The sal forest is a complex ecosystem that has evolved over millennia. A favorite of woodpeckers and other creatures, the sal tree is the dominant species in a sal forest. These tall trees are very difficult to regenerate artificially, so their destruction has everlasting repercussions.
About the contributors
Mandakini Malla
Mandakini Malla is a director, producer, and cinematographer with over 20 years of industry experience. She has traveled the world, creating travel and wildlife content for television and digital platforms. She returned to her hometown of Dehradun to find a better synergy between her deep concern for the environment and wildlife in her work. When not filming, she's stomping through sal forests observing birds and wildflowers.
View Profile
Sustain Team
We are a driven group of people from diverse backgrounds, bound by an abiding love for India’s natural world.
Related Content
Why Woodpeckers Peck the Largest Trees
According to a study conducted in Uttarakhand, woodpeckers prefer to forage on large trees which offer more food. Removal of large trees could affect their numbers
Aarey: The Wild Heart of Mumbai
Few cities in the world have large swathes of jungles within their borders, even fewer have leopards living within. Unfortunately, the green cover of India’s maximum city is under grave threat
Enchanted Forest: Ode to the Old Sal Community
A sal tree never lives alone. It grows with many of its kind to create contiguous forests across hundreds of kilometres, nurturing everything that falls within its care