himalaya Current Science, 98:938-943
Van Gennep A. (1904). Tabou et totemisme a Madagascar: etude descriptive et theoretique. Ernest Leroux, Paris.
Downloads
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Unless otherwise stated, copyright or similar rights in all materials presented on the site, including graphical images, are owned by Indian Forester.
