Identification, prioritization, and management of biodiversity hot specks: a case study of Western Ghats of Maharashtra, India

Abstract

The Western Ghats are globally recognized as a hotspot of rich, endemic, and threatened biodiversity. Within this hotspot of biological diversity, there are islands of natural landscapes that can be termed as ‘hot specks’. These hot specks require careful prioritization and specific management strategies as they vary in objectives and ownership. Conserving hot specks of biodiversity is of great relevance because creating new protected areas with wildlife corridors between them has become relatively impossible in the present context of intensive land-use change in this rapidly developing region. Management strategies, however, must be based on scientific assessment and using a set of prioritization criteria for selecting the most appropriate forms of management. The conservation action plan for the Western Ghats has become a controversial issue based on the findings in the report submitted by the Western Ghats Expert Ecological Panel and the High Level Work Group on Western Ghats. In the present context of rapidly changing land-use patterns, economic development, forest fragmentation, isolation of habitats, linear intrusion, neo-urbanization and industrial growth are threats to the pristine nature of the ghats. Thus, there is an urgent need to identify, prioritize and manage the smaller fragments of biological importance within the larger ecologically sensitive landscape. A prioritization model for different types of hot specks is essential so that it can be easily replicated by training frontline forest staff, community-based organizations, Biodiversity Management Committees, and non-government organizations for implementing a strategy and action plans for the sites by using the Biological Diversity Act, 2002. Support of the local Biodiversity Management Committees and the State Biodiversity Board is essential for the conservation management of these biodiversity-rich sites. This study presents an innovative approach to prioritize areas outside the formally notified boundaries of the national parks and wildlife sanctuaries to assess the conservation value of hot specks of diversity through a rapid biodiversity assessment tool. This can lead to a rational conservation strategy that conservation planners and practitioners can use.