Description of Kanha National Park

Biogeographical Province -4.8.4 (Indus-Ganges monsoon forest)

Geographical Location- It is in two districts of Madhya Pradesh: southern Mandla and northeast Balaghat. 22°13'-27'NLONGITUDE 89°32'-45'E

Date and History of Establishment- Kanha National Park,Established as a Reserved Forest in 1879 and Banjar Valley Sanctuary in 1935. National Park status on 1 June 1955 under the Madhya Pradesh National Parks Act. Designated tiger reserves under Project Tiger, in 1973.

Area- 94,000ha. Kanha National Park was extended in 1970 to include the Mukki Valley in the south. In 1974, under Project Tiger, a large part of the upper Halon Valley to the east was included raising the area to its present size. Contiguous in the north to the reserve forests of North Phen, Raigarh, Bhaisanghat and Malidar and in the west and south to the reserve forests of Banjar Valley and Shaisanghat.

Land Tenure- Government, exercised by the Forest Department of Madhya Pradesh government.

Physical Features -In the east of the central Indian highlands which stretch west to east across Madhya Pradesh in the Maikal branch of the Satpuras. The topography of the Maikal Hills comprises a large amphitheatre with meadow-like grasslands locally known as maidan. The hills are usually flat-topped. The successive elevation of the valleys in the area present a step-like formation in a west/east direction. Underlying rock is volcanic which breaks down into laterite, sand and red gravelly soils with crystlline, graniteic and limestone boulders and black cotton soil in low-lying areas (liable to flooding in the rains) along the Banjar River, (west of park). The river Sulkum is the principal water source and is a tributary of the Banjar river. The wet season is from late June to October with rainfall of about 1,800mm. Cool season from November to February and hot season February until the monsoon.

Temperature- Range of -5.5 °C to 43°C.

Altitude- Ranges from 500-1,000m (600-900m - Delhi Diary, 450-760m - Jain, 1981).

Vegetation- Over 50% of the park is dry deciduous woodland on hilltops and slopes with species such as Acacia torta, Anogeissus latifolia, Bauhinia retusa, Buchanania lanzan, Butea menosperma, Boswallia serrata, Semecarpus anacardium, Largerstroemia parviflora, Terminalia arjuna, Tichebyla, T. bellirica, Emblica officinalis and Mallotus philippensis. On poor and red gravelly soils, Phoenix acaulis and Cassia fistulagrows abundantly.. The grassy meadows in the park are of two types: those marking former village sites and dominated by coarse Pennisetum alopecurus; and the 'maidan' dominated by Themeda triandra with many other species (Dichanthium, Chlonis, Eragrostis, Heteropogon, Eulalia) growing to 1-2m height in the monsoon. The meadows (15% of the park area) are largely enclosed by sal forest Shorea robusta whihc occurs in welldrained vlleys in the south at low elevations with various Terminalia spp. Occasional patches of bamboo and thicket are dominated by the leguminous Maughania stricta. On the higher slopes and hilltops bamboos are more common. Dendrocalamus strictus forms dense clumps along the banks of rivers and streams, in valleys and on hillslopes. A number of aquatic and marsh species grow around natural tanks and pools, rivers, irrigation channels and streams (for list of flora see Jain and Sastry, 1983).

Fauna -The Kanha National Park was originally established to protect the barasingha Cervus duvauceli branderi, which has its entire present range within the park. Today there are bout 100 individuals. Other mammals include tiger Panthera tigris, leopard P. pardus, sloth bear Melursus ursinus (27 individuals), Indian wild dog Cuon alpinus (78 individuals), hyaena Hyaena hyaena (rarely seen), golden jackal Canis aureus, Indian wild boar Sus scrofa, sambar Cervus unicolor, blackbuck Antilope cervicapra (28 individuals), chital Axis axis, chevrotain Tragulus meminna (rarely seen), four-horned antelope Tetracerus quadricornis, nilgai Boselaphus tragocamelus (65 individuals), gaur Bos gaurus and Hanuman langur Presbytis entellus. The dispersal of animals from the thickly populated zones to new areas has led to an overall population increase. Initially set up for muntjac Muntiacus muntjak, jungle cat Felis chaus (70 individuals) mongoose and palm squirrel Funambulus sp. Bird life includes black ibis Pseudibis papillosa, crested serpent eagle Spilornis cheela, peafowl and jungle fowl. Pythons are seen occasionally.