Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary

Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary
wildlife sanctuary
Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary Location in Kerala, India
Coordinates: 10°18′00″N 77°10′30″E / 10.3°N 77.175°E / 10.3; 77.175Coordinates: 10°18′00″N 77°10′30″E / 10.3°N 77.175°E / 10.3; 77.175
Country	India
State	Kerala
District	Idukki
Established	August 1984
Area
• Total	90.44 km2 (34.92 sq mi)
Elevation	2,372 m (7,782 ft)
Languages
• Official	Malayalam, English
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Nearest city	Marayoor
IUCN category	IV
Governing body	Department of Forests and Wildlife
Precipitation	500 millimetres (20 in)
Avg. summer temperature	38 °C (100 °F)
Avg. winter temperature	12 °C (54 °F)
Website	www.chinnar.org

Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, (CWS), is located 18 km north of Marayoor on SH 17 in the Marayoor and Kanthalloor Panchayats of Devikulam Taluk in the Idukki district of Kerala state in South India. It is one of twelve Wildlife Sanctuaries among the Protected areas of Kerala.^[1]

It is under the jurisdiction of and contiguous with Eravikulam National Park to the south. Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary is to the north and Kodaikanal Wildlife Sanctuary is to the east. It forms an integral part of the 1,187 km² (458 sq mi) block of protected forests straddling the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border in the Annamalai Hills.^[2] The Western Ghats, Anamalai Sub-Cluster, including all of Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, is under consideration by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for selection as a World Heritage Site.^[3]

Geography

CWS is located between latitude 10º15' - 10º21' N and Longitude 77º5' - 77º16' E. ^[4] The Munnar – Udumalpet road SH 17 passes through the Sanctuary for 16 km and divides it into nearly equal portions. Average annual rainfall is only 500 mm, spread over about 48 days, because it is in the rain shadow region of the southern Western Ghats.^[2]

The altitude ranges from 400 meters (1,300 ft) at east end of the Chinnar River to 2,522 meters (8,274 ft) at Kumarikal Malai peak. Other major peaks in the sanctuary are Nandala Malai 2,372 meters (7,782 ft), Kottakombu malai (2,144 meters (7,034 ft)), Vellaikal malai (1,863 meters (6,112 ft)) and Viriyoottu malai 1,845 meters (6,053 ft). In contrast, Anamudi peak 2,695 metres (8,842 ft), located 23 kilometers (14 mi) away in the adjacent Eravikulam National Park, is the highest peak in South India.

The Chinnar River and Pambar rivers are the major perennial water resources in the sanctuary. The Chinnar originates near Kumarikal Malai, follows the interstate boundary along the northwest edge of the sanctuary for 18 km and becomes the Amaravati River in Tamil Nadu.

The Pambar River originates in the Anaimudi Hills and is joined by seasonal rivulets and a few perennial streams originating from sholas in the upper reaches. It traverses the Turner’s Valley in Eravikulam National Park and flows down into the Sanctuary through the Taliar Valley between Kanthalloor and Marayoor Villages and eastwards through the sanctuary. It joins the Chinnar River at Koottar. The Thoovanam water falls lie deep within the Sanctuary on the Pambar River. This cascade is a major tourist attraction. The Chinnar, Pambar, Kabani and Bhavani are the only rivers of the 44 in Kerala that flow eastwards.

Settlements and crops

There are 11 tribal settlements inside the Chinnar WLS, each is well demarcated by temporary stone walls. The main inhabitants are Muthuvas and Pulayars. Cultivation of maize, ragi and lemongrass is practiced in the settlements. The Mudhuvas carry out small scale ganja cultivation for their religious purposes.^[5]

Fauna

Albino gaur or Manjampatti white bison. Albino bisons are very rare; this photograph is taken from Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary.

34 species of Mammals live here, including many Panthers and Spotted deer, 50 -60 Indian Elephants, Gaur, Tigers, Sambar Deer, Common langur, Bonnet Macaque, Hanuman monkey, threatened Nilgiri Tahr, vulnerable Rusty-spotted Cats and about 240 of the only vulnerable Grizzled Giant Squirrels in Kerala. 245 species of birds including Yellow-throated Bulbuls. 52 species of reptiles including 29 species of snakes, Indian Star Tortoise and the largest population of vulnerable Mugger Crocodiles in Kerala live in the Sanctuary. Most common of the 42 species of fishes observed in the Chinnar and Pambar rivers are Garra mullya minnows, River-carp baril, Giant Danio and the endangered hill stream game fish Deccan Mahseer. 22 amphibian species live in the Sanctuary. There are 156 species of butterflies.

Flora

View of Chinnar montane rain forest

There are 965 species of flowering plants in the sanctuary Ecoregions of the sanctuary comprise mostly grassland and wet grasslands vegetation and some South Western Ghats montane rain forests and high shola at the higher western elevations. South Western Ghats moist deciduous forestss at mid elevations give way to dry deciduous forests and thorny scrub forests in the lower dryer eastern edges of the valley. The major Xerophyticspecies in the throny scrub forests are Acacia arabica, Acacia leucofolia, Acacia concinna, Prosporis juliflora, and Opuntia stricta.^[6]

The Marayoor Sandalwood forest is located here.,^[7][8]

Regional Cooperation

Senior officials of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (India), Principal Chief Conservators of Forests of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, together with other senior forest officials of these states and the Union Territory of Pondicherry, met at Thiruvananthapuram on November 3 and 4, 2006 and resolved several mutual issues concerning conservation and protection of forests and wildlife of the region.

A regular conference of the Forest Ministers and forest officials of the southern states is held once a year, in rotation in each State.^[9]

Gallery

• 

  Information board at Chinnar Checkpost

• 

  River Pambar

• 

  Thoovanam Waterfalls

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary.

• Chinnar wildlife sanctuary Hut
• Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary