Safeguarding biodiversity and ecosystem services of sacred groves – experiences from northern Western Ghats

Abstract

In this paper, we introduce the relatively unknown system of sacred groves in northern Western Ghats to broader scientific community. The social–ecological systems of the sacred groves of this region are areas rich in biodiversity, provide key ecosystem services and are highly valued. Many sacred groves are an important source of water or medicinal resources, as well as regulating services, such as pollination. They are also places for socially important meetings and celebrations. However, initial investigations of sacred groves in the Konkan region of northern Western Ghats have revealed that these sites face many threats, such as for example, development and agriculture encroachment, increased resource use, cattle trampling and renovations of temples that lead to damage in the environment. This threatens the long-term maintenance of the groves’ biodiversity and services provided by them. We argue that the role of the sacred groves as biodiversity hotspots and providers of ecosystem services cannot be separated from the social context in which they exist. Thus, conservation work in such areas requires a step-wise approach including comprehensive recognition of the natural and social values, capacity building among local communities and design of locally suited incentives with participatory planning and implementation.

Keywords:

• biodiversity
• conservation
• cultural values
• ecosystem services
• India
• northern Western Ghats
• sacred groves

Introduction

The conservation of biodiversity has been on international policy agendas for several decades and yet, biodiversity is still decreasing at an appalling pace. Increased effort of the global community is necessary to reverse this trend (Pimm et al. 1995; Stokstad 2010). Traditionally, conservation efforts have been focused on protected areas. However, this approach is not sufficient for the successful maintenance of biodiversity because the areas of high biodiversity are to a large extent located in landscapes where people live and work (Polasky et al. 2005; Wilson et al. 2010). Additionally, in rural landscapes, biodiversity is often dependent on traditional resource management practices (Berkes & Davidson-Hunt 2006; McNeely & Schroth 2006). Thus, a modern strategy for conservation should be a combination of approaches that first account for the entire landscapes, and second, view the landscape as a social–ecological system with all the relevant interactions between people and nature (Berkes & Turner 2006). This is reflected by the concept of ecosystem services (MA 2005) that focuses on benefits humans get from ecosystems. This has become a mainstream approach to conservation as it is biodiversity that assures flow of ecosystem services to the society (Cardinale et al. 2012; Maestre et al. 2012).

Of particular importance for biodiversity are areas spared from intensive human use due to religious or cultural reasons. Often, these areas are the only remnants of natural vegetation as the surrounding landscape is transformed due to economic development. These areas by default form an unrecognized ‘shadow’ conservation network (Dudley et al. 2009). Sacred groves (sacred forests) constitute an important type of such environments found on several continents (Bhagwat & Rutte 2006).

In India, sacred groves are important wilderness areas and have been central to local communities’ understanding of conservation. These groves are significant repositories of regional biodiversity, serve as stepping stones for dispersal through unsuitable habitat (Lal et al. 1990) and are known to retain viable populations of rare and endangered species (Godbole 1996). Sacred groves, in contrast to nature reserves, are also an integral part of rural social systems. They are not just remnant forests but important village institutions where traditional beliefs and social taboos have led to limited exploitation and access restrictions (Godbole & Sarnaik 2005). Because of this, many sacred groves host rich biodiversity, particularly when compared to adjacent areas managed in other ways, or even to protected forests (Bhagwat et al. 2005a). The groves are also sources of important ecosystem services for local communities, including provisioning (e.g. water, medicinal plants or ornamental resources) and regulating (e.g. pollination or water purification) services (Harsha et al. 2002; Waghchaure et al. 2006; Sukumaran & Raj 2010).

There are an estimated 100,000–150,000 sacred groves in India distributed over a broad span of ecological conditions (Bhagwat & Rutte 2006). Most of the groves are relatively small but they are valuable for biodiversity due to the frequency of occurrence and habitat quality for various groups of organisms and their role as stepping stones for dispersers (Bhagwat et al. 2005b). For example, in the Kodagu district in Karnataka state, there is – on average – one sacred grove per 300 ha of land (Kushalappa & Bhagwat 2001), ranging in size from a fraction of a hectare to a few tens of hectares (Bhagwat et al. 2005b). Large ancient trees are a particular feature of sacred groves; these structures are generally rare in managed landscapes and simultaneously of great importance for maintenance of both biodiversity and cultural values (Lindenmayer et al. 2012; Blicharska & Mikusiński 2013).

One region in India that is particularly interesting in terms of the role of sacred groves in conserving biodiversity and cultural heritage is Western Ghats (Bhagwat et al. 2005b). This mountain chain is one of the 25 global biodiversity hotspots (Myers et al. 2000), and has recently been given a status of World Heritage Site because of both rich biodiversity and unique geological, cultural and aesthetic values (UNESCO 2012). The Western Ghats are over 1600 km long, cover about 140,000 km² and host more than 325 globally threatened species, as estimated by UNESCO (2012). The sacred groves in the southern part of the mountains have been studied extensively (e.g. Hegde & Enters 2000; Johnsingh 2001; Bhagwat et al. 2005b; Arjunan et al. 2006; Karanth et al. 2006; Kushalappa & Raghavendra 2012). Yet, very little knowledge exists on the northern counterparts that encompass the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Goa (Figure 1) and differs significantly from the southern part. The differences include both biophysical settings like climate, altitude, topography, available species and the cultural differences linked to various regional traditions, beliefs and customs. Moreover, only 1% of the northern Western Ghats is covered with legally protected areas (Godbole et al. 2010), unlike the larger conserved proportion in the south. Due to recent economic development, urbanization and industrialization, there is an increasing erosion of values that are vital for the maintenance of the traditional institution of sacred groves in northern Western Ghats (Godbole & Sarnaik 2005). The aim of this short paper is to introduce this important region, its values and its problems to the wider scientific community, and to provide an illustrative example of interactions between biodiversity conservation, ecosystem services, cultural heritage and ways to work with such systems at the ground level.

Figure 1. Map of the northern Western Ghats area.

The sacred groves of northern Western Ghats

The sacred groves are an integral part of the complex social–ecological systems existing in the landscapes of northern Western Ghats. Therefore, their role as biodiversity hotspots and providers of ecosystem services cannot be separated from the social context in which these objects exist and function (Godbole et al. 2008).

The ecological system

The mountains of the Western Ghats receive high rainfall averaging 2500 mm annually (Daniels & Vencatesan 2008), which predominantly occurs during monsoon season between the months of June–October. The West–East division of the mountains creates a large biogeographical variation of this region, ranging from coastal plains to hill ranges, with a variety of geomorphologic, climatic, hydrological and biotic features. The major vegetation types range from the high-altitude shola forest and savanna with annual rainfall up to 5000 mm to dry deciduous forest and scrub jungle on lower altitude and with much lower annual precipitation (only 300–600 mm in the latter case) (Daniels & Vencatesan 2008). The unique geography and climate patterns of the Western Ghats produce a multitude of different ecosystems that support an immense amount of biodiversity including a large number of endemic species. For example, out of nearly 650 tree species, 352 (54%) are endemic. The corresponding numbers for amphibians, reptiles and fishes are 65%, 62% and 53%, respectively (UNESCO 2012). Additionally, at least 229 plant, 31 mammal, 15 bird, 43 amphibian, 5 reptile and 1 fish species that reside in these mountains are considered globally threatened, according to IUCN Red List (UNESCO 2012). Western Ghats is home to charismatic megafauna such as the Tiger (Panthera tigris), Asian Elephant (Elephas maximus), Gaur (Bos gaurus), globally endangered species like Malabar Civet (Viverra civettina) or Black-chinned Laughingthrush (Trochalopteron cachinnans), and a flagship species, such as the Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis).

The northern part of Western Ghats considerably differs from its southern part, particularly with respect to lower altitude. Forests in the northern Western Ghats are mainly moist tropical forests and further categorized into southern tropical wet evergreen forests, southern tropical semi-evergreen forests and moist deciduous forests (Puri 1983). Within these main subcategories, forest characteristics vary widely in accordance with altitude, edaphic factors, slope and other biophysical conditions. As mentioned above, only a very small fraction of northern Western Ghats is under governmental protection in the form of nature reserves and national parks. This area is prone to human development due to the lower altitude; hence, the human density is also higher. Thus, relatively little research is conducted here, mostly due to practical difficulties related to organizing research work in areas with ongoing economic activities of local communities (Godbole et al. 2011). Ultimately, there is little knowledge about the actual biodiversity of the whole area, with information from few baseline studies, for example, from some parts of the Maharashtra state (Godbole et al. 2011). Even less is known about the biodiversity of the sacred groves, as these small areas have not been of particular interest for either researchers or the authorities.

However, as many sacred groves represent native vegetation in a natural or near-natural state, they often harbour rare and endemic species, including red-listed tree species like Saraca asoca and Hydnocarpus pentandra, as well as provide nesting and foraging habitats for key seed dispersers, such as the Great Hornbill and the Malabar Pied Hornbill (Anthracoceros coronatus). The proportion of woody species dispersing through zoochory is very high in northern Western Ghats and this process seem to be negatively affected by the human disturbance (Tadwalkar et al. 2012).

Sacred Groves in the Maharashtra state of the northern Western Ghats are not large, ranging in size from 0.1 to 140 ha (Godbole et al. 2008), thus as individual patches may not support viable populations. However, since every village in this region has at least one grove, the entire landscape consists of a network of forest fragments surrounded by forests in various stages of degradation that, as a whole, may provide a connected system of habitats. This is particularly important in terms of ongoing loss of dense and relatively intact forest habitats in northern Western Ghats (Kale et al. 2010). A study in southern Western Ghats suggested that there is interdependence between biodiversity in sacred groves and the presence of other tree-covered habitats in the landscape (Bhagwat et al. 2005b). One may expect similar but more pronounced pattern in northern Western Ghats. Finally, the forests of northern Western Ghats, in contrast to southern part of this mountain range, have been recently identified as particularly vulnerable to the climate change (Gopalakrishnan et al. 2011).

Table 1. Overview of the ecosystem services provided by sacred groves (SG), including the size of each grove and the main threats to the groves in the Konkan region, northern Western Ghats, India, 2012 (focus region of AERF’s work)

Name of the SG	Size [ha]	Main services	Main threats
Songhar Waghav	52	Traditional water harvesting system providing water for the village of Waghav	Agriculture encroachment; resource extraction (water and fire-wood); cattle passage and related trampling
Chafavali	2.5	Medicinal resources from native species, such as Hydnocarpuspentandra, Strychnus nux-vomica or Salamalia malabarica, Terminalia belerica, Tetrameles nudiflora, Antiaris toxicaria, etc.	Exotic species plantations (Acacia auriculiformis); livestock grazing; spread of invasive species (e.g. Calycopteris floribanda, Mucuna pruriense and Carissa congesta)
Kudavale	84	Rich biodiversity of almost a pristine moist deciduous forest, representing natural ecological processes	Tourism; cattle passage; resource extraction (wood); development encroachment
Hivale	10	Water provision to local people and cattle; habitat for Great hornbill; cultural services due to the existence of two temples that are used for different ceremonies	Livestock grazing (cattle); soil compaction; resource extraction (wood and leaves); ecological unawareness of local people
Kulye	23	Part of the village watershed; old growth trees; habitat of IUCN red list medicinal tree Saraca asok; nesting site of Great hornbill	Resource extraction (wood); development (roads); traditional practice of collective protection dwindling; livestock grazing (cattle)
Katavali	24	Medicinal trees like Antiaris toxicaria, nesting site of Great hornbill; only forest in the catchment of the village watershed; use of the temples for the ceremonies	Livestock grazing (cattle); temple renovation
Talawade	5	Nesting sites of Malabar pied Hornbills; food-providing species like Ficus benghalaensis; use of the temples for the ceremonies	Development encroachment; temple renovation; agriculture encroachment
Tamane	9	Old growth trees of Terminalia bellerica; medicinal trees like Strychnus nux-vomica; use of the temples for the ceremonies	Livestock grazing (cattle); temple renovation; resource extraction (wood)

The social system

The biological diversity of the northern Western Ghats is complemented by its cultural diversity. The region is home to diverse communities, including nomadic tribes, pastoralists, predominantly farming communities and coastal fishermen community. Livelihoods of these communities directly depend on the biological diversity of the region being a source of both provisioning and cultural services. For example, two Ficus species (F. religiosa and F. racemosa) are sacred trees and their leaves are essential for many religious ceremonies at household level (Applied Environmental Research Foundation (AERF), unpublished data).

There is a long and unique history of nature worship in the northern Western Ghats region related to the sacred groves – patches of forests that are often demarcated and protected in the name of a local deity (Figure 2). These forest fragments are probably the only forest habitats that have not been intensively managed that remain in the landscape. In the Sahyadri Konkan corridor of northern Western Ghats, there are about 2500 sacred groves (Vartak & Gadgil 1972) that have been protected due to social traditions and taboos and maintained by local people through traditional cultural practices over generations (Vartak & Gadgil 1972; Chandran et al. 1998). These forests play a vital role in village resource management system and decision making. For example, in villages from Sangmeshwar block of Ratnagiri district, the village meetings take place in sacred grove temples (Figure 3). The groves are also used as gathering places during festivals like Ganesh and Holi (Godbole et al. 2010).

Figure 2. Each sacred grove is devoted to a particular local deity.

Figure 3. Sacred grove forest (in the background) with a temple, where village meetings take place regularly.

The positive perception of natural areas by local people is a key to successful conservation. Usually, local communities value functions of natural areas that are directly related to their livelihoods in terms of both concrete economic benefits and traditional cultural values (e.g. Salafsky & Wollenberg 2000; Badola et al. 2010, 2012), unlike conservationists who value ecological functions or rich biodiversity (e.g. Chan et al. 2007). In a study of sacred groves in the Ratnagiri district, Godbole et al. (2008) investigated several socio-economic parameters related to sacred groves, including the level of awareness among the local communities of the importance the groves had for maintenance of biodiversity. They concluded that many of the local people were not aware of the ecological functions of these areas and the value of their biodiversity for the provision of important ecosystem services, particularly the ones that may be important at levels higher than local. On the other hand, the groves were important to many local communities with regard to their cultural and provisioning services (particularly water provision).

The value of sacred groves and present threats

Rich biodiversity and a wide array of cultural practices that take place in of the sacred groves suggest that these areas may provide both concrete provisioning ecosystem services and less tangible cultural services to the local people (Bhagwat 2009; Table 1). The variety of the services the groves may give, include, for example, water or medicinal provision, and religious, spiritual and aesthetic benefits. The groves in the northern Western Ghats are usually small watershed forests and many of them include traditional water harvesting structures like wells. Many groves are part of catchments of small rivulets and reservoirs and are responsible for maintaining the moisture in the surroundings due to shade of huge trees and other vegetation (Godbole & Sarnaik, personal observation). Sacred groves are habitats for many of tall rare trees like Tetrameles nudiflora and Salamalia malabarica that are host trees of bees and beehives and thus potentially may provide pollination services. Furthermore, the groves preserve valuable medicinal endemic trees like Terminalia chebula, T. bellirica and Saraca asoka, maintain potential genetic diversity of many rare species and provide habitat to flagship species like the Great Hornbill and Malabar Pied Hornbill, the latter endemic to Western Ghats. These are also habitats for bats that probably play an important role in maintaining the forest regeneration through seed dispersal (e.g. of Calophyllum inophyllum species) (AERF, unpublished data). Sacred groves are also of extreme value for the cultural and social services (Table 1).

Unfortunately, the ongoing changes in India are leading towards increased degradation of the sacred groves in northern Western Ghats. They are threatened both by the actual economic development and the increased pressure to use natural resources and also by the social changes that occur in the Indian society (Chandrakanth et al. 2004; Ormsby & Bhagwat 2010; Nagaraja et al. 2011; Reddy et al. 2013). For example, in the Sindhudurg district about 35% of the existing sacred groves was clear felled and replaced with exotic species plantations between 1986 and 1990 (Godbole et al. 2010). Additionally, the local communities would like to be part of the process of globalization and are not interested in being responsible for conservation if not offered substantial benefits (Godbole & Sarnaik 2005; AERF, unpublished data).

Neither the groves’ ecological values nor the threats to them have been systematically investigated yet in northern Western Ghats. Particularly visible, in the Konkan region, for example, are the threats related to everyday livelihoods activities, such as cattle grazing or fire-wood gathering (Table 1). The local communities seem to be increasingly appreciative of the country’s development, particularly in terms of economic gains from selling wood or transforming natural forests into plantations. Another common trend in the sacred groves is renovations of the grove’s temples, often a result of increasing affluence of the local people. Unfortunately, the renovations are often conducted without considerations for the natural values of the groves, e.g. many old trees are being logged (Godbole & Sarnaik, personal observation).

Conservation with communities

AERF is a non-governmental organization that for the last 17 years worked in situ with local people and sacred groves in northern Western Ghats. The work of AERF has focused on three districts of Maharashtra (Figure 1), i.e. Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg, in the Konkan region. AERF conducted research and used awareness generation and participatory eco restoration activities in the villages adjacent to the sacred groves aimed to achieve long term protection of these social-cultural conservation spaces.

AERF approach has several distinct steps (Godbole et al. 2008). First, the general investigation of the sacred groves situation is conducted to select groves that are most in need of conservation activities. Both ecological (e.g. species richness, tree population structure, canopy layers, presence of rare and threatened species, etc.) and social (e.g. social and cultural significance of the grove, logging signs, threats, etc.) criteria are considered. In the selected groves, awareness generation activities, such as village meetings, small group meetings, sessions in local schools and stakeholders’ workshops are then conducted. The aim is to increase local understanding of conservation values the groves represent. Often, local people have different priorities than the conservationists, and thus, the challenge of conservation is not only to simply make people aware of the groves’ values other than values close to their everyday life, but also to find links that connect their livelihoods with conservation. An example of that is visualization of the importance of the groves for water provision – a service that is of a paramount importance for the local communities.

Simultaneously, the situation of each grove and the local community is investigated in more depth (through focus group meetings) to be able to design practical incentives schemes that would encourage pro-conservation activities adjusted and linked to the local people’s needs. For example, in some of the villages in Ratnagiri district, when local people received solar lamps (concrete items needed to improve their livelihoods), they agreed not to sell their forest land for companies planning to introduce plantations. After intensive work with local community, the actual planning and restoration work can be introduced. For example, in village Vashi, local community replanted indigenous species plantation and put a stone fence around sacred grove of 7.5 ha, after a long process of discussions and initial failures.

Conclusions

Sacred groves of northern Western Ghats are important sources of ecosystem services crucial for the local communities. They also provide valuable sites for the maintenance of many rare and endangered species and enhance the green ecological networks in the landscape. These values are presently threatened due to both the ongoing economic development and low interest for their fate from the official authorities. The absence of well-developed scientific knowledge base and of the interest of the scientific community augments the problem of low priority given to these areas by the Indian government. It is therefore urgent and important to conduct research on ecosystem service evaluation of these areas, as they can provide direct incentives for local people to engage in conservation.

The approach currently applied in some parts of northern Western Ghats can be summarized in three distinct steps: (1) value recognition; (2) awareness generation and incentives design; and (3) participatory planning and implementation. However, there is a need to complement this approach with a comprehensive recognition of different benefits provided by the sacred groves and scaling up the results of such an investigation to the whole region of the northern Western Ghats.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Kerry Nicholson for language editing and the anonymous referees for their valuable comments.