threatened by encroachment by agricultural fields, wildlife poaching, loss of the surrounding forests, and increases in commercial prawn farming. Flora The original vegetation of the ecoregion consisted of forests with an understory of evergreen trees and an emergent canopy of taller deciduous trees, including Albizia amara, and Chloroxylon swietenia. Intensive human use of the forests over the centuries has mostly eliminated the deciduous canopy species, and the ecoregion's remaining forests are now characterized by areas of leathery-leaved evergreen forest, with a relatively low (10-meter) closed canopy. Predominant species are Manilkara hexandra, Mimusops elengi, Ceylon ebony (Diospyros ebenum), strychnine tree (Strychnos nux-vomica), Eugenia spp., Drypetes sepiaria, and Flacourtia indica. Across 75 sites of tropical dry evergreen forests, one study enumerated 149 woody plant species, including 102 trees, 47 lianas, and 3 herbs, with the number of woody plant species per site ranging from 10 to 69 species. One study in two remnant sacred groves in this ecoregion recorded 169 angiosperm species, of which the dominant tree species were Albizia amara, A. odoratissima, Borassus flabellifer, Buchanania axillaris, Chloroxylon swietenia, Drypetes sepiaria, Ficus benghalensis, Lannea coromandelica, Lepisanthes tetraphylla, Memecylon umbellatum, Pterospermum suberifolium, and Syzygium cumini. Puthupet forest (12°05’702”N – 79° 87’ 148” E) is predominantly Memecylon umbellatum, with Pterospermum canescens, Diospyros ebenum, Drypetes sepiaria, Aglaia elaeagnoidea, Pongamia pinnata, Azadirachta indica, Walsura trifoliolata, Calophyllum inophyllum, and Albizia amara. The density of trees in the forest stands ranges from 953 to 1357 stems (of girth greater than 20 cm at breast height) per hectare. 6-8 percent of the ecoregion remains in forest, which is found in isolated pockets. Most of the ecoregion's forests have been degraded into tropical dry evergreen scrublands, characterized by thorny species such as Ziziphus glaberrima, Dichrostachys cinerea, Catunaregam spinosa, and Carissa spinarum. The plant community of remnant dry evergreen forest patches in sacred groves includes rare evergreen species such as Polyalthia suberosa, Aglaia elaeagnoidea, and Pamburus missionis, besides medicinal herbs like Hemidesmus indicus, Gloriosa superba, Andrographis paniculata, Dioscorea oppositifolia, and Tinospora cordifolia. Fauna Mammals found in this ecoregion include the dhole (Cuon alpinus), sloth bear (Melursus ursinus) and Indian spotted chevrotain (Moschiola indica). Protected areas Two percent of the ecoregion lies in reserves and protected areas. Another 6% is forested but unprotected. Many forest areas are very small, and include temple groves and reserved forests. Protected areas include Guindy National Park in Chennai District, and Nanmangalam, and Vandalur reserve forests in