Giant Trees for Climate Change Mitigation in India

Dear Supporters,

We would like to present some important work accomplished by our field team in the last quarter. Our team undertook field surveys to scan the forest landscapes of two villages namely Jawali and Sakhri spread over 1200 hectares in Mandangad block of Ratnagiri district. We have been working in this block for last 2 and half years for mangrove conservation and realized that healthy watershed forests play critical role in health and diversity of mangrove ecosystem. Surprisingly, our team could find only 41 giant trees that we will be saving through this campaign.

While we do hope to come across additional Giant trees in these villages, the initial findings provided clear evidence of significant degradation of once healthy and dense canopy forests in this region. Our field team walked long distances through large patches of secondary forests belonging to local communities before they could meet the giant trees tagged during the survey. 

Our long experience in forest conservation has taught us one important lesson- old growth forests and old growth trees from the region provide key insights into ecological history of the landscape and biodiversity the entire forest landscape used to support / boast of in the past. Thus old growth trees form important pillars of ecological restoration of forest landscape in our opinion. There are serveral reasons for this.

Besides facilitating regeneration of rare and endemic trees in the surrounding forests through dispersal by frugivorous birds who often roost on these giant trees, they provide critical habitat to honeybees who pollinate many wild trees, nesting cavities to many small and big birds who further the work dispersal in the coming years and help establish a healthy food web for plethora of species such as reptiles, amphibians, mammals, insects and ants. All these species contribute to restoration of biodiversity in the surrounding landscape in their unique way. We will share a seperate note on this important function of giant trees in the next quarter. 

Through your generous support and keen interest in this campaign, we have signed conservation agreements with 6 community members who own the 41 Giant trees to ensure their long term proection. The 41 giant trees comprised of 7 different native tree species. Interestingly majority among these trees are wild mango trees. Wild mango trees have become a rarity now as they are felled for their use as a timber. Besides supporting other biodiversity, the conservation of wild mangoes will also contribute to preserving diversity of mangoes itself. It is increasingly becoming clear that wild mangoes possess essential minerals that we can not get in processed mango juices of hybrid varities. In other words for healthy food, we will need to preserve wild mango trees. 

We are also sharing few photos of the trees, communities and the map of the landscapes where the trees were found.

Thanks for your continued support.

Best 

Jayant Sarnaik

Dear Supporters,

Here is short story of a Giant tree and 1000 lives it support narrated by our field biologists.

Deep within the sacred groves of the Western Ghats, we recently encountered a breathtaking sight—one that spoke volumes about the delicate and complex web of life hidden in these ancient forest patches. During our field survey under the ongoing “Giant Trees Conservation” campaign, we came across a massive Terminalia bellirica tree, standing silently yet powerfully among a grove that hosts over 37 such giants. What made this particular tree unforgettable was not just its size—measuring over 500 cm in girth—but the living phenomenon it had become.

The entire trunk of the tree was covered in thousands of tiny orange mushrooms identified as Marasmius leveilleanus. The mass blooming of this mushroom, forming a spectacular carpet of life climbing up the tree's weathered bark. It was a rare natural event—like watching a hidden world reveal itself in full glory. This single tree, towering and aged, had transformed into a vertical habitat, supporting not just the mushroom bloom but mosses, lichens, insects, and even tiny seedlings clinging to life in crevices of the bark.

Giant trees like this Terminalia bellirica are more than just old trunks—they are living ecosystems. In sacred groves, where nature has been protected for generations due to spiritual and cultural beliefs, these giants act as biodiversity magnets. Birds nest in their hollows, bats roost in their canopies, and a web of insects, fungi, and microbes make their homes in and around them

The mass blooming of Marasmius leveilleanus on this tree raises fascinating ecological questions. Scientifically, such blooms occur due to a combination of environmental and biological triggers. The high humidity and moisture of the monsoon, the presence of lignin and cellulose in aging bark, and microclimatic conditions around such large trees all create the perfect stage for saprotrophic fungi like Marasmius to flourish. These fungi are natural decomposers—breaking down organic matter, recycling nutrients, and enriching the soil. Their appearance in such numbers may reflect a healthy ecological process, though it can also sometimes indicate that the tree is undergoing internal decay or stress. Still, in moist forest ecosystems like the Western Ghats, fungi and trees have coexisted for centuries in a symbiotic rhythm that maintains forest health.

This observation reminds us why the protection of sacred groves and their giant trees is more crucial than ever. Every such tree is a microhabitat, and its preservation means safeguarding hundreds of species that rely on it—both visible and invisible. Sacred groves are some of the last remaining refuges of untouched biodiversity. Their unique microclimate, untouched canopy, and age-old traditions of protection have allowed such ecological marvels to survive.

Through the support of donors and well-wishers via our GlobalGiving project, we continue to monitor, document, and conserve these giant trees. By doing so, we are not only protecting tree species like Mangifera indica, Terminalia bellirica, Olea dioica, and Bombax ceiba, but also the lesser-seen life forms like mushrooms, mosses, and epiphytic ferns that they host. Our goal remains to highlight the silent but vital roles these trees play, and to ensure their stories reach more people who care about the planet.

The tree we found may never speak, but through its bark, fungi, and canopy, it tells us that every leaf, every spore, and every inch of forest matters. By protecting one tree, we protect an entire ecosystem.

Our dedicated field team is very much skilled at documenting diversity of life that Giant trees support. Skills and in-depth knowledge of interconnectedness of nature are equally important along with passion. 

We hope by now you have understood that we are taking utmost care of your donation and it will be used to save Giant trees and associated species for at least next decade. 

Best regards

Jayant