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Kerala Wild life
Kerala Wild
Life
Befriend an
elephant Shake hands Discover the elephant's point of view. Feast
your eyes on the most exotic of wildlife. And realize that there's
much more to life when a deer stops to look at you. When a monkey
decides to renew acquaintance. When a blue-winged Parakeet sings for
you.
Eravikulam National Park
This
sanctuary was set up specially for the preservation of Nilgiri Tahr,
one of the seriously endangered animals. Now the number of tahrs has
increased and they constitute the largest known population of tahrs
existing in the world. In addition to tahr, the park shelters
elephants, sambars, gaurs, lion-tailed macaque, Nilgiri langur,
tigers and leopards.
Accommodation and board facilities are available at Munnar, the
nearest town, which is connected to Kottayam (148 km.) and Ernakulam
(130 km.) by road. There is a motorable road upto Rajamally.
Further, travel is on foot, but the trekking is really enjoyable.
Silent
Valley National Park
The
Silent Valley contains India’s last substantial stretch of tropical
evergreen rain forests and it is perhaps the only vestige of a near
virgin forest in the whole of the Western Ghats. Elephants, tigers,
wild dog, flying squirrel and lion-tailed macaque are found here.
Vehicular traffic is allowed upto Mukkali from Mannarghat. From
Mukkali one has to cover at least 24 km on foot to reach the source
of river Kuntipuzha, which flows through the valley.
Nearest railhead is Palghat, 75 km away. Admission to this part is
restricted. Prior permission is required to visit the part. For
further detail contact: The Divisional Forest Officer, Palghat.
Periyar
Wildlife Sanctuary
The
most renowned destination is the Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary at
Thekkady, one of India's major sanctuary areas. The drive to
Thekkady itself is enchanting as the road winds through tranquil
countryside, rich plantations and thick jungles.
The sanctuary offers a lovely and comfortable way to see the animals
via boat rides on the man-made lake, which the wildlife areas
encircle. In addition to the wild life, there are water and land
birds galore here, and one can sometimes find dedicated bird
watchers setting in for one or two weeks of serious observations.
Covering an area of 777 sq. km. of lush green tropical forests, it
is the natural habitat of elephant, bison, spotted deer, sambar,
bear etc. Colourful variety of birds like the Malabar Grey Hornbill,
Grey jungle fowl and the Jungle Myna are seen.
Thattekad
Bird Sanctuary
This
bird sanctuary is a peninsular land of 25 sq. km. Formed between the
branches of River Periyar. The rivers are rich in fishlife and are
shallow for most of the year. The avifauna includes both resting
indigenous birds and water birds. The most notable of the indigenous
birds are Malabar grey hornbill, grey jungle fowl, heron, egret,
jungle myna, wood pecker, rose winged and blue winged parakeet. Rare
birds like Ceylon frog-mouth, rose billed roller etc. are also seen.
Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary
This
bird sanctuary is a peninsular land of 25 sq. km. Formed between the
branches of River Periyar. The rivers are rich in fishlife and are
shallow for most of the year. The avifauna includes both resting
indigenous birds and water birds. The most notable of the indigenous
birds are Malabar grey hornbill, grey jungle fowl, heron, egret,
jungle myna, wood pecker, rose winged and blue winged parakeet. Rare
birds like Ceylon frog-mouth, rose billed roller etc. are also seen.
Parambikulam is endowed with luxuriant vegetation. It has one of the
largest population of gaur (bison). Sambar, spotted deer, jungle
cat, lion-tailed macaque, common otter, sloth bear etc. are also
seen. There are also a few tigers and leopards.
Facilities for boarding and lodging are available at the sanctuary.
There are forest rest houses at Thunacadavu, Thellikkal and Elathode.
Motor transport and boat cruise can be arranged on requestThe Indira
Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary of Tamil Nadu lies adjacent.
Idukki
Wildlife Sanctuary
The
sanctuary is situated just above the arch dam. An area of 70 sq. km.
of forest land in between the
Periyar and Cheruthoni rivers form an excellent habitat for
wildlife. Elephants, bisons, bear, wild boars, sambar etc are found
in this area. The lake on the three sides of the sanctuary offers a
panoramic view to the tourists.
Chinnar
Wildlife Sanctuary
Proximity to
Eravikulam National Park and Anamalai Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil
Nadu makes Chinnar rich in wildlife. This sanctuary is easily
accessible from Udumalpet in Tamil Nadu and Munnar in Kerala.
Aralam
Wildlife Sanctuary
Elephants,
sloth bear, sambar, mouse-deer etc. are found in this sanctuary. It
is also rich in avifauna and reptiles. This sanctuary is easily
accessible from Kannur.
Peppara
Wildlife Sanctuary
Peppara
is accessible from Vithurai on Thiruvananthapuram – Ponmudi road.
This sanctuary with its rich fauna and birds is emerging as a big
attraction to wildlife enthusiasts. It is spread over an area of 53
Sq. km. on the Western Ghats. This is dotted with large hills and
numerous hillocks with forests and Eucalyptus plantations. Elephant,
Sambar, Leopard and Lion tailed macaque are commonly seen.
Neyyar
Wildlife Sanctuary
The Neyyar
reservoir is easily navigable and extends 9.06 sq. km. The
vegetation varies from tropical wet
evergreen to grasslands. Agasthyakoodam of 1890 metres elevation is
in this sanctuary. Elephants, gaur, sloth bear, Nilgiri Tahr, jungle
cat, wild boar, Nilgiri Langur etc. are seen. A crocodile rearing
centre, deer farm and lion safari park are the main attractions near
the dam site.
Peechi -
Vazhani Wildlife Sanctuary
It
lies in the catchment areas of Peechi and Vazhani dams in Trichur
District. Peechi, the headquarters of the sanctuary is 15 km by road
from Trissur.
Nagarhole
Wildlife Sanctuary
It
is 40 km from Mananthavady. There are no bus services to Nagarhole
from Mananthavady, only jeeps and trucks are available. There is a
PWD Rest House, Forest Rest House and Forest Inspection Bungalow at
Mananthavady. The reservation authorities are the District
Collector, Waynad and the DFO, Mananthavady. There are also mid
range hotels and an Indian Coffee House here. From Cannanore,
Tellicherry and Calicut there are frequent buses to Mananthavady.
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