TREE REGENERATION PATTERN IN TROPICAL DRY EVERGREEN FORESTS ON THE COROMANDEL COAST OF INDIA UNDER VARIOUS DISTURBANCE LEVELS

Present study aim to analyze the patterns of regeneration in relation to different degrees of human disturbance in the endangered tropical dry evergreen forests. A total of 838 seedlings and 1931 saplings of 57 species were recorded in 400 sample plot. ‘Much disturbed’ sites were found to have the highest seedling species richness, with 31 species. Glycosmis mauritiana, Memecylon umbellatum, Tricalysis sphaerocarpa and Garcinia spicata were well represented as saplings and seedlings in all three categories other than HD sites. The relative proportion of adults ranged from 71% in the heavily disturbed sites to 59% in the much disturbed sites. Log sapling and seedlings densities were significantly related to log adult densities. R2 values of seedlings were similar in moderate (MD) and much disturbed (MU) sites and R2 values were lower in relatively undisturbed (RD) and heavily disturbed (HD) sites. Restoration of such endangered ecosystem requires serious attention towards its rehabilitation of its structural and functional components.