PREDICTION OF FORAGE SPECIES FOR MEGAHERBIVORE (ELEPHAS MAXIMUS) IN COIMBATORE ELEPHANT RESERVE (CER) AT THE FOOTHILLS OF WESTERN GHATS, TAMIL NADU, INDIA

Coimbatore Reserve Forest forms an integral and important part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, India. The forest areas in the Mettupalayam range and Sirumugai range of Coimbatore Forest Division were selected as study areas. It was approached in a systematic-random sampling method. Two methods viz., i) transact line survey method and ii) sample plot method, were used to document the native fodder species in the study area. Totally, 128 sample plots with the size of 20 x 20 m and 17 transact line surveys at 0.2% sampling intensity were used. Based on the survey, 25 fodder tree species were documented; Fabaceae is the most dominant family with 12 species. In diversity analysis, S IV showed higher tree fodder diversity in terms of Simpson D (0.69), Shannon H index (2.72) and evenness index (0.44). With respect to the grass density, the maximum grass density was observed in Oplismenus burmannii followed by Dichanthium aristatum and Enteropogon monostachyus which is due to geographical condition of the Coimbatore Elephant Reserve.