www.indianwildlifetour.com

National Parks & Sanctuaries in India

Bandhavgarh National Park Tour

Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve is located between the Vindhyan hill range and the eastern flank of Satpura hill range, and falls in the Shahdol and Jabalpur districts of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

The Reserve gets its name from the highest hill, Bandhavharh (807m),located in the center of the Reserve. A chain of smaller hills, thirty -two in all, surround this hill forming a number of valleys and spurs in between. Bertica cliffs are more prominent around number of grassy meadows, such as Chalradhara, Rajbsahera, is of sandstone, water percolates through it, forming a number of perennial streams and springs. The western parts of the Reserve and Panpatha Sanctuary area are more of less plain. The hills are mainly flat- topped. The meadows in certain areas ate marshy.

Sal trees cover low, undulating and plain tracts and degenerate in growth and quality as they ascend he hill slopes, giving place to mixed forest on the upper slopes, mainly due to edaphic factors. Gregarious flowering of bamboo in year 1984-85 has resulted in profuse regeneration all over, which is giving good cover to all animals.

A few rare species such as the insectivorous plant Drocera peltata and medicinal plants such as Buch (Acorus calamus are found in some isolated patches of Tata range of the Reserve. The rivers Johilla and Son flowing on the eastern side, the river Umrar passing through the western fringes and the landmarks of the Reserve. Bandhavgarh has been an excellent habitat of the tiger and is Known for its highest density of tiger population in the world.

Best Time to Visit: November to June.

Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary

Just 176 km. from Delhi is a very special wilderness - the Keoladeo Ghana National Park, one of the finest water-bird sanctuaries in the world. The 28.73 sq. km. lake and wetland was artificially created by the Maharaja of Bharatpur in the 19th century. By building small dykes and dams and diverting water from an irrigation canal, he converted this low lying area into a fine wild fowl shooting preserve. In a few years, the new wetland surrounded by marginal forests was able to support thousands of water birds.

Commonly referred to as Bharatpur, the Park is a delight for bird watchers. Over 300 species of birds are found here and raised paths, camouflaged by babul trees and undergrowth make viewing easy. A quiet ride by boat in the early hours of the morning is also an unforgettable experience. There are mixed heronries on the half submerged babul trees and the cacophony is unbelievable as painted storks, open bills, spoon bills, egrets, cormorants, white ibis and multitudes of others, tend their young. Jacanas with their iridescent colors and elegant tail feathers and purple moorhen can be seen delicately treading over the floating vegetation. While harriers and fishing eagles circle overhead in search of prey, the pied kingfisher hovers dramatically over the water in a flurry of wings.

There are varieties of storks and cranes and the local sarus crane is elegant in a livery of grey and red. Every year Bharatpur waits with coated breath for the arrival of the Siberian cranes.

There are only two wintering places for this rare species -one in Iran and the other Bharatpur and these beautiful birds with their distinctive red beaks and facial patches, fly over 6400 km from their summer retreats in Siberia, to get to them. In 1996, there was great jubilation as a couple of Siberian cranes with a young one made an appearance in Bharatpur after a lapse of three years.

The forests around the lake at Bharatpur harbor the sambar, chital, nilgai, jackal, hyena, fox, mongoose and porcupine. Occasionally, a fishing cat can be seen scooping its prey also commonly seen sunning themselves along edge of the paths or at Python Point.

Corbett National Park

Corbett has aptly been described as the land of the Roar, Trumpet and Song. It represents a scene of remarkable beauty.

Corbett had the proud distinction of being the chosen venue for the inauguration of Project Tiger in India. The rich bio-diversity of the Reserve is partly attributed to the variety of habitat found here. Due to the location of the Reserve in the foothills of the Central Himalayas, both Himalayan and peninsular flora and fauna is found in the Reserve.

The grasslands, locally known as Chaurs, are limited. The largest grasslamnd is the Dhikala Chaur. Some of the best grasslands including the famous Buxor Chaur and the Beri Chaur were submerged in the Ramganga reservoir in 1974. The areas made available as a result of the relocation of the villages, Dhara, Jhirna and Kothirau in 1994 are being developed into grasslands through habitat management.

The Ramganga reservoir, which came into being in 1974, stretches over an area of around 82 sq.km. with one half each in Corbett National Park and Sonanadi Wildlife Sanctuary respectively. The Ramganga riger is the lifeline of Corbett Tiger Reserve. Its principal tributaries are the Mandal, Palain and Sonanadi. Numerous mountainous streams locally called Sots flow into these rivers. The nallas and ravines are thickly covered with evergreen glades along them, which provide undisturbed cover and water for tiger. Part of the catchment of the Kosi river falls within the Reserve though the river is outside the Reserve.

Corbett is very rich in avifauna. Zoological Survey of India has recorded over 585 species of resident and migratory birds here. Corbett falls in the newly constituted state of Uttaranchal, curved out of former Utter Pradesh State in 2000.

Best Time to Visit: November- May.