PJB-2018-562
FLORISTIC AND FUNCTIONAL TRAIT DIVERSITY OF FLORA OF KERAN - A REMOTE VALLEY OF NORTHWESTERN HIMALAYA
SHEIKH MARIFATUL HAQ
Abstract
Unraveling the functional trait diversity of flora in the biodiversity-rich regions of the world may help in understanding the variability in community composition as well as ecosystem functioning because of their mechanistic and discern nature. The present study has investigated the floristic and functional trait diversity of Keran valley, a region nestled in the northwestern frontiers of Himalayan biodiversity hotspot. Floristically, a total of 183 species were recorded, out of which 81 were aliens. In terms of functional trait diversity, herbaceous growth form was dominant (67%) and therophytes were the dominant (37%) life form. Likewise, mesophylls (34%) followed by nanophylls (29%) and microphylls (27%) were major leaf size categories; and the simple leaf lamina type was recorded in majority of the species (65%). Almost 1/3rd of the total species pool was growing in the forest habitats, while as the 2/3rd occur within the 9 habitat types which were largely human-modified. The vegetation phenology observed during different seasons revealed that most of the species were dominant in summer season (37%), followed by spring (29%), autumn (21%) and winter (13%). Hopefully, the present study can furnish vital biodiversity baseline data to develop scientifically-informed approach for conservation and sustainable use of plant diversity in this Himalayan region.
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