Assessment of Vegetation Index in Selected Protected Areas of Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India
The Western Ghats Forest ecosystem is known for its abundance of flora and is impacted primarily by habitat degradation. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was used in this study to assess the vegetation changes over time in three protected areas of Western Ghats, including Idukki Wi...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of Sri Jayewardenepura
2021-11-01
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| Series: | Journal of Tropical Forestry and Environment |
| Online Access: | https://journals.sjp.ac.lk/index.php/JTFE/article/view/5366 |
| _version_ | 1811300063259918336 |
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| author | G. Shalu K. Zubereya S. Anbazhagi M. Muthuchamy |
| author_facet | G. Shalu K. Zubereya S. Anbazhagi M. Muthuchamy |
| author_sort | G. Shalu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
The Western Ghats Forest ecosystem is known for its abundance of flora and is impacted primarily by habitat degradation. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was used in this study to assess the vegetation changes over time in three protected areas of Western Ghats, including Idukki Wildlife Sanctuary, Eravikulam National Park, and Parambikulam Wildlife
Sanctuary, over a 15-year interval (1988-2003 and 2003-2018) using Landsat datasets and ArcGIS 10.6. The result shows that the vegetation in these three protected areas declined dramatically during a decade (1988-2003), perhaps due to anthropogenic activities, deforestation, forest fires, forest plantations, and fragmentation. Historical records confirm that the study areas have been previously subjected to frequent fires, which have deteriorated the forest. In certain locations, clear-felling of forests for plantation was also documented. Later, between 2003 and 2018, vegetation in these areas increased marginally, possibly due to the Government's conservation efforts in protected areas. Further conservation activities in protected area networks, including afforestation with indigenous flora and adequate legal protection, are recommended in this present study.
Keywords: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), protected areas, remote sensing, vegetation, Western Ghats
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| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T06:45:43Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-734d45599dc845e0b9ca0d111bfff422 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2235-9370 2235-9362 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T06:45:43Z |
| publishDate | 2021-11-01 |
| publisher | University of Sri Jayewardenepura |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Tropical Forestry and Environment |
| spelling | doaj.art-734d45599dc845e0b9ca0d111bfff4222022-12-22T02:57:35ZengUniversity of Sri JayewardenepuraJournal of Tropical Forestry and Environment2235-93702235-93622021-11-011101Assessment of Vegetation Index in Selected Protected Areas of Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, IndiaG. Shalu0 K. Zubereya1S. Anbazhagi2M. Muthuchamy3Department of Environmental Science, School of Earth Science Systems, Central University of Kerala, Tejaswini Hills, Periya, Kasaragod – 671 316, Kerala, IndiaDepartment of Environmental Science, School of Earth Science Systems, Central University of Kerala, Tejaswini Hills, Periya, Kasaragod – 671 316, Kerala, IndiaDepartment of Environmental Science, School of Earth Science Systems, Central University of Kerala, Tejaswini Hills, Periya, Kasaragod – 671 316, Kerala, IndiaDepartment of Environmental Science, School of Earth Science Systems, Central University of Kerala, Tejaswini Hills, Periya, Kasaragod – 671 316, Kerala, India The Western Ghats Forest ecosystem is known for its abundance of flora and is impacted primarily by habitat degradation. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was used in this study to assess the vegetation changes over time in three protected areas of Western Ghats, including Idukki Wildlife Sanctuary, Eravikulam National Park, and Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary, over a 15-year interval (1988-2003 and 2003-2018) using Landsat datasets and ArcGIS 10.6. The result shows that the vegetation in these three protected areas declined dramatically during a decade (1988-2003), perhaps due to anthropogenic activities, deforestation, forest fires, forest plantations, and fragmentation. Historical records confirm that the study areas have been previously subjected to frequent fires, which have deteriorated the forest. In certain locations, clear-felling of forests for plantation was also documented. Later, between 2003 and 2018, vegetation in these areas increased marginally, possibly due to the Government's conservation efforts in protected areas. Further conservation activities in protected area networks, including afforestation with indigenous flora and adequate legal protection, are recommended in this present study. Keywords: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), protected areas, remote sensing, vegetation, Western Ghats https://journals.sjp.ac.lk/index.php/JTFE/article/view/5366 |
| spellingShingle | G. Shalu K. Zubereya S. Anbazhagi M. Muthuchamy Assessment of Vegetation Index in Selected Protected Areas of Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India Journal of Tropical Forestry and Environment |
| title | Assessment of Vegetation Index in Selected Protected Areas of Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India |
| title_full | Assessment of Vegetation Index in Selected Protected Areas of Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India |
| title_fullStr | Assessment of Vegetation Index in Selected Protected Areas of Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessment of Vegetation Index in Selected Protected Areas of Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India |
| title_short | Assessment of Vegetation Index in Selected Protected Areas of Southern Western Ghats, Kerala, India |
| title_sort | assessment of vegetation index in selected protected areas of southern western ghats kerala india |
| url | https://journals.sjp.ac.lk/index.php/JTFE/article/view/5366 |
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