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The forests of Point Calimere, are one of the last refuges of the dry evergreen forests that were once characteristic of the East Deccan dry evergreen forests. The Point Calimere Wildlife Sanctuary was created on June 13, 1967, with an area of 24.17 Sq.km's. In 1988, the sanctuary was expanded to include the Great Vedaranyam Swamp and the Talaignayar Reserve Forest, and named the Point Calimere Wildlife and Bird Sanctuary, with a total area of 377 sq.km's.
The three prominrnt natural vegetation or habitat here are the Dry Evergreen Forests, Mangrove forests, and Wetlands.
Wetlands are found where the time water saturates the soil completly. The result is an absence of free oxygen. Plants, which are called hydrophytes, or just wetland plants, are adapted to such soils and can survive in wetlands, whereas species intolerant of the absence of soil oxygen can not survive. Adaptations to low soil oxygen distinguish many wetland species.
Intertidal wetlands are found in coastal areas where air temperature, wave action, salinity levels, and sediment movements are restrained by the location features of the environment and ecosystem.
Point Calimere is a marine coastal wetland with a wide diversity of habitats and ecological features, including inter tidal salt marshes and brackish to saline lagoons.
The area of Point Calimere is spread with Saltpans which are large shallow open pans use to evaporate brine for the production of salt. They are usually found on the coast, where there is a supply of brine.
The vegetation in the Dry Evergreen Forests is uniquely distinctive from most of the other dry forests. Unlike other dry forests of the Indo-Pacific region that lose their leaves for part of the year during the non monsoon season, these forests stay green during the long dry season.
The eco region of Dry Evergreen Forests runs as a narrow strip along the southern coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu states in India.
Mangroves are woody trees or shrubs that grow in coastal habitats like Point Calimere Coastline, for which the term mangrove swamp also applies. Mangrove plants are found in depositional coastal environments where fine sediments, often with high organic content, collect in areas protected from high-energy wave action.
Mangrove plants in Calimere Coastline have developed a set of physiological adaptations to overcome the problems of anoxia, salinity and frequent tidal deluge.
The best time to visit the park is from November to February when the birds migrate here.
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