TheImprovement ofTropical and Subtropical Rangelands

OHANGING PATTERNS IN THE BEDTHI·AGHANASHINI VALLEYS 299
TID SE-rI1NG
The Locale
The hill chain of the Western Ghats runs just inland of the west
cout of India from the southern tip of the peninsula at SON all the
way to the Tapi River at 21°N. Towards its middle, between 14°N
and 15°N, the coutline is at its narrowest, with spur hills running
right up to the eea. This part of the Western Ghats constitutes the
Uttara Kannada District (also known as North Canara) of the state
of Karnataka, a tract of low undulating hills rising up to 600 m,
the level of the Peninsular Indian Plateau, and sloping rather gently
towards the west coast, over a broad stretch of 80 km. The annual
precipitation ranges from 2,000 mm to 5,000 mIn and is largely
restricted to the months of June through October, the period of
southwest monsoon. The rivers of the tract are relatively short, with
lengths of Ie. than 100 kmj they run westward from the hills to the
Arabian Sea. They are in spate during the monsoon, but have little
water during the rest ofthe yearj the smaller streams run totally dry.
In the middle ofthis region run two rivers-Bedthi and Aghanashinij
their contiguous catchment areas of about 2,000 km 2 are the focus of
this cue study (Campbell, 1883).
Plant 8Dd Animal Life
The natural vegetation of the tract includes low mangrove forest
at the mouths ofthe Bedthi and Aghanuhini riversj evergreen forests
grow on the coast, the western face of the Western Ghats, and on
the crestline with annual precipitation of over 3,000 mInj a semievergreen
and moist deciduous vegetation is found to the east of the
crestline where precipitation reaches about 2,000 mIn. The evergreen
forests are economically notable: many species produce secondary
chemical compounds of value including spices (pepper, cinnamon,
and nutmeg) and drugs (reserpine). They also harbor wild mango
and jackfruit trees. The evergreen trees have largely soft woodj the
deciduous trees, on the other hand, often produce excellent timber,
including the famous Canara teak.
The natural animal life is varied and abundant, and includes
elephant, the Indian bison, spotted deer, tiger, grey langur and
bonnet macaque, flying fox and flying squirrels, the great Indian
hornbill, and peafowl (Prasad et aI., 1979). The fresh waters, the
estuaries, and the sea also abound in fish, prawns, and shellfish.