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Named after the great poet-sage 'Valmiki', the Valmiki Tiger Reserve, Bihar, occurs in the foothill ranges of the Himalayas Siwaliks, on the banks of the river Gandak. The landscape encompasses a mosaic of cliffs, gorges, hills, ridges, streams, valleys, dense forests, open forests, grasslands, swamps and riparian forests and a combination of bhabar and terai tracts, which make it distinct from other parts of the state. This Tiger Reserve was constituted as 18 reserves under the Project Tiger of the Government of India, on 11 March 1994 and spreads over 899 km2, with Valmiki National Park covering about 335 km2 situated within its core region. The Valmiki National Reserve and the Valmiki National Park together constitute the only Tiger reserve and National Park in the state of Bihar.
The present book reports the occurrence of about 1100 plant species in wild, within the precincts of this Tiger Reserve. Taxonomic descriptions of 941 species under 562 genera and 135 families of angiosperms are provided along with the updated nomenclature, habitat and phenology of each species. A map of the area, economic uses and colour photographs of many species are provided. Artificial keys to the families, genera, species and infraspecific taxa are also given for easy and correct identification. The book is of special significance as it contains nomenclature details with 112 names synonymized, 420 names lectotypified, 7 names neotypified and 25 new combinations proposed. Further, 65 taxa found in the Valmiki Tiger Reserve have been reported as new records for the flora of Bihar state. This book, therefore, is expected to be of immense use to biologists, botanists, ecologists, foresters, students, researchers, scientists, taxonomists and all nature lovers who are concerned with biodiversity conservation, sustainable utilization as well as bioprospection of plant genetic resources available in India.
