Purna Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary in the Western Ghats mountain range, in the States of Gujarat and Maharashtra, India. In the South Gujarat, it is located between Vyara, Tapi District and Ahwa, Dang District, and in Maharashtra, it is located in Nandurbar District. Apart from the Dangs' District, it is a part of the Northern Division of the Dangs' Forest.[1][2][3]
Purna Wildlife Sanctuary
Purna Wildlife Sanctuary | |
|---|---|
Wildlife Sanctuary | |
 Purna River from Campsite Wildlife Sanctuary named after Purna River | |
  Purna Wildlife Sanctuary Location in Gujarat, India  Purna Wildlife Sanctuary Purna Wildlife Sanctuary (India) | |
| Coordinates: 20°55′N 73°42′E / 20.91°N 73.7°E | |
| Country |  India |
| State | Gujarat |
| District | Dang District, India |
| Purna Wildlife Sanctuary | July 1990 |
| Area | |
• Total | 160.84 km2 (62.10 sq mi) |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Gujarati, Hindi |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| Vehicle registration | GJ30 |
| Nearest city | Vyara |
| Governing body | Government of India, Government of Gujarat |
It was declared a sanctuary in July 1990.[4] It derives its name from the Purna River, which flows through it.
Geography and climate
editThe sanctuary has thick forest cover of teak and bamboo. It has a tropical climate with moderate to heavy rainfall. The average rainfall received by this region is about 2500mm.[4]
Three distinct climatic seasons are noted: winter, summer and monsoon. Winter is from middle of November to end of February and the average temperature recorded during the coldest month of January is 10 °C (50 °F). Summer is from March to end of May when the temperature range is 35–40 °C (95–104 °F). Monsoon season sets in the middle of June or early July and lasts till September.
A popular time to visit the sanctuary is early winter when the river and rivulets are full of fresh water. The nearest large city, Surat, is 100 kilometres (62 mi) away. Surat has an airport which provides links with the rest of the country. Vyara is the nearest railway station, which is 20 kilometres (12 mi) away.[4]
In a view to develop eco-tourism, the Government of Gujarat maintains Mahal Campsite in this sanctuary.[1]
Fauna and flora
editThe sanctuary is within the North Western Ghats moist deciduous forests' ecoregion.
There are about 700 species of plants and trees.[2]
Some of the wild animals found here are the leopard, rhesus macaque, bonnet macaque, common mongoose, Indian civet cat, Indian porcupine, four-horned antelope, barking deer, sambar, chital, hyena, and jungle cat. As with Vansda National Park, which is in Navsari District and the Dangs' Forest,[3][5] and Shoolpaneshwar Wildlife Sanctuary, which Narmada District shares with the State of Maharashtra, the Bengal tiger is reportedly extinct in this area, but the place where Gujarat borders the states of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra has tigers, nevertheless,[1][6] making the Dangs Forest a potential habitat of the tiger.[6][7]
Between 1999 and 2003, 139 bird species were recorded here. Some of the birds found here are common grey hornbills, grey jungle fowl, barbets, woodpeckers, shrikes, leafbirds, bee-eaters, flycatchers, forest owlets and raptors.[3][8]
As recorded in 2000-2001 the sanctuary is home for 116 species of spiders.[9]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "Mahal Eco Campsite". Gujarat Tourism. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
- ^ a b Biodiversity Conservation Under the Project State Environmental Action Programmme[sic]. Gujarat Ecological Society. 2002. p. 59.
- ^ a b c Trivedi, Pranav; Soni, V. C. "Significant bird records and local extinctions in Purna and Ratanmahal Wildlife Sanctuaries, Gujarat, India" (PDF). 22. Forktail: 39–48. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 August 2017. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ a b c Forest and Environment Department, Gujarat Archived 2014-12-18 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Vansda National Park". Gujarat Tourism. Retrieved 29 January 2017.
- ^ a b Jhala, Y. V.; Gopal, R.; Qureshi, Q., eds. (2008), Status of the Tigers, Co-predators, and Prey in India (PDF), TR 08/001, National Tiger Conservation Authority, Govt. of India, New Delhi; Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, archived from the original (PDF) on 2 June 2013
- ^ Jhala, Y. V., Qureshi, Q., Sinha, P. R. (Eds.) (2011). Status of tigers, co-predators and prey in India, 2010. National Tiger Conservation Authority, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun. TR 2011/003 pp-302
- ^ Bird list at ebird.org
- ^ Spiders of Purna Wildlife Sanctuary, Dangs, Gujarat - Manju Siliwal, B.Suresh and Bonny Pilo