Tadoba Tiger Heaven A New Discovery

An erstwhile hunting ground Tadoba was notified as National Park in the year 1995. It came into prominence quite late as compared to Pench, Kanha, and Bandhavgarh. The fame shot up overnight by leaps and bounds as big cat sightings increased exponentially.

Perhaps, Tadoba National Park and tiger reserve have the highest number of tiger and leopard sightings. One amazing aspect of the park is that big cat sightings are almost equal to the core and buffer. Many tourists see tigers and leopards while returning from a tiger safari in the core.

The National Park comprises 623 sq. km of reserve of which the National Park is 115 sq. km and the rest is the reserve. The lifeline of the park is the Andhari River and Kosla Lake with many perennial wetlands and ponds that dry out in the summer.

Tadoba comprises Tadoba National Park and Andhari Reserve Forests and hence the acronym TATR. Though Tadoba is not as picturesque as other reserves the sighting certainly makes up for this mixed dry forest habitat. All the tiger landscape in India have a pristine beauty and the presence of big cats make them more beautiful.

Tadoba is named after a legend Taru who fought to save a man from the tiger and died. Taru is worshipped as God and hence his name. The reserve is situated in the hinterlands of Maharashtra in India. A lot of tribal communities along tigers make the outskirts their home. Other wild animals that are seen here are the leopard, dhole, gaur, Baloo the bear, sambar, Nilgai, and Chital. Langur, rhesus macaque, peacock pheasant, and wild boars are common while barking deer too is seen frequently.

The destination abounds in bird species enhancing the park safari experience. Tourism is allowed in twenty percent and delimited by zones. Marsh crocodiles, turtles, and fish can be seen in and around the water bodies.

For excursions at Tadoba, a safari permit is required. You should book a safari permit for Tadoba in advance. There is a huge rush on weekends and holidays and you will not be allowed to enter the tourism zone without a permit.

For tourism, the core area and the reserve area are divided into several zones with limited entry. Hence you book a safari permit at Tadoba much in advance. The permit can be available online or at the respective gates leading to the tourism zones. The park is closed from 1st July to the end of August.

Reaching Tadoba

You drive to Chandarpur from Nagpur Airport or travel by rail to Chandrapur Railway Station. Tadoba is 132 km from Chandrapur. Nagpur is a major railway junction and connects with many other destinations.

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Uday writes often on Indian wildlife especially about the tigers. He works as a naturalist and is fond of travel. Uday also provides search engine optimization service and website contents in English.