The North Western Ghats moist deciduous forests is a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of southwestern India.
Contents
Setting
The North Western Ghats moist deciduous forests lies in the northern portion of the Western Ghats (Sahyadri) range. It extends from southeastern Gujarat through Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Maharashtra, Goa, and Karnataka. It covers the eastern and western slopes of the range between 250 and 1000 meters elevation, and surrounds the North Western Ghats montane rain forests ecoregion, which lies above 1000 meters elevation. The ecoregion has an area of 48,200 square kilometers (18,600 sq mi). It is bounded on the west by the Malabar Coast moist forests ecoregion, which lies between the 250 meter elevation and the Arabian Sea. At its northern end, the ecoregion extends to the Narmada River, and borders the Kathiarbar-Gir dry deciduous forests to the northwest and the Narmada Valley dry deciduous forests to the northeast. The Wayanad forests at the southern end of the ecoregion mark the transition to the South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests to the south. To the east, in the dry rain shadow of the Ghats, are the South Deccan Plateau dry deciduous forests ecoregion, whose tropical dry forests cover the Ghats' eastern foothills.
Protected areas
In 1997, the World Wildlife Fund identified thirteen protected areas in the ecoregion, with a combined area of approximately 2,200 km², that encompassed 5% of the ecoregion's area.