Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary

{{Infobox protected area

| name = Kawal Tiger Reserve

| alt_name = Jannaram forest

| iucn_category = IV

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| map = India Telangana#India

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| map_caption = Location in Telangana

| relief = yes

| location = Mancherial district, Telangana

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| coordinates = {{coord|19.1188949|N|78.9989734|E|display=inline,title}}

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| area_km2 = 2015.44

| established = 2012

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File:Kawal tiger reserve.jpg

Kawal Tiger Reserve is a nature preserve located at Jannaram mandal of Mancherial District (Old Adilabad district) in the Telangana state of India.{{cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Kawal-to-be-developed-as-eco-tourism-centre/articleshow/10599432.cms |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130805015402/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-11-04/hyderabad/30358928_1_eco-tourism-aptdc-tiger-reserve |url-status=live |archive-date=2013-08-05 |title=Kawal to be developed as eco-tourism centre |date=2011-11-04 |work=The Times of India |access-date=2012-03-17}}{{cite web|url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/zoo-park-stripped-of-striped-beauty/191885-60-121.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120709121218/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/zoo-park-stripped-of-striped-beauty/191885-60-121.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-07-09 |title=Zoo park stripped of striped beauty - South India - Hyderabad - ibnlive |publisher=Ibnlive.in.com |access-date=2012-03-17}} The Government of India declared Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary to be a tiger reserve in 2012.{{cite web|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/kawal-wildlife-sanctuary-declared-tiger-reserve/article3301822.ece |title=Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary declared tiger reserve |work=The Hindu |date=2012-04-11 |access-date=2015-02-06}} 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.{{Cite web|url=http://forests.telangana.gov.in/WildLife/Kawal.htm|title=Kawal Wildlife Tiger Reserve|website=forests.telangana.gov.in|access-date=10 March 2017|archive-date=10 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190910105027/http://forests.telangana.gov.in/WildLife/Kawal.htm|url-status=dead}}

History

The KWS was established in 1965 and later declared as a Protected Area (PA) in 1999 under the WPA, 1972.

=Tiger reserve status=

It was listed as a tiger reserve in April 2012.{{cite news| last=Singh | first=S. Harpal | title=Kawal tiger reserve a green oasis | website=The Hindu | date=30 September 2012 | url=https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/kawal-tiger-reserve-a-green-oasis/article55685117.ece | access-date=11 May 2023}} Due to this status, it was developed as a tiger habitat with the release of 150 cheetals as a prey population. To reduce poaching, new checkposts have been created. Traditional sources of water were improved.

Location

Mancherial district is situated between 18.8756° N, 79.4591° E. It is surrounded by Adilabad and Komuram Bheem on the north, Karimnagar and Nizamabad on the south and Nanded district on the west. It is located in the Mancherial district at a distance of {{convert|50|km|abbr=on}} from its district headquarters. It extended from the Sahyadri hillranges to the Tadoba forest in Maharashtra (GoAP2012; Rajagopal 1976){{cite journal|last1=Rathod |first1=Bikku and Rambabu M|title=Tiger Reserve in Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary: Issues and Concerns|journal=International Journal of Innovative Research and Practices|volume=1|issn=2321-2926}}(

It is spread over an area of {{convert|893|km2|abbr=on}}, nearly 220,800 acres.{{cite web|url=http://www.hindu.com/2007/10/06/stories/2007100650190200.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013181843/http://hindu.com/2007/10/06/stories/2007100650190200.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=2007-10-13 |title=Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : 'Carry on Heaven' play to be staged tomorrow |date=2007-10-06 |work=The Hindu |access-date=2012-03-17}}

The reserve is accessible from Mancherial {{convert|50|km|mi}} and from Hyderabad {{convert|270|km|mi}} by road. The nearest airport is in Hyderabad.

Wildlife

= Flora =

The sanctuary is one of the richest teak forests in the state, with dense pristine areas free of human disturbance. The River Godavari flows through this area. Dry deciduous teak forests mixed with bamboo, terminalia, pterocarpus, anogeissus and cassias.

= Fauna =

Mammal species that have been sighted include tiger, leopard, gaur, cheetal, sambar, nilgai, barking deer, chowsingha, and sloth bear. Several species of birds and reptiles are also found in the sanctuary.

About 48 tigers are currently staying at the sanctuary, according to unofficial government sources, a number which the government hopes will increase over time.{{Cite web|title=Jannaram Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary|url=https://www.telangana360.com/2016/11/jannaram-kawal-wildlife-sanctuary.html|access-date=2021-06-07|website=Telangana 360}}

Threats

It is increasingly getting threatened by growing human encroachment, rampant poaching, illegal wood felling and habitat loss.

References

External links

[http://forests.telangana.gov.in/WildLife/Kawal.htm Official website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190910105027/http://forests.telangana.gov.in/WildLife/Kawal.htm |date=10 September 2019 }}
[http://forests.telangana.gov.in/Default.aspx Forest Department of Telangana (India) State Government website]

Category:Eastern Highlands moist deciduous forests

Category:Wildlife sanctuaries of Telangana

Category:Protected areas established in 1965

Category:1965 establishments in Andhra Pradesh