Introduction:
The purpose of this booklet is to provide guests with a basic understanding of the diverse flora and fauna of Satpura. This book will also enable you to keep a documented record of what you have been lucky enough to see during your trip to Satpura Jungle at the Satpura National Park and Tiger Reserve.
In the pages that follow we have listed and elaborated on 10 big game animals that you are likely to see when in the reserve.
A mammals list consisting of 46 mammals along with their scientific names has been included so that guests can checklist species they have observed. Description and interesting facts of 20 iconic birds have been included along with a comprehensive list of common & scientific names of the birds of Satpura. This, we hope, will be a good resource for guests who wish to take notes on what they have seen. Lists of common trees, reptiles, amphibians and insects have also been included for those guests who are keen on going that extra mile exploring. As these lists only include common species, considerable space has been provided for guests to make a note of other species that they may observe.
By no means are any of the checklists a complete representation of all species in Satpura. In the mammal and bird list we have attempted to cover most species by means of actual observation and by utilizing various field guides and to that extent most species occurring in the park are covered. The tree, reptiles, amphibians and insects lists only cover common species and guests are likely to see several specimens that are beyond the scope of these notes.
Since a large chunk of the flora and fauna in Central India is similar, this booklet is a good resource for check listing species throughout your Central Indian Wildlife Holiday. This goes without saying that each Central Indian Park is unique and there will be various species that may be found in one area but not found in the other.
General Description Satpura and its adjoining Landscape:
Satpura Tiger Reserve lies in the north western part of one of 10 critical bio-diverse regions that have been declared by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in India. This region is known as the Satpura Maikal Landscape or the Central Indian Highlands. Home to nearly 17% of the worlds wild tigers, this biodiversity hotspot is spread across close to 118,867 sq kilometers with nearly 34% of total land being covered by forests. The forest type in this landscape is defined as Tropical and
Sub-tropical Dry Deciduous Broadleaf in the Indo-Malayan realm. Several major Tiger Reserves in Central India like Satpura, Kanha, Pench, Melghat amongst others lie in this critical region. The long term success of maintaining a healthy tiger population in Central India depends substantially on how we can manage to ensure that crucial corridors in this region are firstly protected and also expanded. The tiger, being a long ranging animal, needs unbroken forest tracts such as these for its long term success. With the apex predator being protected in this region all fauna and flora will automatically be conserved. At specialty lodges such as Satpura Jungle we hope to spread this love for India’s flora and fauna so that every guest who comes here starts or continues to make a contribution towards protecting the natural world.