Oikos SKYI Manas Lake
Oikos SKYI Manas Lake
Oikos SKYI Manas Lake
Prepared for
February 2014
We do not inherit the land from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.
– Chief Seattle.
Site Location:
Introduction
Location of the site: The project area is located on the western side of the Pune city off Pune –
Mulshi road in Bhukum. The total area of the land is 60 acres. Geographically, this region comes
under the transition part between Pune city and Western Ghats. Thus the average annual
rainfall will be around 1200 mm. The temperature in summers ranges between 35oC to 40oC.
While the winter temperatures are in the range of 10oC to 20oC. The site location is 18o29’29.71”
Topography: The land has a small hillock at the south with moderate slope towards North. It
has moderate slope, few undulated areas and agricultural fields. There is approximately equal
distribution of each zone on the site. The upper contour of the site in south has a plateau with
recent plantations. It is followed by a moderate slope with deciduous and scrubby vegetation.
Vegetation: The type of vegetation observed is of moist deciduous type. The land can be
divided into 3 regions according to the type of vegetation observed. The upper contour of the
land has a barren plateau with few plantations of Karanja, Amba, Jambhul etc.. The second
patch i.e the middle contour on slopes shows presence of dry deciduous vegetation with scrubs
like Phansi, Kate Sawar, Pangara, Bor, Babhul and Khair. The third patch i.e. middle lower
contour shows presence of agricultural fields while the fourth patch of lower contour shows
Fauna: As the land shows mixture of open land, grasses, moderate scrubby canopy and
presence of agricultural fields, birds like Sunbirds, White eyes, Flycatchers, warblers, Pipits,
Shrikes and few Raptors are observed. Due to absence of good vegetation cover, animals
Analysis of Biodiversity
The site, near Bhukum, is spread over an area of approximately 60 acres. The land has a stream
along one of the boundary but is not present inside. The land can be categorized into 4 regions,
namely; Plateau area, deciduous vegetation, agricultural fields and scrubby vegetation,
according to the type of vegetation the land comprises & existing topography.
The Plateau area is mainly barren with hardly any grass or biomass cover on it. The strata is
murrum with very lesser soil. Few plantations of Karanja, Amba, Jambhul, Chikku, Mulberry,
The deciduous region is the only area on site which shows moderate canopy cover. Mostly the
trees included are babhul, khair, shisoo, phashi, Kate sawar and Pangara. All are present on
gradual to moderate slope. This is one of the places which show prominent bird activity. Nests
The agricultural land mainly consisted of crops of Jawar. Hardly any trees are present in
The scrubby vegetation area however is almost covered with different grasses and shrubs with
few small trees. But it forms an important habitat for birds like pipits, quails and larks. Also due
to the undulated area and abandoned quarry, birds like spotted owlet were observed. The
presence of stone piles forms a good habitat for reptiles. The overall area being open, many
A stream is present just outside the boundary at 18o29’37.39” N and 73043’22.82” E. Though the
stream is outside the boundary, similar habitat creation inside can attract the birds. Typical
forest birds like Tickel’s blue flycatcher, Red throated Flycatcher, Iora etc where observed in
stream section.
The site surveyed is divided into different zones according to the land cover on it. The land use
pattern had been suggested on the basis of minimum damage to the environment as well as
1. Eco Park: This is the area marked as “conservation zone” in earlier maps. This is the only
area which shows presence of better canopy cover with respect to the other areas on land.
This area shows presence of few mature deciduous trees and more bird diversity. Hence this
can be reserved as “Eco park”. Few pathways can be made for a relaxing walk through this
area.
2. Plateau: This area can be utilized for Low rise constructions. The very basic reason being,
plateau areas are percolating areas. Thus, greater the surface area, greater will be the
percolation (of water through rainfalls). Low- rise construction will also look aesthetic as
well as have more open spaces and less hardscape areas. A high tension wire crosses this
area, thus a low height green belt (shrubs or medium sized trees) is recommended below
this wire. So considering aesthetics, percolation of rainwater & high tension wire, low rise
3. Fields: The fields approximately cover up for 25 to 30 percent of the site. As the fields are
spread over the gradual slope area as well as the lowest part adjacent to road, all the
common facility areas can be constructed buildings. The open spaces here are recommended
to be in patches and not a single corner or a single middle area. The patches will help in
4. Open scrubby land: This area can be completely utilized for high rise buildings as the strata
Annexure
Annexure
1. Flora List:
2. Bird List: