FLORISTIC DIVERSITY OF SREEDHARAN CHUMARATH MANA SACRED GROVE IN MUTHUTHALA PANCHAYATH, PALAKKAD DISTRICT, KERALA, INDIA

1. GMHSS, Calicut University Campus, Thenhipalam, Malappuram – 673 635. 2. GHSS, Irimbiliyam, Valiyakunnu, Valancherry, Malappuram – 679 572. 3. Dept. of Psychology, St. Joseph’s College (autonomus), Devagiri, Kozhikode. ...................................................................................................................... Manuscript Info Abstract ......................... ........................................................................ Manuscript History Received: 10 March 2020 Final Accepted: 12 April 2020 Published: May 2020

Traditionally, the local people have been preserving small patches of relatively dense forests that have been dedicated to a god or goddess or ancestral spirits as 'sacred groves' and they act as treasure houses for large numbers of endemic and rare plants of the region (Sujana & Sivaperuman, 2008). Sacred groves are very important in upholding traditions and beliefs in order to protect and conserve unique forest patches which represent the relict vegetation of the concerned area (Chandrashekhara & Sankar, 1998). Sometimes, they are also known as natural museums of giant trees, treasure houses of threatened species, dispensaries of medicinal plants, regulators of water sheds, recreation centers for urban life, veritable gardens for botanists, gene banks of economic species, paradise for nature-lovers and laboratory for environmentalists (Gadgil & Vartak, 1975). One of the most important traditional uses of sacred groves was that it acted as a repository for various Ayurvedic medicines, in modern times, it have become biodiversity hotspots.
In India, nature worship dates back to the pre-Vedic period (5000 B.C.) and is based on the proposition that all creations of nature have to be protected. In India, different religions having different traditions, beliefs, and rituals are associated with conservation of biodiversity and forests. In Hindu religion, it is a traditional belief that nature shows a reverence for five basic elements i.e., Earth (Prithvi), Fire (Agni), Water (Jal), Air (Wayo) and Space (Akash). All the five elements are treated as a body of God and are worshipped. These five elements are protected for religious, cultural and spiritual reasons. There are many studies entitled to further quantify this ethics, which leads to biodiversity conservation and sustainable ecosystem (Chandrashekhara & Sankar, 1998).
Around 1,00,000 to 1, 50,000 sacred groves are reported in India (Malhotra et al. (2007). In India, the highest number of sacred groves (5000) has been reported to be present in state of Himachal Pradesh followed by Kerala and Chhattisgarh. The erstwhile state of Kerala, alone, has over 2000 sacred groves locally known as Sarpakavu or pambum kavu (Rao et al., 2011). In the recent past, due to change of socio-economic conditions and land use systems, many sacred groves are threatened and altered, both in terms of size, vegetation structure and species composition.

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In Kerala, it is the common practice among Hindus to assign a part of their land near the Tharavadu or house as the abode of goddess Durga or serpent god Naga or Shastavu and the place is called Kavu, Sarpa kavu or Pambum kavu. It is considered as the islands of biodiversity and relics of past vegetation. These contain large numbers of Rare, Endemic, Endangered and Threatened floras and faunas. It also includes economically and medicinally important plants.
Sreedharan Chumarathumana sacred grove is located at Muthuthala Panchayath, Pattambi Taluk, Palakkad district, Kerala. The sacred grove extends near half acre area (pers. Comm. with Sri. Sreedharan Nambuthirippad). There is a small temple for the god of 'Naga' in the middle of the sacred grove worshiped by them based on their indigenous cultural and religious beliefs. Every year, in 'Ayilyam' (believes to be the star of 'Nagadevatha') star of Malayalam month 'Kanni', they celebrate the festival of Goddess.
Sacred groves have presently attracted the attention of environmentalists, geneticists, botanists for their undisturbed natural conditions, which has made them repositories of valuable germplasm of medicinal plants, and endangered and endemic plant species (Anthwal et al., 2006). This paper deals with the rare and important medicinal angiospermic plants in the sacred grove.

Materials and Methods:-
Intensive field surveys were carried out during 2019-2020, covering pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon seasons ( Figure 1). Specimens of each species of flowering plants were collected along with necessary field data. The collected specimens were identified with the help of local peoples and scientific names with the help of taxonomists / scientists. Lists of plants found in the sacred grove were prepared.

Results and Discussion:-
A total of 126 species belonging to 118 genera under 43 families (Table 1, Figures 2,3,4) were reported. This is 6.5% of the species described in the flora of Palakkad District (Vajravelu, 1990;Sasidharan, 2004; Anilkumar, 2015) and 2.35% of the flora of the Kerala state (Sasidharan 2004(Sasidharan , 2013.   Out of the 126 taxa recorded, more than 96% of plants are used as important medicinal drug in various systems of medicines and also in folklore medicine. The species like Centrosema molle and Mikania micrantha are important climbers and used for snake bites (Deepa et al . 2016) and the presence of rare and most important medicinal plant Rauvolfia serpentina in the groves enhance the importance of Sreedharan Chumarath Mana sacred grove. We also observed numerous termites nest in the grove (Figure 7)

Conclusion:-
This study revealed the presence of a number of plant species along with medicinal uses in the sacred grove. Sacred groves play a crucial role in soil and water conservation. Many sacred groves hold water resources in the form of springs, ponds, lakes, streams or rivers. The vegetation of the groves itself retains water, soaking it up like a sponge during wet periods and releasing it slowly in times of drought. It is evident that one of the important ecological roles of these groves is to provide a more dependable source of water for the organisms living in and around the sacred grove. In addition, transpiration from the sacred grove vegetation would increase atmospheric humidity and reduce temperature in the immediate vicinity and produce a more favourable microclimate for many organisms. The major threats to these existing ecosystems are habitat destruction, habitat alternation, introduction of exotic species and pollution has resulted in the decline of sacred groves. The conservation of such precious sacred groves is an urgent need for future generation. 425