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Wetlands in Jaldapara WildLife Sanctuary , Jaldapara WildLife Sanctuary in West Bengal, Jaldapara WildLife Sanctuary , Jaldapara WildLife Sanctuary West Bengal |
Wetlands in Jaldapara WildLife Sanctuary
JALDAPARA WILDLIFE SINICTURY – West Bengal
Location : on the Bhutanese border, about six kilometers northeast of Hasimara, Jalpaiguri district, West Bengal.
Area : Area of wetland unknown, wildlife Sanctury 11563 ha
Altitude: 120-250 m
Description of site: A number of small, permanent, and musanal pools with associated marshes and areas of onsonally inundated grassland on the alluvial plains of Torm river, a tributary of the Brahmaputra, rising in 6e mountains of western Bhutan. Over 50% of the area is still forested, the remainder being grassland and mewKiering water courses, most of which are seasonal. Par i streams are a feature of the forest areas
Climatic conditions: Humid, tropical monsoon climate hot summers and cool winters. Most of the rainfall arms during the monsoon in June-October
Principal vegetation: Marsh and grassland communities along water courses are dominated by species of PW gmites, Saccharum, and Imperata. The Sanctuary contaim a residual area of high, dense forest dominated by pia procera, but this is severely marred by the invasive exotic Mikania sp.
Land tenure: State owned
Disturbances and threats: A nearby military camp causes noticeable disturbance and disruption within the Sanctuary, and the spread of Mikania is a serious problem. Pbaching is reported to be on the increase
Economic and social values: The Wildlife Sanctuary plays an important educational role in promoting regional and local understanding of the ecological value of the remaining forests. The Sanctuary is important for tourism, and provides a readily accessible alternative for tourists unable to visit similar sites in Assam
Fauna: The Wildlife Sanctuary was established primarily to protect a population of the Indian one-horned rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) of which at least 40 members were surviving in 1983. Other large mammals include tiger (Panthers tigris), Indian elephant (Elephas maximus), swamp deer (Cervus duvaucelli )and possibly the rare pygmy hog (Sus salvanius). The rich avifauna includes a variety of uncommon or local marsh and grassland species such as the storks (Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus) and (Leptoptilos javanicus), Bengal florican, swamp francolin, Jerdon’s bush chat and Finn’s baya. weaver (Houbaropsis bengalensis, Francolinus gularis, Saxicola jerdoni , and Ploceus megahynchus). Sixty-five of the latter were recorded in this area in January 1987
Special floral values: The Sanctuary contains an important relict of the once widespread climax forests of the terai duars
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