Question

Tropical mountain forests in India are found in the South Western Ghats. By what name are these types of forests known?
1. Evergreen
2. Lowland forest
3. Thorn Forest 
4. Shola forest

Answer 1

Correct Answer - Option 4 : Shola forest

The correct answer is Shola forest.

• Shola forests are the local name for patches of stunted tropical mountain forest found in valleys amid rolling grassland in the higher mountain regions of South India, largely in Kerala.
  • These patches of shola forest are found mainly in the valleys and are usually separated from one another by undulating montane grassland.
  • The shola and grassland together form the shola-grassland complex or mosaic.

• An evergreen forest is a forest made up of evergreen trees.
  • They occur across a wide range of climatic zones and include trees such as coniferous and holly in cold climates, eucalyptus, Live oak, acacias, and banksia in more temperate zones, and rainforest trees in tropical zones.
• Lowland primary forest, often characterized by more than five forest tier levels, is usually taller and more diverse than montane forest.
  • It has a greater diversity of fruiting trees; hence more animals specially adapted to feed on their fruits and more large mammals.
• The Thorn Forests And Scrubs thorny forest is a dense, scrub-like vegetation characteristic of dry subtropical and warm temperate areas with a seasonal rainfall averaging 250 to 500 mm.