|
Parts of the Terai’s primeval
forest and rich wildlife have been preserved in a number of
national parks and game reserves. Royal Chitwan National Park
was the first, created in 1973 to protect rapidly dwindling
tiger and rhino populations. The park’s 932 square kilometres
of sal forest and rolling grasslands support a unique
variety and abundance of wildlife. It also includes a number
of lakes. The most interesting of these, particularly for
viewing birds are Devi Tal, Lami Tal and Bis Hajaar Tal. The
park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1984.
The park has three basic vegetation
types – grassland, riverine forest and hardwood forest. Vegetation
in the forests includes sal, shisham, kapok,
pipal, strangler fir and kusum trees. Elephant
grass, five to six feet tall, provides excellent camouflage
for the animals. It also serves as food for the herbivores.
The local people are allowed into the park once a year to
cut and dry the grass, which is then used to thatch roofs
or stored as fodder for livestock.
Chitwan has over 43 different
species of mammals, 450 different bird types and 67 different
types of butterflies. Of all the animals in the park, elephants
are the ones you’re most likely to encounter. Elephant rides
are a popular activity in the park. Their height and the fact
that other animals respect them, makes them an ideal vantage
point for game viewing. Royal Bengal tigers roam the region;
one-horned rhinos can be seen charging through the underbrush,
feeding and even courting.
While at Chitwan, visit the government-run
elephant stables at Hatisar , and the Elephant Breeding
Centre which houses several beasts. On a village tour,
you can observe the culture of the Tharu people as they hold
several song and dance performances. Another favourite activity
is dugout canoe trips down the Rapti River, best taken
early in the morning before things heat up. The stand trip
is a 45-minute float followed by a two-hour jungle hike. Other
options, usually only undertaken on longer visits, include
a jungle jeep ride to one of the bird-frequented lakes or
the park headquarters at Kasara Durbar or the nearby
Gharial Breeding Centre, where these endangered long-snouted
crocodile are raised in a protected environment before being
released into the wild.
|
|
|
