The land of tigers bandhavgarh national park india

Bandhavgarh National Park The Land of Tigers

The forest was unknown to the World, till a white tiger cub was captured in the vicinity in 1951. This sensational discovery by the Maharaja of Rewa brought to the limelight the forests of Bandhavgarh.

The forests are ensconced in many inaccessible regions in the mountainous terrain of Vindhyachal. The prehistoric ranges were connected to each other as a contiguous patch. No more! Bandhavgarh is not very well connected with a corridor with Kanha or Achanakmar tiger reserves. The massive human invasion has fractured these ecosystems badly making transmigration a difficult proposition.

Bandhavgarh is now under an umbrella of protection by Project Tiger and its status as a National Park in the state of Madhya Pradesh or Central India. The area of this conservation unit is 1100 sq km which includes the core zone and the surrounding buffer.

The major fauna consists of tiger, leopard, sloth bear, wild dog, gaur; sambar deer, barking deer, four-horned deer, and Indian gazelle. Spotted deer, wild boar, Hanuman gray langur, and peafowl are very common inhabitants.

Birdlife of Bandhavgarh

Well known for its tigers Bandhavgarh is one of the finest birding destinations in India. The tiger reserve in Madhya Pradesh is home to more than 250 avian species. Here forest birds abound and the number increases with winter arrivals. Most of the migrants are wetlands birds, warblers, raptors, and passerines.

The best season for bird watching is the winter season but summers do not disappoint either. Summertime with a thinned-down canopy and water scarcity is very good for resident birds. This is an ideal time for bird photography as well.

The best birding takes place in the mixed forest zones and several eco niches that abound in the park. In marshy grasslands like Banbei and Bhitri, one can see a lesser adjutant stork, grey heron, striated heron, purple heron, black and chestnut bittern, open billed stork, white-necked stork, black stork, and painted stork.

Raptors abound at Rampur hillock and surrounding hills. Common Kestral, honey buzzard, long-billed vulture, king vulture, white-backed vulture, Bonelli’s eagle, white-eyed buzzard, and more. Grey-headed fish eagles, Osprey, marsh harrier, and crested hawk eagles prefer numerous water bodies like the Bamera Dam and Bhadrashila. The hillocks are home to Malabar Pied and Common Gray Hornbill which breed in the hillocks, especially at Bandhavgarh Fort.

The park comprises varied habitats that constitute niche habitats. The life support systems are a number of tributaries or rivulets some of which originate from the mountains. The main rivulet originates from the tallest Bandhavgarh Mountain one of the thirty-two hillocks that constitute the characteristic feature of Bandhavgarh topography.

How to Reach Bandhavgarh:

Bandhavgarh National Park is well connected with all over India by Air and Rail, Jabalpur is the nearest airport from Bandhavgarh. There are many overnight trains from across India's nearest railway station Umaria, (Utkal Express) from New Delhi to Umaria railhead which is in MP. Umaria is about 32 km from Tala Gate of Bandhavgarh. From Jabalpur to Bandhavgarh tiger reserve is about 175 km. From Kanha National Park the distance is about 230 km a drive of six hours. From Khajuraho and Panna National Park, the drive is about six hours. From Nagpur and Raipur 450KM 8 hours drive to Bandhavgarh National Park.