Maarg Manthan · Topic 6.4

Bio-Geographical Classification of India

Environment & Ecology › Biodiversity Basics and Classification · Topic 6.4

India lies in the Indomalayan realm, with its northern fringe touching the Palearctic realm, and has been divided by the Wildlife Institute of India (Rodgers and Panwar, 1988) into 10 biogeographic zones and 25 biotic provinces. The zones are: 1 Trans-Himalaya, 2 Himalaya, 3 Desert, 4 Semi-Arid, 5 Western Ghats, 6 Deccan Peninsula, 7 Gangetic Plain, 8 Coasts, 9 North-East, and 10 Islands. The Deccan Peninsula is the largest zone by area, covering roughly two fifths of the country, and the Semi-Arid zone is the next largest. Each zone has its own typical climate, vegetation and fauna, such as the snow leopard and Tibetan antelope in the Trans-Himalaya, lion-tailed macaque in the Western Ghats, Asiatic lion in the Semi-Arid zone, and one-horned rhino in the Gangetic Plain and North-East. The classification guides the selection of national parks and biosphere reserves.

5 min read · UPSC Prelims · Environment & Ecology · Biodiversity Basics and Classification

At a Glance

Zones 10
Provinces 25
Classified by Rodgers and Panwar, 1988
Largest zone Deccan Peninsula
Smallest zone Islands
Exam link UPSC Prelims, Environment & Ecology: Biodiversity Basics and Classification

Where Does It Fit?

This topic follows the world classification. It applies the same idea to India, which is needed for the parks, sanctuaries and biosphere reserves in later macros. Previous topic: Bio-Geographical Classification of the World. Next topic: Functions of Biodiversity.

What Are the Ten Biogeographic Zones of India?

Zone	Features and typical species
1. Trans-Himalaya	Cold arid, Ladakh and Spiti, Tibetan plateau edge. Snow leopard, Tibetan antelope, wild yak, Himalayan wolf, black-necked crane
2. Himalaya	North-West, West, Central and East Himalaya. Himalayan tahr, musk deer, red panda, western tragopan, Himalayan monal
3. Desert	Thar of Rajasthan and Kutch. Great Indian bustard, desert fox, chinkara, desert cat
4. Semi-Arid	Punjab, Gujarat and Rajasthan semi-arid areas. Second largest zone. Blackbuck, Asiatic lion in Gir, Indian wild ass in Kutch
5. Western Ghats	Malabar and Western Ghats mountains. Lion-tailed macaque, Nilgiri tahr, Malabar giant squirrel, many endemic amphibians
6. Deccan Peninsula	Central highlands and Deccan plateau, the largest zone. Tiger, leopard, sloth bear, gaur, wild dog
7. Gangetic Plain	Upper and lower Gangetic plain. One-horned rhino in parts, Ganges dolphin, gharial, swamp deer

What Are the Other Zones and Why Does the Classification Matter?

8. Coasts: west and east coasts and Lakshadweep; mangroves, turtles, dugong, horseshoe crab
9. North-East: Brahmaputra valley and hills; hoolock gibbon, one-horned rhino, pygmy hog, golden langur, clouded leopard, high endemism
10. Islands: Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep; Nicobar megapode, saltwater crocodile, endemic birds
Purpose: to identify gaps in protected area coverage and to plan a representative network
Provinces: each zone has biotic provinces, 25 in all, such as the Ladakh Mountains, Kutch, Malabar Plains and Eastern Ghats
Wildlife Institute of India: the Dehradun institute that used this scheme for planning the protected area network
Coverage: protected areas cover about 5 percent of India’s geographic area; check the latest figure
Adoption: the system is used in the National Board for Wildlife…">national wildlife action plan and in assessing representation

What Else Should You Remember?

Area ranking: the Deccan Peninsula covers the most area and the Islands the least
Himalaya: has the most provinces and rich plant diversity
Trans-Himalaya: cold desert, home of the Changthangi goat for pashmina
Desert zone: Desert National Park in Rajasthan
Semi-Arid zone: Gir National Park, Velavadar blackbuck sanctuary
Western Ghats: a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a hotspot
Deccan Peninsula: Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Pench, Tadoba
Gangetic Plain: Kaziranga is in the north-east zone but Dudhwa and Valmiki are in the Gangetic region
Coasts: Gahirmatha, Bhitarkanika, Chilika, Gulf of Mannar
North-East: Kaziranga, Manas, Namdapha, Dibru-Saikhowa
Islands: Great Nicobar, Campbell Bay, Mahatma Gandhi Marine National Park
Endemics: the Western Ghats and North-East hold the most endemic species
Hotspots in India: Himalaya, Indo-Burma, Western Ghats and Sri Lanka, and Sundaland (Nicobar)
Biotic province: a smaller unit within a zone with a distinct biota
Link to previous: see Bio-Geographical Classification of the World
Link to protected areas: see Protected Area Network and Species-Based Conservation Programmes macro
Link to hotspots: see Biodiversity Hotspots
Caution: different textbooks list zones in different order; learn the names, not just numbers
Gaps: the Trans-Himalaya and Desert zones have better coverage by area than the Gangetic Plain, which has few and small protected areas
Urgency: Gangetic Plain is densely populated, so conservation is challenging
Two realms: northern parts show Palearctic elements, the rest Indomalayan
Rainfall gradient: the zones follow rainfall, from the wet North-East and Western Ghats to the dry Desert
Cultural link: biodiversity zones overlap with tribal and pastoral landscapes that hold traditional knowledge
Exam hint: learn each zone with one flagship animal and one park
Trans-Himalaya parks: Hemis National Park in Ladakh and Pin Valley National Park in Spiti protect cold desert wildlife
Biotic province examples: Ladakh Mountains, Kashmir Valley, Kutch, Malabar Plains, Coromandel, Upper Gangetic Plain, Chotanagpur and Assam Plains are among the 25 provinces
Himalaya zone: has North-West, West, Central and East Himalaya provinces with changing vegetation from oak and rhododendron to alpine meadows
Gangetic Plain wildlife: shows the lowest protected area coverage in proportion to its size, so floodplain species like the gharial rely on a few reserves
Eastern Ghats: fall within the Deccan Peninsula zone and hold dry forests with red sanders
Island zone species: Andaman wild pig, Nicobar tree shrew and dugong show island endemism

Why Does It Matter for the Exam?

Zones: ten
Source: Rodgers and Panwar
Examples: snow leopard, lion, hoolock gibbon
Current affairs link: Great Nicobar project and island zone
Common errors: mixing zone names with hotspots or putting Kaziranga in the Gangetic Plain

As an analytical point, the zones show that India’s biodiversity is not spread evenly, and each zone needs its own conservation strategy. A representative network of protected areas must cover all zones, especially under-protected ones like the Gangetic Plain and Semi-Arid areas.

Why Is This Topic Important?

Zones Ten
Basis Climate, biota
Use Park planning

What Came Next?

The next topic covers the functions of biodiversity. Next topic: Functions of Biodiversity.

Key People and Terms

Biogeographic zone Large life region
Biotic province Subunit of a zone
Trans-Himalaya Cold arid north
Semi-Arid Dry fringe zone
Endemic Unique to a region
Wildlife Institute of India Dehradun research body

Exam Corner

Points to Remember

10 zones and 25 provinces.
By Rodgers and Panwar.
Snow leopard: Trans-Himalaya.
Lion-tailed macaque: Western Ghats.
Hoolock gibbon: North-East.

Do Not Confuse With

Zone and province Large region versus its subunit
Zone and hotspot Planning region versus priority area
Semi-Arid and Desert Drier fringe versus true desert

Memory Hook

Trans, Hima, Desert, Semi, Ghats, Deccan, Gangetic, Coast, North-East, Islands: ten.

Mains Angle

Questions ask for zones and animals. These points help.

Zones Ten
Species Examples
Use Planning

A Question You May Face

An original practice question, not a past paper question.

“Describe the biogeographic zones of India and discuss how they help in planning conservation.”

How to Answer

Zones Ten.
Species One each.
Gaps Coverage.
Plan Network.

GS Relevance

Prelims: names and order of zones, area share, typical species. GS Paper 1 and 3: Indian geography and biodiversity.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many biogeographic zones are there in India?

India has ten biogeographic zones: Trans-Himalaya, Himalaya, Desert, Semi-Arid, Western Ghats, Deccan Peninsula, Gangetic Plain, Coasts, North-East and Islands. These are further divided into 25 biotic provinces in the classification by Rodgers and Panwar of the Wildlife Institute of India published in 1988.

Which biogeographic zone is the richest in endemic species?

The Western Ghats and the North-East are the richest in endemic species in India. Both lie within biodiversity hotspots, and they hold many unique amphibians, reptiles, plants and mammals, such as the lion-tailed macaque in the Western Ghats and the hoolock gibbon in the North-East.

Where are snow leopards found in India?

The snow leopard lives in the cold, high-altitude regions of the Trans-Himalaya and the higher Himalaya, in Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. Hemis National Park in Ladakh is a well-known snow leopard habitat, and the species is a focus of Project Snow Leopard.

Why was the biogeographic classification of India made?

The classification was made to help plan a representative network of protected areas, so that every major type of habitat and biological community in the country is included. It helps identify zones with weak protection and prioritise new national parks, sanctuaries and biosphere reserves.

Which zone includes the Thar desert?

The Thar desert of Rajasthan and the Rann of Kutch lie in the Desert biogeographic zone, which has sparse vegetation and animals adapted to heat and dryness, such as the great Indian bustard, desert fox and chinkara. The Desert National Park in Rajasthan is a major protected area of this zone.

PYQ Practice — Statement Analysis

1 India has ten biogeographic zones.

True

Per Rodgers and Panwar.

2 The Western Ghats form part of the Trans-Himalaya zone.

False

They are a separate zone.

3 The classification was prepared by the Wildlife Institute of India.