Life-Form and Primary Productivity of An Indian Grassland Community

ABSTRACT The life-form and primary productivity of a grassland community located at Rangamatia of Mayurbhanj district, Odisha (210 56' N; 860 41' E). The floristic composition of the grassland community comprised of 36 species (15 were grasses and 21 were non - grasses). Cynodon dactylon, Digitaria abludens, Eleusine indica, Vetiveria zizanioides among the grasses and Phyllanthus fraternus and Sida cordifolia among the non-grasses were found dominant during the study period. The life-form of the community consisted of the class Chamaephytes 27.78%, Hemicryptophytes 25%, Cryptophytes (Geophytes) 16.67% and the Therophyte 30.55%. Phanerophytes were found to be absent. The annual grass production was found to be 3289.53 g m-2 yr-1. The non-grass production showed maximum in the month of June (868.55 g m-2) and minimum in the month of September (141.11 g m-2). The annual non-grass production was found to be 2246.10 g m-2 yr-1. The study of life-form and primary productivity helps to recovery of the natural ecosystems to the earlier balanced state and preservation the biodiversity of grassland community in world. References Ambasht, R.S., A.N. Maurya and U.N. Singh: Primary production and turnover in certain protected grasslands of Varanasi, India. In: Tropical Ecology with an emphasis on organic production, F.B. Golley (eds.), University Georgia, Athens, USA, pp .43 – 50 (1972). Abdar. Physico-chemical characteristics and phytoplankton of Morna Lake, Shirala (M.S) India, Biolife, 1(2): 1-7. (2013). Barik, K. L.: Ecological analysis of an upland grassland community of eastern Orissa, India. Ekologia, 5 (1-2): 137 – 150 (2006). Barik, K.L. and B.N. Misra: Seasonal variation in the standing crop biomass of an upland grassland community. Mendel, 14 (1 & 2): 9 - 10 (1997). Behera, B.K.: Community structure, primary production and energetic of a grassland community of Boudh-Kandhamal (Dist-Phulbani) in Orissa, Ph.D. Thesis, Berhampur University, Berhampur, Orissa (1994). Billore, S.K. and L.P. Mall: Dry matter structure and its dynamics in Sehima community II. Dry matter dynamics. Trop. Ecol.,18 : pp.29 - 35 (1977). Choudhury, V.B.: Seasonal variation in standing crop and net above ground production in Dichanthium annulatum grassland at Varanasi. In Tropical Ecology with an emphasis on organic production. P.M. Golley and F.B. Golley (eds.). Univ. of Georgia, Athens, pp. 51 - 57 (1972). Choudhury, V.B.: Seasonal changes in the standing crop, annual net production and energetic of Dichanthium annulatum stands,Ph. D. Thesis, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi (1964). Champion, H.G.: A preliminary survey of forest type of India and Burma, Ind. For. Res., 1 (1): 1 - 186 (1936). Clements, F.E.: Plant Succession, an analysis of the development of vegetation, Carnegie Inst. of Wash. Publ. 520 (1916)