Wani Zishan Ahmad, Satish K. V., Islam Tajamul, Dhyani Shalini, Pant Shreekar
Keywords:
Buxus wallichiana
, Indian Himalayan region, Anthropogenic threats, Habitat suitability, Conservation
Buxus wallichiana, an economically important endemic tree species of Himalaya is facing a serious survival threat from overexploitation and anthropogenic habitat destruction. Habitat suitability was mapped in order to predict the most potential areas for habitat conservation and species reintroduction in Northwestern and western Himalaya using Maximum Entropy Modeling. Habitat suitability modeling predicted Rajouri-Poonch region of Jammu and Kashmir and temperate forests of Uttarakhand as the most suitable habitats for B. wallichiana. Only 0.4% (2765 km2) of the total area of Northwest and Western Himalaya was predicted to be highly suitable for B. wallichiana. The findings of the present study recommend an urgent need to develop a long term conservation and management plan for B. wallichiana, a neglected endemic plant species of Himalaya.
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The authors are grateful to Head, Department of Botany, BGSBU, Rajouri, J&K for providing necessary facilities.