Wildlife
Betla National Park
Palamau's Betla National Park offers a fascinating study of wild life
in natural surroundings studded with forests, hills and valleys. The
Betla National Park, first established as a sanctuary and later upgraded
to its present status, has carved a niche for itself within short
span of it's life. The National Park occupies an area of 250 sq. km.
on both the sides of all weather Mahuadans Road taking off from the
main Ranchi-Daltonganj road on 11th km post as one comes from Daltonganj,
the distance from Ranchi being 156 km. Ranchi is connected by road.
Regular passenger buses fly between Ranchi and Daltonganj town from
where Betla is only 25 km away. A number of buses is in operation
between Daltonganj and Betla.
The national park has a large variety of wild life. Once Betla
had 2 tigers, 50 elephants, 800 sambhars, hundreds of wild boar
and pythons as big as 15 to 20 feet. Most innocent of the lot are
the spotted deer seen moving in herds. The park authorities provide
jeep fitted with a search light to the visitors for a fixed fair.
As the light falls on the herds of deer, they watch innocently with
eyes glowing like green electric bulbs. Scared rabbits and foxes
scamper about and the wild boar rustle in the layers. The most coveted
sight is a majestic gaur popularly known as bison. It leisurely
walks across the road as if saying, who is afraid of you. The elephants
uproot bamboo and fell them on roads for apparently obstructing
free plying of buses. The mammalian fauna to be seen at Betla include
langur, rhesus, cheetal (spotted deer), blue bulls and wild boars.
The lesser mammals are the porcupine hare junglee cat, honey badger,
jackal, malabar giant squirrel and mangoose wolf, antelope etc.
The park was declared in 1974 a tiger project reserve.
Jaivik
Udyan (Zoological Park)
About 16km from Ranchi town on Ranchi - Patna road near Ormanjhi,
is the zoological garden named Jaivik Udyan. A number of mammalian
faunas have been collected there for visitors gaiety.
Hazaribagh National Park
Hazaribagh National Park, about 135 km from Ranchi is also a sanctuary
adorned with scenic beauties. The park has also the same features
as that of Betla to some extent. The park has tigers, panthers,
sambhars, spotted deer, bisons and a number of mammalian faunas.
There are some towers which the tourists use to behold the beasts.
A canteen is also there to cater. The park is approachable by all
weather metalled road.
Palamau Tiger Reserve
180 km from Ranchi, the Palamau Tiger Reserve is spread over an
area of 1026 sq.km. Though the Koel river and its tributaries run
through the reserve, the animals mostly depend on man-made water
holes for their needs and as a result, they can be easily viewed.
Leopards, tigers, elephants, the Indian wolf, gaur, sambar, munjtac
and nilgai are some of the inhabitants of the reserve.
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Information on wildlife tours, wildlife viewing, wildlife park and
nature of Jharkhand - India
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