Patterns of plant species diversity in the forest corridor of Rajaji—Corbett National Parks, Uttaranchal, India

Patterns of vegetation diversity in the various strata (trees, shrubs and herbs) were analysed in the Rajaji-Corbett corridor forest. Mean species numbers of all the vegetation strata were correlated with each other. The seedlings and saplings showed weak correlation with herbs and shrubs, proving that some species of herbs and shrubs are detrimental for regeneration of trees. The α-diversity is highest for trees, while shrubs showed the highest β-diversity. Mosaic diversity values were low indicating that the study area had a relatively simple landscape with few dominating environmental gradients.