Selvamony SUKUMARAN, Solomon JEEVA, Majeti Narasimha Vara PRASAD

Sacred forests of South Travancore of South India

During the study period we inventoried 201 miniature sacred groves covering an area of 13.1 ha. Among these, 10 sacred forests are present in Agastheeswaram, 11 in Thovalai, 72 in Kalkulam, and 108 in Vilavancode taluk. The floristic richness of the sacred groves in South Travancore presently known as Kanyakumari district was analysed. A total of 329 species belonging to 251 genera of 100 families were enumerated from the miniature sacred forests of Kanyakumari district. Of these, 42 species were endemic, 40 very rare, 47 rare, and 16 endangered. Since there is minimal exploitation of these groves, they are considered a home to certain rare, endangered, and endemic plants and are rich in biodiversity. These sacred groves are closely related to the social and cultural life of a people and a number of cultural rites and religious rituals have perpetuated the status of a sacred grove, which has ensured the protection of the sacred grove vegetation in pristine condition

Keywords:

Medicinal plants, Plant diversity Religious beliefs, Sacred grove, India,

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