Inventory and Altitudinal Distribution of Plant Biodiversity Along the Nalter Expressway in Nalter Valley Gilgit Baltistan

Abstract

The present study was conducted in 2020-2021 to record the inventory and altitudinal distributions of plants and biodiversity in Nalter valley. The study area is situated at 36 N and 74 E, with 27,206 ha area in the Karakoram highlands. It is 40km away from Gilgit city. The purpose was to explore the natural floral inventory, life-form structure, and the biological spectrum of the plant biodiversity. This study recorded 126 species belonging to 106 genera and 48 families. The life forms of the collected species were 40 Hemicryptophytes (H), 8 Therophytes, 50 Chaemephyte, and geophytes 3 species, and 25 phanerophytes. While the habit categories of the recorded flora were analyzed with the help of Theophrastus classification. The categories of the recorded flora were 88 herbs, 113 shrubs,9 subshrubs, and 18 trees which contribute to the flora of the study area. The phytosociological studies were also carried out to recognize the dominant taxa, habit category, and the dominant life form in the study area. For this study, we divided the study area into three stands. In each stand, we placed 20 quartets to recognize the dominant taxa based on IVI. The phytosociological studies provided the required information from each stand like dominant habit categories, life forms, and dominant taxa along the Nalter expressway.