The state of Andhra Pradesh is considered one of the rich 123 bio-diversified states in India. Natural vegetation (flora) and animal life (fauna) depend mainly on climate, relief, and soil. Krishna and Godavari are the two largest rivers flowing through the state. The Andhra Pradesh Forest Department deals with protection, conservation and management of forests. [1]
The total forest cover of Andhra Pradesh is 37,258 km2. [2] The Eastern Ghats region is home to dense tropical forests, while the vegetation becomes sparse as the Ghats give way to the Deccan Plateau, where shrub vegetation is more common.
The varied diversity of fauna includes Bengal tiger, Indian leopard, hyenas, blackbucks, sambars, and sea turtles. The dense forests in mountains offer habitat to the wildlife. The state government declared certain areas as wildlife sanctuaries and national parks. [3]
Indira Gandhi Zoological Park is located in Visakhapatnam. It is one of the largest zoos of India, spread over an area of 625 acres (253 ha). It was named after Indira Gandhi, the former Prime Minister of India and was opened in 1977. There are eighty species with 800 animals. Hippopotamus and crocodiles are the special animals conserved. [3]
Kambalakonda Wildlife Sanctuary is situated on NH 5, surrounded by the Eastern Ghats on three sides and the Bay of Bengal on the fourth. It houses Indira Gandhi Zoological Park. The park has almost eighty species with primates, carnivores, mammals, ungulates, reptiles and birds. These include rhesus monkeys, baboons, panthers, tigers, wolves, hyenas, pythons, tortoises, monitor lizards, elephant, bison, sambar deer, peacocks, ducks and macaws. [3]
Papikonda Wildlife Sanctuary is located in East Godavari, West Godavari in an area of 591 km2 (228 sq mi). Fauna found in this sanctuary are tigers, leopards, gaur, cheetal, chowsingha, sambar, blackbuck, mouse deer, barking deer, sloth bears, wild dogs, elephants, jackals, wild boar, marsh crocodiles and a variety of birds. [4]
Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary is located in East Godavari district in an area of 235.70 km2 (91.00 sq mi). It has the rare, endangered smooth Indian otter, fishing cat and estuarine crocodile. Other fauna are jackals, marine turtles, seagulls, storks, ducks and flamingos. [5]
Krishna Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary and estuary located in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh. The sanctuary is home for reptiles like the garden lizard, the wall lizard, tortoises and snakes. [6]
Rollapadu Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary located in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh in an area 6.14 km2 (2.37 sq mi). It is the only habitat in the state for the rare and highly endangered great Indian bustard. The blackbuck, wolf, jackal, bonnet macaque, Russell's viper and cobra are also found. [7]
Sri Penusila Narasimha Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Nellore District of Andhra Pradesh. It covers an area of 1030.85 km2 is managed by the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department [8]
Gundla Brahmeswara Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Kurnool and Prakasam Districts of Andhra Pradesh. It covers an area of 1194 km2 is managed by the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department. [9] The last surviving pristine forests of Nallamalai tract, it is rich in plants of ethnobotanical value.
Sri Lankamalleswara Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Kadapa District of Andhra Pradesh. It covers an area of 464.42 km2 is managed by the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department [10]
Koundinya Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh. It is only one Asian elephant reserve in Andhra Pradesh. The sanctuary is bordered by the state of Tamil Nadu.
Atapaka Bird Sanctuary, also known as Kolleru Wildlife Sanctuary (see also Kolleru Bird Sanctuary), is a largest freshwater lake located in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh. The sanctuary falls under Kaikalur Forest Range. It is one of the Ramsar convention wetland sites, spread over an area of 308.55 km2 (119.13 sq mi). [11] [12] [13]
Telineelapuram and Telukunchi Bird Sanctuaries are located in Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh. Every year, over 3,000 pelicans and painted storks visit from Siberia to these villages during September and stay until March. [14] [15]
Pulicat Lake Bird Sanctuary is a famous 481 km2 Protected area in Nellore District of Andhra Pradesh state. Pulicat Lake is the second largest brackish-water ecosystem in India. Central location is: 13°34′N 80°12′E. 327.33 km2 is managed by the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department [16] and 153.67 km2 is managed by the Tamil Nadu Forest Department. 108 km2 is national park area. Rainfall ranges from 800 to 2000 mm. Temperature varies from 14 °C to 33 °C. Altitude ranges from 100’ MSL to 1200’ MSL.
The Krishna River is a river in the Deccan plateau and is the third-longest river in India, after the Ganges and Godavari. It is also the fourth-largest in terms of water inflows and river basin area in India, after the Ganges, Indus and Godavari. The river, also called Krishnaveni, is 1,400 kilometres (870 mi) long and its length in Maharashtra is 282 kilometres. It is a major source of irrigation in the Indian states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
The Godavari is India's second longest river after the Ganga river and drains the third largest basin in India, covering about 10% of India's total geographical area. Its source is in Trimbakeshwar, Nashik, Maharashtra. It flows east for 1,465 kilometres (910 mi), draining the states of Maharashtra (48.6%), Telangana (18.8%), Andhra Pradesh (4.5%), Chhattisgarh (10.9%) and Odisha (5.7%). The river ultimately empties into the Bay of Bengal through an extensive network of distributaries. Measuring up to 312,812 km2 (120,777 sq mi), it forms one of the largest river basins in the Indian subcontinent, with only the Ganga and Indus rivers having a larger drainage basin. In terms of length, catchment area and discharge, the Godavari is the largest in peninsular India, and had been dubbed as the Dakshina Ganga.
The Eastern Ghats are a discontinuous range of mountains along India's eastern coast. The Eastern Ghats pass through the states of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh to Tamil Nadu by, passing parts of Karnataka and Telangana on the way. They are eroded and cut through by four major rivers of peninsular India, the Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna and Kaveri. Zindagad Konda is the highest point in both Andhra Pradesh and the Eastern Ghats at 1,690 metres (5,540 ft). The Biligiriranga Hills in Karnataka are the tallest hill range in the Eastern Ghats, with many peaks above 1500 m in height.
The Satpura Range is a range of hills in central India. The range rises in eastern Gujarat running east through the border of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh and ends in Chhattisgarh. The range parallels the Vindhya Range to the north, and these two east–west ranges divide Indian Subcontinent into the Indo-Gangetic plain of northern India and the Deccan Plateau of the south. The Narmada River originates from north-eastern end of Satpura in Amarkantak, and runs in the depression between the Satpura and Vindhya ranges, draining the northern slope of the Satpura range, running west towards the Arabian Sea. The Tapti River originates in the eastern-central part of Satpura, crossing the range in the center and running west at the range's southern slopes before meeting the Arabian Sea at Surat, draining the central and southern slopes of the range. Multai, the place of Tapi river origin is located about 465 kilometer far, south-westerly to Amarkantak, separated across by the hill range. The Godavari River and its tributaries drain the Deccan plateau, which lies south of the range, and the Mahanadi River drains the easternmost portion of the range. The Godavari and Mahanadi rivers flow into the Bay of Bengal. At its eastern end, the Satpura range meets the hills of the Chotanagpur Plateau. The Satpura Range is a horst mountain and is flanked by Narmada Graben in the north and much smaller but parallel Tapi Graben in the south.
Kolleru Lake is one of the largest freshwater lakes in India located in state of Andhra Pradesh and forms the largest shallow freshwater lake in Asia. 15 kilometers away from the Eluru and 65 km from Rajamahendravaram, the lake is located between the Krishna and Godavari deltas. Kolleru Lake is located in Eluru district. The lake is fed directly by water from the seasonal Budameru and Tammileru streams, and is connected to the Krishna and Godavari irrigation systems by over 67 major and minor irrigation canals. This lake is a major tourist attraction. Many birds migrate here in winter, such as Siberian crane, ibis, and painted storks. The lake was an important habitat for an estimated 20 million resident and migratory birds, including the grey or spot-billed pelican. The lake was declared as a wildlife sanctuary in November 1999 under India's Wildlife Protection Act of 1972, and designated a wetland of international importance in November 2002 under the international Ramsar Convention. The wildlife sanctuary covers an area of 308 km2.
National Chambal Sanctuary, also called the National Chambal Gharial Wildlife Sanctuary, is a 5,400 km2 (2,100 sq mi) tri-state protected area in northern India for the protection of the Critically Endangered gharial, the red-crowned roof turtle and the Endangered Ganges river dolphin. Located on the Chambal River near the tripoint of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, it was first declared in Madhya Pradesh in 1978, and now constitutes a long narrow eco-reserve co-administered by the three states. Within the sanctuary, the pristine Chambal River cuts through mazes of ravines and hills with many sandy beaches.
Sri Venkateswara National Park is a national park and biosphere reserve in Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh, India. The total area of the park is 353 km2. The park is known for its many waterfalls, including the Talakona, Gundalakona and Gunjana. As the Government of India declared the Seshachalam Hills as one of the biosphere reserves of India in 2010, this national park becomes the part of it.
Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary is an estuary situated near Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh, India. It is the third largest stretch of mangrove forests in India with 24 mangrove tree species and more than 120 bird species. It is home to the critically endangered white-backed vulture and the long billed vulture. Mangroves are a group of trees and shrubs that live in the coastal intertidal zone, with a dense tangle of prop roots that make the trees appear to be standing on stilts above the water. This tangle of roots allows the trees to handle the daily rise and fall of tides; hence, the mangrove forest gets flooded at least twice per day. The roots also slow the movement of tidal waters, causing sediments to settle out of the water and build up the muddy bottom.
The Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests, presently known as East Deccan moist deciduous forests, is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in east-central India. The ecoregion covers an area of 341,100 square kilometers (131,700 sq mi), extending across portions of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, and Telangana states.
The state of Karnataka in South India has a rich diversity of flora and fauna. It has a recorded forest area of 38,720 km2 which constitutes 55 of the geographical area of the state. These forests support 25% of the elephant population and 20% of the tiger population of India. Many regions of Karnataka are still unexplored and new species of flora and fauna are still found. The mountains of the Western Ghats in the western region of Karnataka are a biodiversity hotspot. Two sub-clusters of the Western Ghats, Talacauvery and Kudremukh, are on a tentative list of sites that could be designated as World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. The Bandipur and Nagarahole national parks which fall outside these subclusters were included in the Nilgiri biosphere reserve in 1986, a UNESCO designation. In the Biligiriranga Hills the Eastern Ghats meet the Western Ghats. The state bird and state animal of Karnataka are Indian roller and the Indian elephant. The state tree and state flower are sandalwood and lotus. Karnataka is home to 524 tigers.
Andhra Pradesh Forest Department is one of the administrative divisions of Government of Andhra Pradesh. It is headed by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Head of Forest Force. The primary function of this department is protection, conservation and management of forests in the Andhra Pradesh State. The Forest Department is organised into 12 territorial circles and 43 divisions. In addition, one Senior Officer of the rank of Deputy Conservator of Forests functions as Planning and Extension Officer in each district.
Andhra Pradesh is a state in India. Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) is a state government agency which promotes tourism in Andhra Pradesh, describing the state as the Koh-i-Noor of India. Andhra Pradesh has a variety of tourist attractions including beaches, hills, caves, wildlife, forests and temples.
Pulicat Lake Bird Sanctuary is a sanctuary for birds, 759 km2 in area, located in the Tirupati district of Andhra Pradesh and a protected area of the Thiruvallur District of Tamil Nadu, India. Pulicat Lake is the second largest brackish-water eco-system in India after Chilka lake in Orissa. The sanctuary's international name is Pulicat Lake Wildlife Sanctuary.
Kawal Tiger Reserve is a nature preserve located at Jannaram mandal of Mancherial District in the Telangana state of India. The Government of India declared Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary to be a tiger reserve in 2012. The reserve is the oldest sanctuary in the northern Telangana region of the state. It is well known for its abundant flora and fauna. This sanctuary is catchment for the rivers Godavari and Kadam, which flow towards the south of the sanctuary.
The Geography of South India comprises the diverse topological and climatic patterns of South India. South India is a peninsula in the shape of a vast inverted triangle, bounded on the west by the Arabian Sea, on the east by the Bay of Bengal and on the north by the Vindhya and Satpura ranges.
Eturnagaram Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary located in Eturnagaram village in Mulugu district in Telangana, India. It is located 100 km (62 mi) from Warangal and 250 km (160 mi) from Hyderabad. It is a integrated tribal development town.
Rollapadu Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary in the Nandyal district of Andhra Pradesh, India. Known primarily as a habitat of the great Indian bustard, the species has suffered a drastic fall in its numbers in the sanctuary in recent years.
Papikonda National Park is a national park in India, located near Rajamahendravaram in the Papi Hills of the Alluri Sitharama Raju and Eluru districts of Andhra Pradesh, and covering an area of 1,012.86 km2 (391.07 sq mi). It is an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area and home to some endangered species of flora and fauna. No part of Papikonda remains outside East and West Godavari districts after 2014 and the construction of Polavaram Dam.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Andhra Pradesh:
Gundla Brahmeshwaram Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary located in the Nallamala Forest in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh, India. The northern part of the sanctuary is an important part of the Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve.
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