Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

AVIAN DIVERSITY OF SELECTED SACRED GROVES FROM RATNAGIRI DISTRICT, M.S., INDIA

Anuradha G. Gaikar and Mangesh N. Jamble

Abstract

Sacred groves are the vegetated patches mainly dedicated to the local folk deities or ancestral spirits. They possess high capacity of biological productivity and are intimately related with social culture, religious and similar faiths etc. Sacred groves are a better source of certain consumable goods like wild fruits, honey, folk and ayurvedic medicines, fresh water as well as dead wood as fuel. As they are a protected area due to local humane ethics, laws and regulation as well as religious beliefs etc., they harbor a very good species richness and species abundance in their habitats. In Ratnagiri district, avian diversity from two sacred groves from Chiplun Tehsil and Two from Ratnagiri Tehsil was evaluated for the sake of study. As compared to other vertebrates, avian diversity in the selected sacred groves was observed to be rich. It constituted about 79 species; which is 34.70% of all the avian diversity in Ratnagiri district. Impact of anthropogenic activities was also detected causing negative effects on all sorts of biodiversity in sacred groves.