Maharashtra Wildlife

Ankit Ray ~

As of 2017 there are 537 wildlife sanctuaries in India and 41 in Maharashtra. Wildlife
sanctuaries, national parks and Project Tiger reserves have been created in Maharashtra, with
the aim of conserving the rich bio-diversity of the region. As of 2017, India has 103 national
parks, of which six are located in Maharashtra.

1. There are 50 Tiger reserve in India and 6 project tiger areas in Maharashtra. Viz
Tadoba-Andhari, Melghat, Nagazira ,Sahyadri ,Bor and Pench. A large percentage of
Maharashtra’s forests and wildlife lie along the western Ghats or western Maharashtra
and eastern Vidarbha.

2. Apart from these, Maharashtra has 35 wildlife sanctuaries spread all over the state,
listed here. Phansad Wildlife Sanctuary, and the Koyna Wildlife Sanctuary are the
important ones.

3. Apart from the above, Matheran, a Hill station near Mumbai has been declared an Eco-
sensitive zone (protected area) by the Government of India.

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 Protected Areas

Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve

The Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve is a wildlife sanctuary in Chandrapur district of
Maharashtra state in India. It is Maharashtra’s oldest and largest national park. Created in
1955, the reserve includes the Tadoba National Park and the Andhari Wildlife Sanctuary. The
reserve consists of 577.96 square kilometres (223.15 sq mi) of reserved forest and 32.51
square kilometres (12.55 sq mi) of protected forest.

Tadoba” is taken from the name of the god

“Tadoba” or “Taru”, worshipped by the tribes who
live in the dense forests of the Tadoba and Andhari
region, while “Andhari” refers to the Andhari river
that meanders through the forest.

Sanjay Gandhi National Park

Sanjay Gandhi National Park is a 87 km2 (34 sq mi) protected area in Mumbai, Maharashtra
State in India. It was established in 1996 with headquarters at Borivali. It is notable as one of
the major national parks existing within a metropolis limit and is one of the most visited
parks in the world.

The rich flora and fauna of Sanjay Gandhi National

Park attracts more than 2 million visitors every year.
Tourists also enjoy visiting the 2400-year-old
Kanheri caves sculpted out of the rocky cliffs which
lies within the park.
 Sanctuaries

Bhigwan Bird Sanctuary

Bhigwan is a town on the border of the Ahmednagar, Pune and Solapur districts in the Indian
state of Maharashtra. Bhigwan is famous for birdwatching, especially flamingo and wildlife
photography. Place is also famous for authentic Maharashtrian spicy fish food. Special dish is
kadak fish fry of chilapi.

It’s located on the Pune-Solapur Highway around

105 km from Pune on the backwaters of Ujani
dam. The distance between Solapur and Bhigwan
is 151 km. It is also known as mini Bharatpur.
Ujjani Dam is constructed on the Bhima River.

Great Indian Bustard Sanctuary

Great Indian Bustard Sanctuary (established in 1979, also known as the Jawaharlal Nehru
Bustard Sanctuary of Maharashtra) is a wildlife sanctuary for the great Indian bustard
(Ardeotis nigriceps) at Solapur, Maharashtra. It is in the Deccan thorn scrub forests
ecoregion.

Maharashtra is one of the six states of India where

great Indian bustards (Ardeotis nigriceps) are still
seen. In former days the bustard was a common
bird in the dry districts of Maharashtra. Maximum
sightings of bustards are seen at pure grassland and
no bird is recorded in woodlots.