Horsley Hills (18020)
India, Asia
Site overview
KBA status: confirmed
Year of last assessment: 2004
National site name: Horsley Hills
Central coordinates: Latitude: 13.6833, Longitude: 78.4667
System: terrestrial
Elevation (m): 1265 00
Area of KBA (km2): 9.38596
KBA classification: Global/Regional TBD
Legacy site: Yes
Site details
Site description: Horsley Hills in Chittoor district are a part of the Eastern Ghats. The hills were named after M. W. H. Horsley, a member of the British Indian Civil Service (Subramanya and Prasad 1996). The Hills lie within the Horsley Konda Reserve Forest and comprise an area of 4,700 ha, with a total of 13 peaks, of which seven are above 1,000 m, the highest being 1,347 m (Subramanya and Prasad 1992). Prior to 1850, when Horsley took a fancy to this place, the hills were known as Enugu Mallamma Konda. The ruins of an old fort indicate that the hills had great local importance. Recently, stone age tools were unearthed, giving these hills archaeological importance as well. The Chenchu tribe who inhabit the Horsley Hills keep Pungannur cows, known for their milk yielding capacity and low fodder requirement. The Horsley Hills are popular among local tourists who go to see their natural beauty and to escape from the heat of the plains. The Mallamma temple is another major tourist and pilgrim centre. The habitat is predominantly Dry Deciduous, with a small patch of Moist Deciduous forest. The habitat structure has changed completely due to extensive plantations of Eucalyptus. The wild vegetation, wherever present, is highly disturbed. This site is well known to Indian ornithology as Jerdon (1863) possibly obtained type specimens of the globally threatened Yellow-throated Bulbul Pycnonotus xantholaemus (Whistler and Kinnear 1932). The natural vegetation of the hills is represented by trees such as Diospyros melanoxylon, Emblica officinalis, Albizzia amara, Ficus religiosa, Ficus tomentosa, Ficus bengalensis and Santalum album. Unfortunately, the natural vegetation has been replaced by plantations of Eucalyptus, Jacaranda, Allamanda and Delonix, especially at lower elevations.
Rationale for qualifying as KBA: This site qualifies as a Key Biodiversity Area of international significance because it meets one or more previously established criteria and thresholds for identifying sites of biodiversity importance (including Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas, Alliance for Zero Extinction sites, and Key Biodiversity Areas)
Additional biodiversity: AVIFAUNA: Subramanya and Prasad (1996) have conducted studies in Horsley Hills on the Yellow-throated Bulbul. Four species of bulbuls were found by them: Red-vented Pycnonotus cafer, Red-whiskered P. jocosus, White-browed P. luteolus and Yellow-throated P. xantholaemus. Among the total of 158 bulbuls sighted, the Yellowthroated was the most abundant, while the Red-vented, otherwise very common, was the least abundant (Subramanya and Prasad 1996). The Yellow-throated Bulbul was mainly seen in densely vegetated, boulder-strewn hilly areas. Flocks of up to six birds were frequently seen. Since the collection of type species nearly 150 years ago, Horsley Hills could still be considered as the stronghold of this globally threatened bulbul, therefore, it was selected as an IBA. Besides the Yellow-throated Bulbul (BirdLife International 2001), Horsley Hills has 28 Biome-11 species (Indo-Malayan Tropical Dry Zone). BirdLife International (undated) has reported a total of 59 species from Biome-11. This biome includes a wide range of habitats, including forests and open country. Many of the species listed have adapted to manmodified habitats, so they are widespread and common. Many species have changed their distribution due to habitat modification over hundreds of years. Interestingly, Indian Scimitar-Babbler Pomatorhinus horsfieldii, restricted to the hills of peninsular India, is also found here. Similarly, Loten’s Sunbird Nectarinia lotenia, resident of well-wooded country of central and south India (Ali and Ripley 1987, Grimmett et al. 1998) is also reported from this IBA. Both species belong to Biome-10 (Indian Peninsula Tropical Moist Forest) according to BirdLife International (undated). Some other Biome-10 species are also recorded from the hills. The Critically Endangered Oriental White-backed Vulture Gyps bengalensis is regularly sighted here. Subramanya and Prasad (1992) sighted 83 species of birds, including the Forest Wagtail Motacilla indica, possibly the third record from Andhra Pradesh, and the Blue-headed Rock Thrush Monticola cinclorhynchus, a species uncommon in the Eastern Ghats. The thrush winters mainly in the Western Ghats and Assam hills (Ali and Ripley 1987, Grimmett et al. 1999). OTHER KEY FAUNA: Important fauna includes the Sloth Bear Melursus ursinus, Wild Dog Cuon alpinus, Sambar Cervus unicolor and Leopard Panthera pardus. Beddome’s Coral Snake Calliophis beddomei, whose population is restricted to only four known locations (Anon. 2001) is found here.
Delineation rationale: 2014-03-11 (BL Secretariat): a site area of 939 ha was calculated by GIS from the site polygon, then rounded to the nearest 10% (940 ha).
Habitats
Land use: forestry | tourism/recreation
| IUCN Habitat | Coverage % | Habitat detail |
|---|---|---|
| Artificial - Terrestrial | 33 | |
| Rocky Areas(e.g., inland cliffs, mountain peaks) | 33 | |
| Forest | 33 |
Threats
Summary of threats to biodiversity at KBA: MAIN THREATS: Fuel wood collection; Grazing; Unregulated tourism and ancillary activities. Horsley Hills have an important hill station in Andhra Pradesh. The pleasant weather conditions attract tourists throughout the year. The massive plantation of exotic species was intended to increase greenery, but it has destroyed the natural vegetation of the hills. Subramanya and Prasad (1992) did not find Jungle Crow Corvus macrorhynchos on the hills, but now due to increase of tourists and the resultant garbage, the crow population is increasing (Prasanna et al. 1997). Increase in crow population is likely to put additional pressure on the Yellow-throated Bulbul and similar birds. Due to increase in tourism, developmental activities such as construction of hotels and lodges are taking place. Therefore, it is of major concern to check further destruction of the forest, particularly as the hill forest is an important site for the Restricted Range Yellow-throated Bulbul.
| Threat level 1 | Threat level 2 | Threat level 3 | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture & aquaculture | Livestock farming & ranching | Small-holder grazing, ranching or farming | Ongoing |
| Agriculture & aquaculture | Wood & pulp plantations | Agro-industry plantations | Ongoing |
| Invasive & other problematic species, genes & diseases | Problematic native species/diseases | Named species | Ongoing |
| Biological resource use | Logging & wood harvesting | Unintentional effects: subsistence/small scale (species being assessed is not the target) [harvest] | Ongoing |
| Human intrusions & disturbance | Recreational activities | Ongoing | |
| Pollution | Garbage & solid waste | Ongoing | |
| Residential & commercial development | Tourism & recreation areas | Ongoing |
Additional information
References: Ali, S. and Ripley, S. D. (1987) Compact Handbook of the Birds of India and Pakistan (Second Edition). Oxford University Press, Delhi. Anonymous (2001) Reptile CAMP Handbook. Vol. I, Reptiles Endemic to India. South Asian Reptile Network. Zoo Outreach Organization, Coimbatore. BirdLife International (2001) Threatened Birds of Asia. The BirdLife International Red Data Book. 2 vol. BirdLife International, Cambridge, U.K. BirdLife International (undated) Important Bird Areas (IBAs) in Asia: Project briefing book. BirdLife International, Cambridge, U.K., unpublished. Grimmett, R., Inskipp, C. and Inskipp, T. (1998) Birds of the Indian Subcontinent. Christopher Helm (Publishers) Ltd., London, U.K. Jerdon, T. C. (1863) The Birds of India. Vol. 2, part 1. Published by the author, Calcuatta, pp. 84-86. Prasanna, M. Belliappa, K. M. and Vittal, B. S. (1997) Birds of Horsley Hills. Newsletter for Birdwatchers 37(5): 76. Subramanya, S. and Prasad, J. N. (1992) Birds of Horsley Hills. Newsletter for Birdwatchers 32 (9&10): 8-10. Subramanya, S. and Prasad, J. N. (1996) Yellow-throated Bulbuls at Horsley Hills. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 93(1): 55-58. Whistler, H. and Kinnear, N. B. (1932) Vernay Scientific survey of Eastern Ghats. Ornithology- Part 2. J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc. 35: 737-760.