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| Home>>National
Parks>> The Bandipur National Park |
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The Bandipur National Park
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| The Bandipur National Park: |
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Location: Kerala-Tamil Nadu border,
on the Mysore-Ooty highway.
Welcome to the Bandipur National Park which is
famous for its rare birds and animals. Lying in
the foothills of the Nilgiris and standing 3300
feet above sea level, the national park beckons
nature lovers to experience its beauty
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| THE FAUNA OF BANDIPUR NATIONAL PARK: |
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| Animals in Bandipur National Park: |
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a fairly open forest area, the Bandipur National
Park enables the viewing of wildlife fairly
easy. The park, named as a Tiger Reserve under
Project Tiger in 1973, covers an area of over
800 sq kms, and is the home of many animals
and birds. The Asian elephant, gaur, Chital
or the Spotted Deer, the Barking deer, Tigers
and Porcupines are some of the animals that
you can see.
The “Hyenas”
move about in small packs and favor the eastern
areas of the park. The “Wild Dogs”,
while seen hunting down their prey is a sight
though scary, but an unforgettable experience.
The open areas are their favorite hunting
grounds.
“Wild boars” haunt damp areas
near water bodies, enabling them to do what
they love most – “Gorge themselves
on the roots they have just dug up”.There
are over 1,900 elephants in the Bandipur National
Park. In the cooler months Elephants can be
seen everywhere, whereas they hang around
the banks of the river Kabini and Mule-hole
in the hotter months. Huge herds of “Chital”
come down to the areas surrounding the rest
houses – So you can just relax and sit
concealed outside your rest house. Their beauty
and majestic grace will make your patience
seem worth every minute of that experience.
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The “Tigers” are spread out equally
but the dense coverage makes it difficult
to spot them. The concentration of the “Leopards”
is mainly in the Karapura area. Both of these
animals are more difficult to spot because
they inhabit the moister regions, which are
the protected core areas. Casual visitors
cannot enter these areas. Luckily for the
tourists, these animals migrate to the nearby
Mudumalai Park, when these areas get very
dry, during some summers.
The Four Horned Antelopes, also known as Chausinghas,
can be seen around the Karapura and Moyar
areas. Chausinghas are the only deer species
that are four horned.
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| Birds in Bandipur National Park: |
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Many species of birds have taken residence in the
Bandipur National Park, making it a birdwatcher’s
paradise. The “Crested Hawk Eagles”,
“Serpent Eagles”, “Black Woodpeckers”,
“King Vultures” and the “Pea Fowl”
are just few of the birds residing here. The sight
of a Crested Hawk Eagle taking over another bird’s
nest is as unforgettable as seeing a Peacock uncurl
its fan of tail feathers.
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| The Flora of Bandipur National Park: |
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The Bandipur National Park has a variety of flora
ranging from deciduous forests and evergreen forests
to scrub. Some of the trees which grace this park
are Bamboo, Teak, Rosewood, Sandal and Mathi. The
park is currently waging a battle against the smugglers
who are cutting down the Sandal trees and dealing
in Ivory.
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| Tourist Information for Bandipur
National Park: |
You can travel inside
the park in three ways: |
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The park authorities run an
open van, in which you will be accompanied by
a guide well experienced in spotting and identifying
wildlife.
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Jeep rides can be booked, though
care must be taken to choose the ones with petrol
engines – they don’t make much noise.
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An elephant ride is the most
preferred especially by bird watchers.
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It can go to the denser parts
where the jeeps can’t go and doesn’t
create any noise, making it easier to spot animals
and birds and photograph them without scaring
them away.
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These rides are organized twice
a day – early morning and late afternoon
or early in the evening.
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If you are in a jeep then you
should be alert as you can just meet a solitary
elephant head on. Solitary elephants have a tendency
to be aggressive and encounters with them are
common.
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A park van has a sense of safety
along with it as the guide would have experienced
many such aggressive charges and would know what
to do exactly.
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After dark, Human movement
within the park is not allowed.
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| More Information on Bandipur National
Park: |
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The Bandipur National Park
was established in 1931 by the Mysore Maharajas.
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It is located in the foothills
of the Western Ghats and Nilgiris to be more specific.
It is along the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border and lies
on the Mysore-Ooty highway.
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The Mysore Maharajas used the
park as their private hunting reserve.
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Bandipur spanned an area of
only 90 sq kms initially.
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n 1941, it was extended up
to 800 sq kms and christened as the “Venugopal
Wild life Park” after the royal deity worshipped
by the Maharajas of Mysore – “Venugopala”.
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The Bandipur National park
is well connected by forest corridors with the
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The “Nagarahole National
Park” in the North,
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The “Wynad Sanctuary”
in the West and
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The “Mudumalai National
Park” in the South.
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They all combine to form the
“Nilgiris Biosphere Reserve”.
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One of the three rivers –
River Moyar – divides the Bandipur National
Park and the Mudumalai National Park.
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