Tree species diversity in the Eastern Ghats of northern Andhra Pradesh, India

<p>The present study was conducted to analyze tree species diversity in the tropical forests of the Eastern Ghats of northern Andhra Pradesh, India. A total of 270<strong> </strong>species of trees (≥15cm girth at breast height) pertaining to 177 genera belonging to 55 families were recorded. Among the 270 species, 141 species were observed to be common, 78 were occasional and 51 species were rare in the study area. Fabaceae was the dominant family with 33 species followed by Rubiaceae with 15 species and Malvaceae, Moraceae and Phyllanthaceae with 13 species each. The genera with the highest number of species include <em>Ficus</em> (12 species), <em>Diospyros</em> (8 species), <em>Albizia</em> and <em>Grewia</em> (6 species each), <em>Acacia</em> and <em>Bauhinia</em> (5 species each). Forty-five percent of the species were indigenous. This illustrates the diversity of the tree species in the studied area of the Eastern Ghats and also emphasizes the need for their conservation.</p><div>