The Western Ghats, a mountainous ridge running parallel to the west coast of India’s ancient peninsula, has a rich and intriguing history. They boast an age of 150 million years, and have seen variations of climate that have helped shape the soils and geology of the hills. The escarpment of the Western Ghats probably formed during the Gondwana supercontinent break-up and is the faulted edge of the Deccan Plateau.

The Western Ghats may even have formed when the chunk of what is India today, broke away from Madagascar. As the block of earth migrated north, it passed over the Reunion hotspot, where the volcanic eruptions 65 million years ago, laid down the basalt sheets or traps that define the peninsula. The uplifts have exhumed rocks of over 200 million years, at places such as the Nilgiri Hills.

The journey of this north-bound plate was halted when it collided into the Eurasian plate, and pushed the Himalayas into existence. This event was significant for the Western Ghats. The geologies that had seen the drift of continents, the progression of ice ages and meltdowns, the extreme irregularities of climate and several cycles of vegetative cover, was now in the tropical realms.

The Western Ghats begin at the river Tapti in the north and stretch towards Kanyakumari, India’s southern-most tip. They form an abrupt barrier to the monsoon winds, and separate the coastal areas from the Deccan Plateau. With an area of 1,60,000 square kilometers, a complex drainage system originates at these heights, which provides water to 40% of India’s area.

Present-day biodiversity, has evolved and adapted to the climate and the soils of the area. Within the tropical environment and the rich natural resources, a variety of mixed forests have sprung up along the Western Ghats. In them one can find species that have originated in different climates but have adapted to the tropical monsoon climate. Some of the species are present in specialized and restricted niches to form a rich, endemic population that defines the Western Ghats as a biodiversity hotspot.

Over recent years, anthropogenic threats like population expansion, deforestation and forest fragmentation, mining, dam construction and inefficient land-use practices are shrinking and isolating ecosystems. These factors pose a serious threat to the endemic species of the Western Ghats.

Information may provide the key to addressing these issues. By aggregating data into a comprehensive database for all kinds of information related to the Western Ghats, we can evolve a better understanding of this ecosystem and provide a solid foundation for further research and conservation strategies. Environmental policies could count upon this information for better decisions.

The Western Ghat portal seeks to provide a platform for aggregating diverse information on the biodiversity of the Western Ghats. As interested, discerning readers, students and researchers we request you to participate and create an online open collaborative system for sharing biodiversity information.