Flora and Fauna
The eastern portion of the district forms part of the rice plains of West Bengal. The land under rice cultivation contains the usual marsh weeds of Gangetic plain. Aquatic plants and water weeds are found in ponds, ditches and still streams. Around human habitations there are shrub species such as Glycosmis, Polyalthia suberosa, Clerodenaron infortunatum, Solanum torvum, and various other species of the same genus, besides Trema, Streblus and Ficus hispida. The larger trees are papal, banyan, red cotton tree (Bombax malabaricum), mango (Mangifera indica), jiyal (Odina Wodier), Phoenix dactylifera, and Borassus flabellifer. Other plants found include Jatropha gossypifolia, Urena, Heliotropium and Sida. Forests or scrub jungles contain Wendlandia exserta, Gmelina arborea, Adina Cordifolia, Holarrhena antidysenterica, Wrightia tomentosa, Vitex negundo and Stephegyne parvifolia.
The western portion of the district is higher. The uplands either bare or are covered with scrub jungle of Zizyphus and other thorny shrubs. This thorny forest gradually merges into sal (Shorea robusta) forest. Low hills are covered with Miliusa, Schleichera, Diospyros and other trees.
Some of the common trees of economic interest found in the district are: Alkushi (Mucuna pruriens), amaltas (Cassia Fistula), asan (Terminaliatomentosa), babul (Acacia Arabica), bair (Zizyphus Jujuba), bael (Aegle Marmelos), bag bherenda (Jatropha curcas), bichuti (Tragia involucrate), bahera (Terminalia belerica), dhatura (Datura stramonium), dhaman (Cordia Macleoidii), gab (Diospyros Embyopteris), harra (Terminalia chebula), imli (Tamarindus indica), kuchila (Strychnos Nux vomica), mahua (Bassia latifolia), palas (Butea frondosa), sajina (Moringa pterygosperma), kend (Diospyros melanoxylon), mango, date-palm, nim, papal, banyan, red cotton tree and jiyal.
Read more about this topic: Bankura District
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