The Western Ghats, Western Ghauts or the Sahyādri ( Malayalam:സഹ്യാദ്രി/സഹ്യപര്വതം) is a mountain range along the western side of India. It runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea. The Western Ghats block rainfall to the Deccan Plateau. The range starts near the border of Gujarat and Maharashtra, south of theTapti river, and runs approximately 1600 km through the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala ending at Kanyakumari, at the southern tip of India.
These hills cover 160,000 km² and form the catchment area for complex riverine drainage systems that drain almost 40% of India.The average elevation is around 1,200 metres (3,900 ft).The area is one of the world’s ten "Hottest biodiversity hotspots" and has over 5000 species of flowering plants, 139 mammal species, 508 bird species and 179 amphibian species, many undiscovered species lives in the Western Ghats. At least 325 globally threatened species occur in the Western Ghats.(source:wikipedia)
These hills cover 160,000 km² and form the catchment area for complex riverine drainage systems that drain almost 40% of India.The average elevation is around 1,200 metres (3,900 ft).The area is one of the world’s ten "Hottest biodiversity hotspots" and has over 5000 species of flowering plants, 139 mammal species, 508 bird species and 179 amphibian species, many undiscovered species lives in the Western Ghats. At least 325 globally threatened species occur in the Western Ghats.(source:wikipedia)
