One Mountain Range.
Many Forests.
Why the Western Ghats change from open hills and seasonal woodland to cool, wet evergreen forest.
If I could choose one season to last all year, it would be the monsoon. The first proper rain always pulls me towards the Western Ghats. Sometimes I go looking for birds, frogs or reptiles. Other times, I simply sit beside a stream and watch the forest around me—the trees, the plants and the life that appears with the rain.
For me, it is not always about finding something rare. More often, the greatest discoveries are simply things I had overlooked before.
Over the years, I have returned many times to Tamhini, Koyna, Mahabaleshwar, Velhe, Madhe Ghat, Matheran, Amboli and Dandeli. All of them become green during the rains, but none of them feels exactly the same.
Some forests stay cool and dark even in the afternoon. Others are open and windy. Some have streams around every bend. Others have grass, shrubs and trees that lose their leaves in summer. Even the smell of the forest changes from one place to another.
It took me time to understand that I was not visiting the same forest again and again. The Western Ghats are one mountain range, but changes in rain, elevation, soil and temperature create many different forests across them.
Why the Forest Changes
The story begins with very old rock. In the northern Western Ghats, including much of Maharashtra, the landscape is largely built from layers of basalt formed by enormous volcanic eruptions around 66 million years ago. These lava flows created the Deccan Traps and much of the adjoining Deccan Plateau.
Farther south, the mountains pass through other, much older rock formations. Across the range, millions of years of rain, rivers, weathering and erosion shaped the steep cliffs, deep valleys, plateaus and slopes we see today.
The monsoon shaped its forests.
The biggest reason these forests change is rainfall. Moist winds arrive from the Arabian Sea and meet the steep western face of the mountains. The air rises, cools and releases rain. The western slopes become wet, misty and humid.
By the time the same air moves towards the eastern side, much of its moisture is gone. Rainfall drops, the air becomes drier and the forest begins to open up. This is why two places only a short drive apart can look and feel very different.
Following the Monsoon
One of the easiest ways to notice this change is to travel from Pune towards Tamhini during the monsoon.
Near Pune, the hills are green but open. As the road moves past Mulshi and towards Tamhini, the valleys become deeper. Clouds sit lower. Waterfalls appear on the cliffs. The air turns cooler and wetter.
Move farther into the Ghats and the forest begins to close around you. The light becomes softer. Tree trunks darken with moisture. Moss appears on branches and rocks. Streams disappear beneath thick vegetation.
Farther south, around Amboli and within the wetter parts of the Kali landscape near Dandeli, some forests feel denser still. Where the canopy closes, it keeps the air cool and humid even during the day.
Move back towards the drier eastern side and the forest opens again. More sunlight reaches the ground. Grasses grow between trees, and many trees lose their leaves during the dry months.
Higher places such as Mahabaleshwar add another change. Cooler temperatures, strong winds and exposed plateaus create habitats different from the valleys below.
These forests do not have sharp borders. They slowly blend into one another. Often, you notice the change only after the air, light, trees and sounds have already changed around you.
Looking More Closely
Large landscapes reveal how a forest changes, but its smaller details tell us what kind of forest we are walking through.
In a wet forest, moss covers bark and fallen wood. Water stays in shaded hollows. Leaf litter remains damp. Frogs use streams and temporary pools. Fungi appear after rain. Insects become active on fresh leaves, flowers and the forest floor.
Different forests support different life. A frog living beside a fast stream needs a very different habitat from an insect resting on a sunlit leaf. A plant growing on a windy plateau may not survive under a dark evergreen canopy.
This variety of habitats is one reason the Western Ghats support so many endemic species—plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth. Some depend on a particular stream, plateau, forest type or small range of hills.
Once I began looking at habitat, wildlife started making more sense. A species was no longer separate from the place where I found it. The trees, shade, water, soil and season were all part of the same story.
A Forest Observed
Slow down. A small patch of forest can hold many forms of life.
These blue-purple flowers add a brief burst of colour to the forest.
Some frogs are closely tied to flowing water and shaded forest streams.
Large webs stretch between branches along forest paths.
Even a single leaf may hold colours and shapes that are easy to miss.
Some fungi appear for only a few days before disappearing again.
One Range, Never the Same Forest
When I first began exploring the Western Ghats, I mostly looked for wildlife. Over time, I began noticing the forest itself—the rocks beneath it, the streams running through it, the trees above it, the light within it and even the changing feel of the air.
I no longer see the Ghats as one continuous stretch of green. I see a changing landscape shaped by rainfall, elevation, geology and climate: evergreen forest giving way to semi-evergreen and deciduous woodland, high plateaus opening above deep valleys, and small streams creating habitats of their own.
Once I began understanding these habitats, wildlife started making more sense. A species was no longer separate from the place where I found it. Every bird, frog, insect, flowering tree and mushroom became part of a larger story written by rain, rock and time.
The next time you travel through the Western Ghats, look beyond the green. Notice how the air changes, how the canopy opens or closes, how moss appears on bark and rock, and how streams emerge or disappear. You may still be travelling through one mountain range—but you may already be walking through a different forest.
About Parag Kokane
Parag Kokane is an observer of nature whose work combines field observation, natural history, wildlife photography and writing. Through Wildscapes, he explores the forests, freshwater ecosystems and everyday wildlife of the Western Ghats, sharing stories that encourage readers to look more closely at the natural world around them.
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