Uploaded on 2016-09-01 by Abhishek Shinde

My current residence,Kasarvadavli is surrounded by Yeoor hills ,part of Sanjay Gandhi National Park.The image shows us the location of yeoor hills in blue and my residence in red mark on the bottom left of image.The name of the locality is Waghbil ,and its name is derived by Marathi localities staying at Waghbil which literally means "Den of Lions". It is been observed by many localities in Kasarvadavli ,who have witnessed Lions walking on the street few years back between 2003 and 2006.Ecologist report of the encroached developers illegally building Housing complexes on the Hills by flattening the lands and rendering the Flora,fauna and animals deviod of their homes. Yet,the ecological habitat of Yeoor hills,Waghbil has provided its Urban ecosystem Services to the localities. Yeoor Hills(19*14' 14.98" N, 72*56'42.19*E-approx .110MSL)-Itspans around 60sqkm of decidious forest and has a warm and moist climate for most of theyear.Forest has tall trees like Terminalia tomentosa,Tectona grandis,Holotelea integriolia,Madhuca indica along with shrubs like Cassis,Acacia.Approximately 150types of plants including tall trees , shrubs and climbers are present in the forest(Pejaver and Borkar,201).The average height of the trees is around 50 feet.Undergrowth is very high which comprises of shrubs like Helicteres isora,Woodfordia floribunda,Leeha,Cesus woodroii and climbers like Calycopteris floribunda , Tinospara cordiflora,Butea superba,etc. Provisioning services can be listed as follows- ⦁ Cyperus malaccensis is a perennial, grass-like plantis often gathered from the wild and used locally for weaving into mats.(Source-http://tropical.theferns) ⦁ Terminalia elliptica(Indian laurel) is a medium-sized to fairly large deciduous tree,which is harvested from the wild for local medicinal use, whilst the valuable timber is exploited commercially.The ashes of the bark yield a kind of lime, which is added to betel leaf and chewed.The juice of the bark is applied externally to cuts and wounds.(Source-http://tropical.theferns and https://gautamkhetwal.wordpress.com) Regulating services can be listed as follows- ⦁ Helicteres isora is a beautiful shrub with nectary flowers. The caterpillars of Common Sailer and Golden Angle feed on this plant. It flowers during July to September .This plant helps in the pollination process.(Source-http://www.sahyadrica.com/2009/07/yeoor-hills-17th-july-09.html). ⦁ Avicennia Marina Mangrooves are planted in 40,000nos by TMC(Thane municipal Corporation).Used for firewood and fuel for lime kilns.Estimated to range from Tropical Moist to Wet through Subtropical Moist to Wet Forest Life Zones, grey mangrove is estimated to tolerate annual precipitation of 10 to 45 dm, annual temperature of 17 to 26°C, and pH of 6 to 8.5. Often a pioneer in muddy areas, this species, intolerant of shade, cannot succeed itself. Mostly on saline silts of depositing shores and marshes (Little, 1983). (Source http://thanecity.gov.in/department_details.php?id=3 and https://hort.purdue.edu). Habitat or Supporting Services can be listed as follows- ⦁ Dhataki [Woodfordia fruticosa] is a spreading, leafy shrub, small in size but very conspicuous on dry, rocky hillsides from December to May, when the masses of little fiery bells give a bright touch of color to the drab terrain. It is a deciduous shrub, usually with a much-fluted stem. They are useful in the conditions of kapha and pitta, leprosy, burning sensation, skindiseases, diarrhoea, dysentery, fever, headache, hemorrhoids, herpes, internal hemorrhage, leukorrhea, liver disorders, menorrhagia, ulcers, wounds. Juice of leaves are used in bilious sickness. They are also valued as a stimulant in pregnancy. ⦁ Yeoor hills is a part of SanjayGandhi National Park.The Sanjay Gandhi National Park area is a bustling forest, with an estimated 800 types of mauve, a flowering plant native to the park area and its surrounding regions.The forest area covered in the Park comprises 1000 plant species, 251 species of migratory, land and water birds, 50,000 species of insects and 40 species of mammals. This park provides shelter to 38 species of reptiles, 9 species of amphibians, 150 species of butterflies and a large variety of fish. Forest biologists recorded occurrence of 172 species of butterflies in this park. Different species of butterflies in the park include Blue Mormon, the phenomenal artist of camouflage the Blue Oak leaf, the bright jezebels and Large Yellow and White Orange tips, Tiger butterflies Eggflies and Sailers. There are many varieties of Moths too in this park. The largest Moth i.e. size of a sparrow (30 cm) can be seen here.Thus it can be observed that the yeoor hills is adobe of many migratory species of birds,butterflies,ants and maue flower creating biodiveristy hotspots. (Source- http://www.sanctuariesindia.com/sanjay-gandhi-national-park/). Cultural services can be listed as follows- ⦁ Yeoor Hills serve as tourist centers and trekking centers by many enthusiast and adventurer's in the month July and August.Specific pathways and narrow pedestrianpathways are carved out by localities along with Signage's and informative hoardings about the animal and plant species,thereby educating the tourists about the significance of ecological diversity. ⦁ Moreover,many photographers and bloggers are amazed by the beautiful scenery ,the flora fauna species,the wildlife and landscape ,urging them to frequently visit the hills for Wild life photography, which has become a part of photography culture in Thane.Yeoor indeed finds its way for the wildlife photographer enthusiasts. ⦁ Yeoor hills being a part of Sanjay Gandhi National park ,shares it history to Kanheri caves, the oldest Buddhist shrines in the world dating 1st century BC along with jain temples,Toy train.Also,. Wildlife lovers may avail different safari packages and boating facilities provided by Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) and other Local conservation NGOs such as the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS)[21] and World Wide Fund for Nature - India (WWF-India) to watch the animals and birds in the park .(Source- http://www.sanctuariesindia.com/sanjay-gandhi-national-park/).