The Malabar Coast moist forests are a tropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion of southwestern India.
Geography
The ecoregion lies along India's Konkan and Malabar coasts, in a narrow strip between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats range, which runs parallel to the coast. It has an area of , and extends from northern Maharashtra through Goa, Karnataka and Kerala to Kanniyakumari in southernmost Tamil Nadu.
The ecoregion extends from sea level to the 250 meter contour of the Western Ghats. It is bounded on the east by the North Western Ghats moist deciduous forests in Maharashtra and Karnataka, and the South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests in Kerala.
Much of the ecoregion is densely populated, and it includes several large cities, including Mumbai in Maharashtra, Mormugao and Margao in Goa, Mangalore in Karnataka, and Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, and Kozhikode in Kerala.
Climate
The climate is tropical and humid. Rainfall varies seasonally, falling mostly with the southwest monsoon between June and September. Rainfall is generally higher in the south, decreasing and becoming more seasonal as one moves north.
Flora
The original vegetation in the ecoregion was tropical evergreen rainforest, with some deciduous trees particularly in drier areas. The original forests have mostly been replaced with or interspersed with teak (Tectona grandis), a mostly deciduous tree that drops its leaves during the winter dry season.
- Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Maharashtra (50 km²)
- Bhagwan Mahaveer Sanctuary and Mollem National Park, Goa (150 km²)
- Peechi-Vazhani Wildlife Sanctuary, Kerala (100 km²)
- Phansad Wildlife Sanctuary, Maharashtra
- Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary, Kerala
- Idamalayar Reserve Forest (partly in the South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests and the South Western Ghats montane rain forests)
See also
- List of ecoregions in India
- South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests
- South Western Ghats montane rain forests
- Malabar rainforests