Near Bubaneshwar, India Photograph by Vasundhara   India -- Along the low hills of the northern sections of the Eastern Ghats Range and the eastern parts of the Satpura Range Tropical and Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests   131,700 square miles (341,100 square kilometers) -- about twice the size of Washington Critical/Endangered

· Setting the Scene
· Special Features
· Did You Know?
· Wild Side
· Cause for Concern

Setting the Scene

Journey through this expansive stretch of forests and youâll find a changing variety of trees and plants. Even the climate changes because of the hills and valleys throughout this ecoregion. Youâll also discover plants that are from the far-away Western Ghats Mountains and from the Eastern Himalayas. Or perhaps youâll be too busy watching a majestic tiger stalking its prey in the dappled sunlight beneath the trees to notice anything else.

Special Features

Large blocks of intact forests in the ecoregion mean that large populations of big animals still live here--animals that have disappeared from many other regions in India. In fact, scientists have identified this ecoregion as globally outstanding for the number of tigers, gaurs, sloth bears, and other large animals supported by this rich habitat. This area is also important for the intact ecological processes it still supports.

	Large blocks of habitat, some of which are more than 1,931 square miles (5,000 square kilometers), still remain intact in this ecoregion. Preserving these blocks of habitat is essential for the long-term conservation of Asiaâs largest wildlife.

Wild Side

Plenty of prey species÷including the threatened chousingha and blackbuck antelopesö make this area good tiger habitat. It is also home to wild dogs and other predators that compete with the tiger for food. In addition, about 310 known species of birds are found here.

Cause for Concern

Asiaâs largest land animal, the Asian elephant, has already become extinct in this ecoregion, and the remaining large blocks of habitat are under pressure from a variety of human activities. The primary threats come from quarries, coal mines, large-scale clearing for agriculture, and hydroelectric projects. Shifting cultivation, the practice of clearing land, cultivating it briefly, and abandoning it after depleting the soil, is also beginning to nibble away at the forest.

For more information on this ecoregion, go to the World Wildlife Fund Scientific Report.