Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR)

About Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR)

• Location:
  • It is located in the Amaravati district of Maharashtra.
  • It is located on the southern offshoot of the Satpura Hill Range in Central India, called Gavilgarh Hill. 
• It was established as a wildlife sanctuary in 1967 and was declared a tiger reserve in 1974. 
• It was the first tiger reserve in Maharashtra.
• It was among the first nine tiger reserves notified in 1973-74 under Project Tiger.
• The name 'Melghat' means the confluence of various 'ghats' or valleys, as is typical from the landscape of this tiger Reserve.
• Vegetation: The forest is tropical dry deciduous in nature, dominated by teak.
• Rivers: The reserve is a catchment area for five major rivers: the Khandu, Khapra, Sipna, Gadga, and Dolar, all of which are tributaries of the river Tapti.
• The Tapti River and the Gawilgadh ridge of the Satpura Range form the boundaries of the reserve.
• Tribes: The Korkus are the largest tribal community in Melghat. Other communities include the Gawli community, the Gond tribe, and several other smaller tribal communities.
• Flora: Some of the common species are teak, Lagerstroemia Parviflora, Terminalia Tomentosa, Ougeinia Oojeinensis, Emblica Officinalis, Bamboo, etc.
• Fauna:
  • Apart from Tigers the other prominent animals are Sloth Bear, Indian Gaur, Sambar deer, Leopard, Nilgais, dhole, hyena, jungle cat, langur, etc. 
  • It is considered a stronghold of the critically endangered forest owlet.

Q1) What is a Tiger Reserve?

Tiger Reserve is a legally declared protected area dedicated to the conservation of striped big cats in its natural environment. A tiger reserve could be a national park or wildlife sanctuary. The Sariska Tiger Reserve, for example, is also a national park.

Source: Forest department’s sporting gesture aims at saving tigers and preventing forest fires