Ecological Studies of Saurashtra Coast and Neighbouring Islands: I. Diu Island

The plant ecology of Diu, an island of irregular outline, situated in 20°43' N & 71°02' E and separated from the southern extremity of the peninsula of Saurashtra by a narrow channel on western shore of India is presented in this paper. Several plant communities are grouped into three ecosystems : Rock-strand, Strand and Inland sandy plain. The community type is a sub-division of an ecosystem, that is, it is recognised by the features of both its plant cover and its habitat. Plant communities under each of the three abovementioned ecosystems are described and also analysis of rocks and soils presented in tabular form to study soil features in relation to vegetation.