In news : In order to prevent wildfire fire lines have been constructed in the Mukurthi National Park
About the Mukurthi National Park
- Location: Situated in the western corner of Nilgiris Plateau in the Nilgiri district of Tamil Nadu, Mukurthi National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site(2012) and was formerly known as Nilgiri Tahr National Park.
- The Park is sandwiched between the Mudumalai National Park and the Silent Valley National park.
- The park is a part of Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, India’s first International Biosphere Reserve.
- Area: Spread across the area of 78.46 sq km, this protected area was established with the prime motive of conservation of its keystone species, the Nilgiri Tahr
- Fauna: it is home to Barking Deer, Jungle Cat, Panther, Wild Dogs, Indian Elephant, Indian Leopard, Jackal etc
- Climate & Forest type: The park is characterized by montane grasslands and shrublands interspersed with sholas in a high altitude area of high rainfall, near-freezing temperatures and high winds.
- The sholas have savannah woodlands, and evergreen trees which are more stunted than those in lowland evergreen forests.
- Billithadahalla, Pykara and Kundah rivers flow through the park.
- Native Tribes : Thodas
Nilgiri Tahr
- It is also known as Nilgiri Ibex.
- It is the state animal of Tamil Nadu
- The Adult males of NilgiriTahr species develop a light grey area or “saddle” on their backs and are hence called “Saddlebacks”.
- IUCN status – Endangered
Source: The Hindu
