Corbett National park in the north Indian state of Uttaranchal has been a haunt for tourists and wildlife lovers for a long time. Corbett National Park was the first to be authourised as a Project Tiger Reserve in 1973. Situated at a distance of 260 kms from Delhi and 128 kms from Nainital, the Corbett National Park is best known for its big cat population, especially the tigers.
Travelling is permitted in selected areas of Corbett Tiger Reserve and National Park, so that people has the opportunity to see its beautiful landscape and the diverse wildlife living here. In recent years the number of people coming here has increased dramatically. Presently, every season more than 70,000 visitors come to the park from India and abroad.
Jim Corbett National Park is India's oldest national park, and located near Nainital in the state of Uttaranchal. The park is known for its varied wildlife, and as the site for the launching of Project Tiger. The Corbett National Park and the adjoining Sonanadi Sanctuary form the Corbett Tiger Reserve.
The park was first established on August 8, 1936 as Hailey National Park under the United Provinces National Parks Act of India (after Sir Malcolm Hailey, the then Governor of the United Provinces.) In 1952, five years after India attained independence, the park was renamed Ramganga National Park, after the Ramganga river that flows through most of its length. In 1957, it was again renamed, Corbett National Park, in honour of Jim Corbett, a legendary hunter-turned-conservationist, best known for hunting man-eating tigers and leopards in the Kumaon and lower Garhwal in the 1920s, and for later chronicling his adventures in many books, like The Maneaters of Kumaon and The Maneating Leopard of Rudraprayag, that were bestsellers around the world.
The wildlife found in the Corbett National Park include the tiger, elephant, chital, sambar, nilgai, gharial, King Cobra, muntjac, wild boar, hedgehog, common musk shrew, flying fox, Indian Pangolin, and nearly 600 species of birds.
The park receives thousands of visitors every year. A variety of facilities are available to house tourists within and outside the park.
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The Flora
A majority of the vegetation in Corbett consists of Sal trees (Shorea robusta), mainly in the lower regions. The higher regions have a larger variety of plants and trees. Some of these are the Chir (Pinus roxburghii), anauri (Legestroemia paruiflora) and Bakli (Anogeissus latifolia). Also found in various parts of the park are many different varieties of bamboo. One plant, (actually a weed) which is a major irritant to the park authorities and is widespread in the jungle is the Lantana.
The Fauna
Corbett is a haven for Tigers as well as its prey, which include four kinds of Deer, Wild Boar and some lesser-known animals. Apart from Tigers, Elephants, Leopards / Panthers, Jungle cats, Fishing Cats, Leopard cats, Himalayan black bears, Sloth bears, Jackals, Martens, Dholes, Civets, Mongooses, Otters, Hares, Porcupines, Chital (spotted deer), Sambar deer, Hog deer, Barking deer, Ghorals, Wild Boars, Pangolins, Macaques, Langurs and Blue Bulls (Nilgais) are some of the species which are found here.
The Avifauna
Corbett National Park Herons, Darters, Cormorants, Lapwings, Paradise Flycatchers, Munias, Weaver birds, Fishing eagles, Serpent eagles, Spotted Eagles, Black throated Payas, Mynas, Jungle Fowl, Vultures, Thrushes, Barbets, Peacocks, peahens, Kingfishers, migrant Gulls, Moorhens, Ducks, Geese, Sandpipers, Nightjars, Cuckoos, Woodpeckers, Wagtails, Black winged Kits, Drongos, Doves, Plovers, Black necked Storks, Parakeets, Owls, Chir Pheasants, Kalij Pheasants, Grebes, Grey Lags, Snipes, Harriers, Ospreys, Minivets, Babblers, Hornbills, falcons and Stone Curlews. Corbett has nearly 600 bird species officially recorded in it’s log books.
The Fish
Goonch, Mahaseer, Trout and many other smaller species are found here.
The Reptiles
Gharials (fish eating Crocodiles), Mugger Crocodiles, Monitor Lizards, turtles, Cobras, Pythons and the Sal forest Tortoise.
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