Reproductive phenology of endemic understorey assemblage in a wet forest of the Western Ghats, south India

Abstract

The reproductive phenology of 60 understorey species, including 27 endemic and 33 non-endemic species, was monitored at monthly intervals for 20 months in a mid-elevation wet forest in the Southern Western Ghats. Narrow endemic species constituted 55% of the total endemic species studied. Peak flowering was observed during the dry and post-monsoon seasons for the endemic species, while the non-endemic species flowered during the dry season. Fruiting peak was observed in the dry season for endemic species and during monsoon for non-endemics. The flowering and fruiting pattern in narrow and broad endemic species was uniform. The implications of the result for conservation are discussed.