Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR)

Pilibhit Tiger Reserve Latest News

The tiger population in Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR) has increased to around 80, up from 71 over the past three years, according to an internal survey conducted jointly by PTR and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

About Pilibhit Tiger Reserve 

• It is located in the Pilibhit District, Lakhimpur Kheri District, and Bahraich District of Uttar Pradesh, in the upper Gangetic Plain Biogeographic Province. 
• It lies along the India-Nepal border in the foothills of the Himalayas and is part of the Terai Arc Landscape.
• The total area of the reserve is 730 sq.km., inclusive of 602 sq.km. core zone.
• Rivers: The river Gomti originates from the PTR, which is also the catchment of several others like Sharda, Chuka, and Mala Khannot.
• Habitat: The habitat is characterized by dense sal forests and tall alluvial grasslands, savannahs, and impenetrable swamps, maintained by periodic flooding from rivers. 
• The Sharda Sagar Dam, extending up to a length of 22 km, is on the boundary of the reserve.
• It has a dry and hot climate, which brings a combination of dry teak forest and Vindhya Mountain soils.
• Vegetation: Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests, Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests, Seasonal Swamp Forests and Tropical Semi-evergreen Forests are the major forest types found in the reserve.
• Flora:
  • The sal woodland is very dense with good natural regeneration, amounting to almost 76% of the reserve area.
  • The forest patches are interspersed with grass meadows with several species like Sacchrum, Sclerostachya, Imperata, Themeda, Bothriochloa, Vetiveria, Apluda, Dichanthium, Digitaria and Cyperus.
• Fauna: 
  • It is home to a myriad of wild animals, including the endangered tiger, swamp deer, Bengal florican, hog deer, leopard, etc.
  • The rich bird life in Pilibhit includes species like Swamp Francolin, Great Hornbill, Bengal Florican, Lesser Florican, Black Francolin, Jungle Bush Quail, Red Junglefowl, Asian Openbill, etc.

Source: TOI

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