The Southern Konkan region forms a narrow strip of land between the Arabian sea and the Sahyadri range of Western Ghats, along western coast of India. A large number of woodlands of the region are under private and community ownership. They constitute an area of 3149 sq km (Kulkarni & Mehta, 2013), which form a considerable portion of forest cover. They play a crucial role in ecological conservation as a part of Northern Western Ghats for biodiversity conservation and habitat connectivity. As a source of firewood, grazing ground, wood charcoal and non-timber forest products, they also supplement the livelihood of the local people. In recent years, there has been a rise in commercial monoculture plantations of mango (Mangifera indica), cashew (Anacardium occidentale) and rubber (Hevea brasiliensis). Furthermore, the present bio-resource extraction practices in the woodlands are leading to the conversion of the moist tropical evergreen forests into deciduous tree communities (Biswas et al., 2024), thereby aggravating biodiversity loss, weakening of large wild mammal corridors, and conversion to exotic monoculture plantations. These neglected, data-deficient but extensive landscapes are crucial for livelihoods but are equally important biodiversity areas requiring urgent attention.