The East Deccan moist deciduous forests (also mapped as the Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests) sweep across east-central India, spanning portions of seven states including Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Telangana, from the northern Eastern Ghats and northeastern Deccan Plateau to the eastern Satpura Range. These are tropical moist deciduous forests dominated by sal (Shorea robusta) in association with Terminalia, Adina, Toona, and Syzygium. The forests are sustained by moisture-bearing monsoon winds that sweep in from the Bay of Bengal. The region supports a rich large-mammal fauna, with the gaur (Indian bison) as its flagship species alongside predators such as tiger and dhole, and camera-trap surveys here rediscovered the Indian mouse deer in 2017, more than a century after it was last recorded. Much of the original habitat has been cleared, leaving roughly a quarter intact across protected blocks such as Simlipal National Park.
Marker placed inside the RESOLVE 2017 polygon at 20.5°N, 82.2°E.
Climate snapshot for this ecoregion
°C
°F
Current zone range (2011–2040)
12a-13b
Plotwright
CHELSA-derived typical winter month at this ecoregion's bbox grid.
Projected (2041–2070)
12b-13b
Plotwright
Where the CHELSA models say the typical winter month is heading.
Average warming this ecoregion is on track for: +3.9°F by mid-century. SSP3-7.0 (current trajectory) · CHELSA v2.1 bio06 sampled across 10 of 10 points within this ecoregion's bounding box.
At a glance
Dominant biome
Tropical & Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests
Realm
Indomalayan
Approximate area
131,755 sq mi
Conservation tier
Nature Imperiled (Dinerstein NNH 4)
About the tropical & subtropical moist broadleaf forests biome
Warm, wet, highly productive forests — including tropical rainforests — with closed canopies, near year-round growing seasons, and the richest terrestrial biodiversity on Earth. Low seasonality and high rainfall sustain dense, layered vegetation from canopy to forest floor.
Catalog plants suited to this ecoregion
Computed from each plant's stated USDA zone range against this ecoregion's CHELSA-derived current zone range, with the CHELSA mid-century warming delta applied for the projection. Plants whose stated range falls outside both the current and projected zone end up dropped; the rest land in one of the three buckets below.
Climate-resilient picks · 4
These plants fit this ecoregion today AND remain in range under the mid-century SSP3-7.0 projection. Lead with these for a planting that holds up as the climate shifts.
No curated collection's plants all fit this ecoregion's zone range. We surface a collection only when every member would grow here — partial fits get filtered out rather than mislead. As the catalog and the curated set both grow, this section will fill in.
Related ecoregions
Other tropical & subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregions to explore: