Western Ghats
| Western Ghats | |
|---|---|
 Location of the Western Ghats on the map of the Indian subcontinent. |
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| Highest peak | Anamudi ( 2695 m ) |
| location | States of Maharashtra , Goa , Karnataka , Kerala and Tamil Nadu in India |
| part of | Indian subcontinent |
| Coordinates | 13 ° N , 76 ° E |
The Western Ghats ( Engl. Western Ghats ; Hindi पश्चिमी घाट , Paścimī Ghata ; Marathi सह्याद्री , Sahyadri ; Kannada ಪಶ್ಚಿಮ ಘಟ್ಟಗಳು , Paścima ghaṭṭagaḷu ; Malayalam പശ്ചിമഘട്ടം , Paścimaghaṭṭaṁ ) are mountains in the west of India , which at the edge of Deccan plateau runs and this of separates the narrow strip of the coastal plain and the Arabian Sea .
geography
The mountain range of the Western Ghats begins south of the Tapti River on the border of the Indian states of Gujarat and Maharashtra and runs over a length of about 1600 km through the states of Maharashtra, Goa , Karnataka , Kerala and Tamil Nadu almost to the southern tip of the Indian subcontinent. The average altitude is around 900 m . Higher peaks can be found in the north in Maharashtra, for example Kalsubai (1646 m), Mahabaleshwar (1438 m) and Harishchandragarh (1424 m) as well as in southwestern Karnataka, Kudremukh (1862 m). The only major gap within the mountain range, the Palghat , connects Tamil Nadu with Kerala. Smaller appendages of the southern Western Ghats are the Nilgiri and Cardamom Mountains in northwestern Tamil Nadu and the Billigirangans in southeast Karnataka, which meet the Servaraya and Tirumala Mountains further east and thus connect the Western Ghats with the Eastern Ghats . Strangely enough, the highest peaks in South India are located here ( Anamudi in Kerala (2695 m) and Doddabetta in Tamil Nadu (2637 m)). The mountain ranges serve as natural corridors for wildlife, such as the Indian elephants , to move between areas.
The northern part of the narrow coastal plain between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea is known as the Konkan Coast , the southern part as the Malabar Coast . The foothills region east of the Ghats in Maharashtra is called Desh , while the foothills region of central Karnatakas is called Malnad (from kannada maḷe-nāḍu = rainland). The largest city in the Western Ghats is Pune im Desh.
The mountains represent a natural obstacle to the western monsoon , which means that its water-rich rain clouds rain down on the slopes, as the clouds that rise up the slopes can no longer hold their stored water due to the cooling. The dense forests also contribute to a warm, humid climate. Only the western slopes of the Western Ghats benefit from this, while the east with the Deccan is comparatively dry. The Western Ghats also represent the most important watershed of the Indian peninsula and from them flow the relatively short rivers on the west side, which flow to the Arabian Sea, on the one hand, and the longer rivers on the east side, such as Godavari , Krishna and Kaveri , which finally flow into the Pour Bay of Bengal . Many of these rivers are heavily polluted by pollution carried into the rivers from mining , agriculture , settlements and industry .
Flora and fauna
Originally, the Western Ghats were largely overgrown by rainforest . These forests were home to a diverse range of fauna and flora . But humans have had a strong influence on the original landscape. There are numerous national parks and protected areas in the Western Ghats area, but it is believed that only a small part of the area will be preserved in its natural state.
Biographers recognized some time ago that the flora and fauna of the Western Ghats is very diverse and in some cases unique in the world. Many endemic species, especially amphibians and reptiles , are common here. The family of Uropeltidae within the snakes is unique to the area. In addition, the frog species Nasikabatrachus sahyadrensis was discovered in 2003 , which is a living fossil . The Travancore tortoise from the genus of Asiatic tortoises is also restricted to this mountain range.
The Western Ghats are ecologically different from the dry regions in the north and east and can be divided into four ecoregions . The north is somewhat drier than the south, reaches somewhat lower heights and forms the "ecoregion of deciduous rainforests of the northern Western Ghats", which has teak trees and species of the Dipterocarpaceae as important species . Above 1000 m above sea level lies the cool, humid "ecoregion of mountain rainforests of the northern Western Ghats", the main evergreen representatives of which belong to the Lauraceae family.
The evergreen Wayanad Forests of Kerala and Tamil Nadu form the transition region between the northern and southern ecoregions of the Western Ghats. The southern ecoregions are generally more humid and species-rich. At low altitudes one finds the deciduous rainforests ecoregion of the southern Western Ghats , with the main species Cullenia , Teak, Dipterocarpaceae and others. In the east this goes over into the "ecoregion of deciduous plains dry forests of the southern Dekhan". Above 1000 meters lies the “ecoregion of mountain rainforests of the southern Western Ghats”, which is cooler and more humid than the surrounding lowland forests, although grasslands and dwarf forests can be found in the highest areas. This area is the most biodiverse in India: Approx. 80% of all flowering plants in the entire Western Ghats are found here; approx. 35% of the plants, 42% of the fish , 48% of the reptiles and 75% of the amphibians that occur here are endemic species.
The Western Ghats are one of the world's most important biodiversity hotspots . In 2012, 39 protected areas in the Western Ghats were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List .
Attractions
Because of their rainy climate and fertile soils, the Western Ghats are a very old settlement area. Apart from the charming scenic aspects, some of the earliest evidence of Buddhist cave architecture can be found here : Karli caves, Bhaja caves, Bedsa caves near Lonavla ; Pandavleni Caves at Nashik and others; one of the oldest free-standing temples in India is also located just a little east of the Western Ghats near Talagunda .
Cities
Ultimately, several large cities on the Dekkan Plateau benefit from the abundance of water in the Western Ghats - the best known are Pune , Aurangabad , Nashik , Bangalore and the like. a.
See also
Web links
- Deutschlandfunk , Environment & Consumers , October 8, 2013, Rainer Hörig: dradio.de: The mining of raw materials threatens the species-rich mountain region in India (November 10, 2013)
Individual evidence
- ↑ Indraneil Das: Die Schildkröten des Indian Subcontinent , Edition Chimaira, Frankfurt am Main 2001, ISBN 3-930612-35-6 , p. 65
- ↑ UNESCO World Heritage Center: Western Ghats
Cultural heritage: Ajanta Rock Temple (1983) | Ellora Cave Temple (1983) | Red Fort in Agra (1983) | Taj Mahal (1983) | Konarak Sun Temple (1984) | Mahabalipuram Temple District (1984) | Churches and Monasteries of Goa (1986) | Khajuraho Temple District (1986) | Temple District of Hampi (1986) | Mughal city of Fatehpur Sikri (1986) | Pattadakal Temple Complex (1987) | Elephanta Caves (1987) | Great Temples of the Chola Dynasty (1987) | Buddhist shrine near Sanchi (1989) | Humayun's Mausoleum (1993) | Qutb Complex (1993) | Mountain Railways in India (1999) | Mahabodhi Temple of Bodhgaya (2002) | Bhimbetka Caves (2003) | Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (2004) | Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park (2004) | Red Fort in Delhi (2007) | The Jantar Mantar in Jaipur (2010) | Mountain Fortresses of Rajasthan (2013) | Rani Ki Vav (2014) | The architectural work of Le Corbusier : Capitol Complex in Chandigarh (2016) | Nalanda Mahavihara Archaeological Site (2016) | Old City of Ahmedabad (2017) | Victorian Gothic and Art Deco ensembles in Mumbai (2018) | Old City of Jaipur (2019)
Natural heritage: Kaziranga National Park (1985) | Manas Wildlife Sanctuary (1985) | Keoladeo National Park (1985) | Sundarbans National Park (1987) | Nanda Devi National Park and Valley of Flowers National Park (1988) | Western Ghats (2012) | Great Himalaya National Park (2014)
Cultural / natural heritage: Kangchenjunga National Park (2016)