Tamil Nadu Wildlife Conservation - I

Conservation Initiative in Tamil Nadu

• Recognizing the value and need for conservation of the wildlife wealth of the State, Tamil Nadu Government enacted separate law for protection of our valuable animals (The Tamil Nadu Wild Elephants Preservation Act 1873 and The Wild Birds and Animals (Protection) Act,1912) much before enactment of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
• Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary was declared way back in 1936, which was the “first” Bird Sanctuary in India.
• A ‘Sanctuary for Tiger’ in Mundanthurai was declared in 1962 almost eleven years earlier than the launch of ‘Project Tiger’ in the country in 1973.
• Tamil Nadu has been a pioneer State in Protected Area management and development of forest resources and wildlife.

Biodiversity of Tamil Nadu

• The total area under the protected area management is 7,072.95 sq. km. which comes to 30.92% of the State’s Forest area.
• The Protected Areas in the State includes 5 National parks, 15 Wildlife sanctuaries, 15 bird sanctuaries and 2 conservation reserves.
• 4 Tiger Reserves viz. Anamalai, Kalakkad - Mundanthurai, Mudumalai and Sathyamangalam.
• These Protected Areas have been established under Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
• Further Tamil Nadu also has the distinction of having 3 Biosphere Reserves viz. Nilgiris, Gulf of Mannar and Agasthiar malai, which are internationally acclaimed for their rich and unique biodiversity.
• The Western Ghats are one of the 25 global hotspots and one of the 3 mega centres of endemism in India.
• The genetic assemblage of Tiger Reserves, Mukurthi, Srivilliputhur, Kanniyakumari and Megamalai owe their richness in flora and fauna to their locations in Western Ghats.
• The Biodiversity Conservation and Rural Livelihood Improvement Project pursued at Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve is a new endeavor in perusing conservation at landscape level, covering five districts namely,
  • Kanniyakumari,
  • Tirunelveli,
  • Virudhunagar,
  • Madurai and
  • Theni

• The State is endeavour to improve wildlife wealth through the following practices:
  • To improve the wildlife habitats by extending and strengthening the area wherever required and ensuring connectivity of habitats.
  • Management of wildlife resources at Landscape level with better Inter-State Coordination.
  • Harness the sentiments of tribal and forest dwellers in wildlife management while ensuring livelihood security.
  • Efforts to protect the migratory birds and to conserve their habitats.
  • Conservation of Wetlands for Avian fauna.
  • Inventory of Biodiversity for Bio-prospecting.
  • Understanding the lesser known diversity for conservation gains.

• The details of Wildlife Sanctuaries in Tamil Nadu are as follows:

1. Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary

• Mudumalai National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary also a declared tiger reserve.

• It lies on the Northwestern side of the Nilgiri Hills (Blue Mountains), in Nilgiri District.
• It shares its boundaries with the states of Karnataka and Kerala.
• The sanctuary is divided into five ranges – Masinagudi, Thepakadu, Mudumalai, Kargudi and Nellakota.
• It is a home to several endangered and vulnerable species including Indian elephant, Bengal tiger, gaur and Indian leopard.

• There are at least 266 species of birds in the sanctuary, including critically endangered Indian white-rumped vulture and long-billed vulture.

2. Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve

• Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (KMTR) is located in the Southern Western Ghats in Tirunelveli District and Kanyakumari District.

• It is the second-largest Protected Area in Tamil Nadu State (behind only Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary in Erode).
• It is also one of the four Tiger Reserves in Tamil Nadu.
• Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve includes two adjacent sanctuaries namely Kalakkad Sanctuary (1976) and Mundanthurai Sanctuary (1962) in Tirunelveli District.
• It is also including part of Kilamalai and Veerapuli Reserved Forests of Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary.
• It harbours a large number of threatened species including the Lion Tailed Macaque (Macaca silenus), a flagship species of rainforests in the Western Ghats.
• KMTR is the source of as many as fourteen rivers and is rightly known as the River Sanctuary of Tamil Nadu.

3. Point Calimere (Kodiakkarai) Wildlife Sanctuary

• Point Calimere Wildlife Sanctuary is situated in Vedaranyam Taluk of Nagapattinam District.
• The sanctuary is home to the largest population (about 1000) of the Blackbuck in Southern India and second Largest population of India as a whole.
• It is famous for large congregations of water birds, especially greater flamingos.

• This site is a mix of salt swamps, mangroves, backwaters, mudflats, grasslands and tropical dry evergreen forests.
• It harbours the single largest stretch of the unique dry-evergreen forest in the country.

• The sanctuary coast has been a regular nesting site of the endangered Olive Ridley turtle.
• It is also one of the "international importance" under the Ramsar Convention and only Ramsar site in Tamil Nadu.

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