| Pin Valley National Park | |
|---|---|
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  Pin Valley National Park Location in Himachal Pradesh | |
| Nearest town | Kaza |
| Coordinates | 32°00′N77°53′E / 32.00°N 77.88°E Coordinates: 32°00′N77°53′E / 32.00°N 77.88°E |
| Established | 1958 |
Pin Valley National Park is a National park of India located in the Spiti Valley in the Lahaul and Spiti district, in the state of Himachal Pradesh. It is located in far northern India. It is part of Cold Desert (biosphere reserve).
Steeped in historical and present day Buddhist Tibetan culture, the area has many Tibetan Buddhist influences, evident architecturally in monasteries and stupas, and in the daily living of its residents and lamas.
Pin Valley National Park, with an area of 675 square kilometres (261 sq mi) was established by India in 1958. [1]
The park is located in the desert habitat of the Spiti Valley, within the Cold Desert Biosphere Reserve, in the Himalayas region. [2] Spreading south of Dhankar Gompa near the Tibetan border, the park marks the border between the formerly separate districts of Lahaul and Spiti. The elevation of the park ranges from about 3,500 metres (11,500 ft) near Ka Dogri to more than 6,000 metres (20,000 ft) at its highest point.
With its snow laden unexplored higher reaches and slopes, the Park forms a natural habitat for a number of endangered animals including the Snow Leopards [3] and Siberian ibex.
Because of the park's high altitude and extreme temperatures, the vegetation density is sparse, consisting mostly of alpine trees and groves of Himalayan cedar (Cedrus deodara). In summer, birds such as the Himalayan snowcock, chukar partridge, snow partridge, finches and choughs flourish in the park.
Some plants within the park's alpine habitats have significant medicinal properties. Twenty-two rare and endangered medicinal plant species, have been discovered in and around Pin Valley National Park, which are distributed over 10 different habitat types. [4] Aconitum rotundifolium, Arnebia euchroma, Ephedra gerardiana, Ferula jaeschkeana, Hyoscymus niger are the threatened but medicinally important plants occur in this national park. [5]
Himachal Pradesh is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the eleven mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks and extensive river systems. Himachal Pradesh is the northernmost state of India and shares borders with the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh to the north, and the states of Punjab to the west, Haryana to the southwest, Uttarakhand to the southeast and a very narrow border with Uttar Pradesh to the South. The state also shares an international border to the east with the Tibet Autonomous Region in China. Himachal Pradesh is also known as 'Dev Bhoomi' or 'Land of God' and 'Veer Bhoomi' which means 'Land of Braves'.
Valley of Flowers National Park is an Indian national park, located in Chamoli in the state of Uttarakhand and is known for its meadows of endemic alpine flowers and the variety of flora. This richly diverse area is also home to rare and endangered animals, including the Asiatic black bear, snow leopard, musk deer, brown bear, red fox and blue sheep. Birds found in the park include Himalayan monal pheasant and other high altitude birds.
The Lahaul and Spiti district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh consists of the two formerly separate districts of Lahaul tibetan Garzha and Spiti. The present administrative centre is Kyelang in Lahaul. Before the two districts were merged, Kardang was the capital of Lahaul, and Dhankar the capital of Spiti. The district was formed in 1960, and is the fourth least populous district in India . It is the least densely populated district of India, according to the Census of India 2011.
Saussurea is a genus of about 300 species of flowering plants in the thistle tribe within the daisy family, native to cool temperate and arctic regions of East Asia, Europe, and North America, with the highest diversity in alpine habitats in the Himalayas and East Asia. Common names include saw-wort and snow lotus, the latter used for a number of high altitude species in East Asia.
Hemis National Park is a high altitude national park in Ladakh, India. Globally famous for its snow leopards, it is believed to have the highest density of them in any protected area in the world. It is the only national park in India that is north of the Himalayas, the largest notified protected area in India and is the second largest contiguous protected area, after the Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve and surrounding protected areas. The park is home to a number of species of endangered mammals, including the snow leopard. Hemis National Park is India's protected area inside the Palearctic realm, outside the Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary northeast of Hemis, and the proposed Tso Lhamo Cold Desert Conservation Area in North Sikkim.
Tso Chigma or Chandra Taal, or Chandra Tal is a lake in the Lahaul part of the Lahul and Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh (India). Chandra Taal is near the source of the Chandra River. Despite the rugged and inhospitable surroundings, it is in a protected niche with some flowers and wildlife in summer. It is a favourite spot for tourists and high-altitude trekkers. It is usually associated with Spiti, but geographically is a part of Lahaul. Kunzum La separates Lahaul and Spiti valleys.
Spiti Valley is a cold desert mountain valley located high in the Himalayas in the north-eastern part of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. The name "Spiti" means "The middle land", i.e. the land between Tibet and India.
The Western Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion of Nepal, India, and Tibet, which lies between the tree line and snow line in the western portion of the Himalaya Range.
The Karakoram Wildlife Sanctuary, also known as the Karakoram Wildlife Sanctuary or the Karakoram Wildlife Sanctuary is a high altitude wildlife sanctuary located in the easternmost reaches of the Karakoram range in Leh district, in the Indian union territory of Ladakh. It was established in 1987 and covers an area of about 5,000 square kilometres (500,000 ha). It is important as one of the few places in India with a migratory population of the Chiru or Tibetan Antelope.
Kibber also Kyibar is a village high in the Spiti Valley in the Himalayas at 4270 metres or 14,200 ft in Himachal Pradesh in northern India. It contains a monastery and the Kibber Wildlife Sanctuary. It is located 20 kilometres from Kaza and a bus service connects them in the milder summer months. Agriculture forms the backbone of the local economy and lush green fields are abundant.
Buddhism in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh has been a long recorded practice. The spread of Buddhism in the region has occurred intermediately throughout its history. Starting in the 3rd century BCE, Buddhism was propagated by the Maurya Empire under the reign of Ashoka. The region would remain an important center for Buddhism under the Kushan Empire and its vassals. Over the centuries the following of Buddhism has greatly fluctuated. Yet by experiencing revivals and migrations, Buddhism continued to be rooted in the region, particularly in the Lahaul, Spiti and Kinnaur valleys.
The Northwestern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows is a montane grasslands and shrublands ecoregion of the elevations of the northwestern Himalaya of China, India, and Pakistan.
Cold Desert Biosphere Reserve is a biosphere reserve located in the Western Himalayas, within Himachal Pradesh in North India. Biosphere reserves are the areas of terrestrial and coastal ecosystems which promote the conservation of biodiversity with its sustainable use. There are over 669 biosphere reserves around the world in over 120 countries. The ministry of environment and forest provides financial assistance to the respective state governments for conservation of landscape, biological diversity and the cultural heritage. This region has the status of a Cold Desert biome. This region carries the status of a Cold Desert biome for two reasons, one is the leeward part of the Himalayas which is spared from monsoon winds and the other is its position at high altitude, on average 3000-5000 metres.
The ecology of the Himalayas varies with climate, rainfall, altitude, and soils. The climate ranges from tropical at the base of the mountains to permanent ice and snow at the highest elevations. The amount of yearly rainfall increases from west to east along the southern front of the range. This diversity of climate, altitude, rainfall and soil conditions supports a variety of distinct plant and animal species, such as the Nepal gray langur
Chandra Prakash Kala is an Indian ecologist and professor. His research interests include alpine ecology, conservation biology, indigenous knowledge systems, ethnobotany and medicinal aromatic plants. He is an assistant professor in the faculty area of Ecosystem and Environment Management at the Indian Institute of Forest Management.
Koksar is one of the villages in Lahaul Mandal in Lahaulspiti District in Himachal Pradesh state in Northern India. Koksar meaning is Alpine, Big, Colossal, Gigantic, Highland, Huge, Mammoth, Tall and Towering. Koksar is about 19 km from Rohtang Pass, and 7 km from North Portal of Atal Tunnel Rohtang. Koksar is the coldest place in Lahaul. It is mostly snowed-in during winters but during the summer months, the PWD Rest House and Eating places are in business. It is a beautiful mountain areas, panoramic picturesque views and pathways for hiking can be seen. It is 340 km from its state capital Shimla and 70 km from Manali.
Gopalpur Zoo is situated in Gopalpur village, Kangra district, Himachal Pradesh in India, en route the Dharmshala – Palampur road. It is surrounded by Dhauladhar Range of the Himalayas. The zoo is adorned with maple trees, horse chestnut trees, chil and greenery . The major attractions of the zoo are: Asiatic lion, leopard, Himalayan black bear, sambar deer, barking deer, goral, wild pigs, Bhutan Grey Peacocks, Cheer Pheasant, Red Jungle Fowl peacocks, vultures, eagles, etc.
Sinopodophyllum is an herbaceous perennial plant in the family Berberidaceae, described as a genus in 1979. It includes only one known species, Sinopodophyllum hexandrum, native to Afghanistan, Bhutan, northern India, Kashmir, Nepal, Pakistan, and western China. Common names include Himalayan may apple and Indian may apple.
National Highway 505, commonly called NH 505, is a national highway in India. It is a spur road of National Highway 5. NH-505 traverses the state of Himachal Pradesh in India. NH505 a high altitude road, covers Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti districts of Himachal Pradesh, mainly running along Spiti river in Spiti valley. The highway from Kaza to Gramphu remains closed for 6–9 months in a year due to heavy snowfall and closure of Kunzum La pass at an altitude of 4,550 m (14,930 ft).
Mud is a small village in the cold desert region of Spiti in Himachal Pradesh, India. Located at an altitude of 3,810 m (12,500 ft) on the left bank of the Pin River, a right bank tributary of the Spiti River, the village nestles at the base of the Parbati range that towers almost vertically 1,600 m (5,200 ft) above. Mud is near the boundary of the Pin Valley National Park and is a convenient base for treks in the park, and to the neighbouring districts of Kullu and Kinnaur. It is the last village on the Spiti side of the Pin Parbati trek to Kullu and the Pin Bhaba trek to Kinnaur.
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