Wild Life
Sanctuaries
Bandipur National Park, Karnataka
Bandipur National Park, established in 1974 as a tiger reserve under Project Tiger, is a national park located in the south Indian state of Karnataka. It was once a private hunting reserve for the Maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore. Bandipur is known for its wildlife and has many types of biomes, but dry deciduous forest is dominant.
The park spans an area of 874 square kilometers (337 sq mi), protecting several species of India's endangered wildlife. Together with the adjoining Nagarhole National Park (643 km2 (248 sq mi)), Mudumalai National Park (320 km2(120 sq mi)) and Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (344 km2 (133 sq mi)), it is part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve totaling 2,183 km2 (843 sq mi) making it the largest protected area in southern India.
Bandipur is located in Gundlupet taluq of Chamarajanagar district. It is about 80 kilometers (50 mi) from the city of Mysore on the route to a major tourist destination of Ooty. As a result, Bandipur sees a lot of tourist traffic and there are a lot of wildlife fatalities caused by speeding vehicles that are reported each year. There is a ban on traffic from the hours of dusk to dawn to help bring down deaths of wildlife.
History
The Maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore created a sanctuary of 90 km2(35 sq mi) in 1931 and named it the Venugopala Wildlife Park. The Bandipur Tiger Reserve was established under Project Tiger in 1973 by adding nearly 800 km2(310 sq mi) to the Venugopala Wildlife park.
Bandipur National Park located between 75° 12’ 17” E to 76° 51’ 32” E and 11° 35’ 34” N to 11° 57’ 02” N where the Deccan Plateau meets the Western Ghats and the altitude of the park ranges from 680 meters (2,230 ft) to 1,454 meters (4,770 ft). As a result, the park has a variety of biomes including dry deciduous forests, moist deciduous forests and shrublands. The wide range of habitats help support a diverse range of organisms. The park is flanked by the Kabini river in the north and the Moyar river in the south. The Nugu river runs through the park. The highest point in the park is on a hill called Himavad Gopalaswamy Betta, where there is a Hindu temple at the summit. Bandipur has typical tropical climate with distinct wet and dry seasons. The dry and hot period usually begins in early March and can last till the arrival of the monsoon rains in June.
Geography
Conflicts and threats
For farmers in the 200 villages along the Bandipur forest periphery, the National Park is a vast pasture for grazing cattle and for collection of firewood and other forest produce. The reserve holds nearly 150,000 cattle. The Nugu wildlife sanctuary and Himavad Gopalaswamy range located in the north-west of the park are the most used by cattle
NH 67 through Bandipur National Park
There are fears of possible transmission of diseases from cattle to wildlife. In 1968, large numbers of gaur were killed in an outbreak of rinderpest. Lantana bush introduced by British in 19th century in tea gardens has spread rapidly at the cost of other valuable herbs and saplings. This bush is thorny, attracts mosquitoes, is not eaten by any herbivores and rapid spread has caused other species of fauna to vanish which is staple food for wild life. Rapid spread of Parthenium (Parthenium hysterophorus) has severely damaged bio-diversity and typical landscapes of this beautiful jungle is making way for this invasive weed.
Elephants which traditionally migrate from dry to moist zones now increasingly come into contact with human habitations and farms are often damaged. Sugarcane crops are particularly attractive to them.
Elephant Trying to Cross the NH 67
The National Highway (NH-67) &( NH-212 ) passes through Bandipur national park . This road has been a major concern as speeding vehicles have killed many wild animals in spite of frequent warnings to travelers from the forest department officials and restriction on movement of vehicles in some stretches between 9 P.M to 6 A.M.[9] This has raised fears of extinction of habitat of wild animals exclusively found in this national park.
Flora
Bandipur supports a wide range of timber trees including: Teak(Tectona grandis), Rosewood(Dalbergia latifolia), Sandalwood (Santalum album V), Indian-laurel(Terminalia tomentosa), Indian Kino Tree(Pterocarpus marsupium), giant clumping bamboo(Dendrocalamus strictus), clumping bamboo(Bambusa arundinacea) and Grewia tiliaefolia.
There are also several notable flowering and fruiting trees and shrubs including: Kadam tree(Adina cordifolia), Indian gooseberry(Emblica officinalis), Crape-myrtle(Lagerstroemia lanceolata), axlewood(Anogeissus latifolia), Black Myrobalan(Terminalia chebula), Schleichera trijuga, Odina wodiar, Flame of the Forest(Butea monosperma), Golden Shower Tree (Cassia fistula), satinwood(Chloroxylon swietenia), Black Cutch(Acacia catechu), Shorea talura (E), indigoberry (Randia uliginosa)
