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 (Santalum album) and lotus. Karnataka is home to 524 tigers (around 12% of tigers in world).
National parks
Anshi National Park This park is present in the Uttara Kannada district and spreads over an area of 250 km2. The elevation varies from , and temperatures from 15.5 °C to 45 °C. Average annual rainfall is about .
Flora:A Walk on the Wild Side, An Information Guide to National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries of Karnataka, Compiled and Edited by Dr. Nima Manjrekar, Karnataka Forest Department, Wildlife Wing, October 2000 The area has semi-evergreen and evergreen forests. Some common tree species in the area are Calophyllum tomentosa, Calophyllum wightianum, Garcina cambogia, Garcina morealla, Knema attenuata, Hopea ponga, Tetrameles nudiflora, Alstonia scholaris, Flacourtia montana, Machilis macarantha, Carallia brachiata, Artocarpus hirsutus, Artocarpus lacoocha and Cinnamomum zeylanicum. Fauna: Mammals in the park include Indian elephant, gaur, wild boar, sambar, chevrotain, muntjac, chital, gray langur, bonnet macaque, slender loris, Bengal tiger, jungle cat, Indian leopard, leopard cat, small Indian civet, common mongoose, golden jackal, dhole, sloth bear, Malabar giant squirrel, grizzled giant squirrel, Indian giant flying squirrel, and Indian crested porcupine. King cobra, python, cobra, rat snake, viper and krait are among the snakes that inhabit the park. Interesting birds include the great hornbill, Malabar pied hornbill and Ceylon frogmouth.
Bandipur National Park
The park is within Gundlupet taluk of Chamarajanagar District covering over 800 km2 and adjoins the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In 1973, Bandipur became one of the first of India's tiger reserves and became a part of Project Tiger. In 1977, an intention was declared under the Wildlife Protection Act to notify it as a national park.
Flora: The scrub jungles towards the eastern limits of the park consist of stunted trees, interspersed with bushes and open grassy patches. Towards its north-western fringes, there is a gradual shift in the vegetation from open dry deciduous forests to tropical mixed deciduous forests. These diverse habitats support an enormous diversity of animal life. Fauna: The mammals found here are Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus), gaur (Bos gaurus), sambar (Cervus unicolor), chital or spotted deer (Axis axis), muntjac (Muntiacus muntjak) or barking deer, mouse deer (Moschiola indica), bonnet macaque (Macaca radiata), slender loris (Loris tardigradus), red giant flying squirrel (Petaurista petaurista), Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris), Indian leopard (Panthera pardus), common palm civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus), small Indian civet (Viverricula indica), sloth bear (Melursus ursinus), dhole or Asiatic wild dog (Cuon alpinus), golden jackal (Canis aureus), ruddy mongoose (Herpestes smithii), smooth-coated otter (Lutrogale perspicillata), Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata). Among the 230 species of birds identified, important groups include herons, storks, egrets, ducks, kites, eagles, falcons, quails, partridges, wildfowl, lapwings, sandpipers, pigeons, doves, parakeets, cuckoos, owls, nightjars, swifts, kingfishers, bee-eaters and munias. Reptiles like marsh crocodile (Crocodylus palustris), Indian pond terrapin, starred tortoise (Geochelone elegans), common Indian monitor (Varanus bengalensis), Indian chameleon (Chamaeleo zeylanicus), skinks (Mabuya spp.), geckos (Hemidactylus), common rat snake (Ptyas mucosus), Indian cobra (Naja naja), Russell's viper (Daboia russelli), common krait (Bungarus caeruleus), Indian python (Python molurus), checkered keelback, green whip snake, common Indian bronzeback (Dendrelaphis tristis) and trinket snake (Elaphe helena) are found here
Bannerghatta National Park The park is in Bengaluru urban district and Kanakapura taluk of Bengaluru South district covers over 260.51 km2 of area. Elevation varies from , temperature from 20 to 35 °C and the average annual rainfall is .
Flora: The area has dry deciduous forests and thorny shrubs, with patches of moist[deciduous forests along the streams. Tree species in the park include Anogeissus latifolia, Schleichera , Terminalia tomentosa, Terminalia arjuna, Grewia tilaefolia, Santalum album, Shorea talura, Emblica officinalis, Vitex altissima, Wrightia tinctoria, Randia sp., Ziziphus sp. and Albizzia sp. Bamboos are common in the park, the dominant species being Dendrocalamus strictus. A small area of the park has plantations of Eucalyptus, Bauhinia purpurea, Samanea saman and Peltophorum pterocarpum. Fauna: Mammals in the park include Indian leopard, gaur, Indian elephant, golden jackal, fox, wild boar, sloth bear, sambar, spotted deer, barking deer, common langur, bonnet macaque, Indian crested porcupine and hare. A Bengal tiger was sighted in the park.
Kudremukh National Park Spread over an area of 600.32 km2, it encompasses regions in the districts of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Chikmagalur. Altitude varies from . The park has a pleasant climate, with temperatures ranging from 17 to 28 °C. Annual rainfall varies from , with an average of . The rivers Nethravati, Tunga and Bhadra are believed to originate here at Ganga Moola.
Flora: The park has mostly evergreen and semi-evergreen forests. Shola grassland habitat is found at elevations above . Evergreen trees include Poeciloneuron indicum, Holigarna arnottiana, Artocarpus sp., Calophyllum sp., Alstonia scholaris, Canarium strictum, Syzygium cumini, Flacourtia montana, Symplocos spicata, Hopea parviflora, Mesua ferrea and Evodiaroxburghiana. There are also a few plantations of Eucalyptus, Casuarina and Acacia auriculiformis. Fauna: Mammals in the park include Bengal tiger, Indian leopard, dhole, golden jackal, lion-tailed macaque, common langur, sloth bear, gaur, sambar, spotted deer, barking deer, Malabar giant squirrel, Indian giant flying squirrel, Indian crested porcupine and mongoose. Reptiles are represented by snakes and tortoises. Bird species in the park include the Malabar trogon, great hornbill, Malabar whistling thrush and imperial pigeon.
Nagarahole National Park Also known as Rajiv Gandhi (Nagarahole) National Park, the park gets its name from the Nagara Hole (Snake River in Kannada) which runs eastwards through its centre. Nagarahole river flows through the park before it joins the Kabini river that also acts as a boundary between Nagarahole and Bandipur. The park covers an area of about 575 km2. The Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary of Kerala adjoins to the Southeast. Flora: These forests are dominated by teak and rosewood. The eastern limits of the park consist of regenerating dry deciduous forests. The west region of the park contains tropical moist and semi-evergreen forests. Interspersed with these forests are swampy fallows called hadlus, which are dominated by grasses and are favoured grazing areas of many wild herbivores. Fauna: Some of the species of mammals found in this park are Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus), gaur (Bos gaurus), sambar (Cervus unicolor), chital or spotted deer or axis deer (Axis axis), muntjac or barking deer (Muntiacus muntjak), chevrotain or mouse deer (Moschiola indica), four horned antelope (Tetracerus quadricornis), giant fruit bat (Pteropus giganteus), Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris), Indian leopard (Panthera pardus), leopard cat (Felis bengalensis), jungle cat (Felis chaus), rusty spotted cat (Felis rubiginosa), common palm civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus), small Indian civet (Viverricula indica), sloth bear (Melursus ursinus), dhole or Asiatic wild dog (Cuon alpinus) and flying fox (Pteropus giganteus), the largest Indian bat. Among the 300 species of birds identified in this park include herons, storks, egrets, ducks, kites, eagles, falcons, partridges, quails, peafowl, owls, lapwings, sandpipers, pigeons, doves, parakeets, cuckoos, nightjars, swifts, kingfishers, bee-eaters, barbets, swallows, larks, woodpeckers, shrikes and orioles. Reptiles include marsh crocodile (Crocodylus palustris), Indian pond terrapin, star tortoise, common Indian monitor lizard (Varanus bengalensis), forest calotes, southern green calotes, skinks (Mabuya spp.), geckos, spectacled cobra, Russell's viper, common krait, Indian python (Python molurus), checkered keelback, green whip snake, common Indian bronzeback, flying snake, wolf snake and trinket snake.
Wildlife sanctuaries
Karnataka has 19 wildlife sanctuaries:
Kaveri Wildlife Sanctuary is spread over three districts; Chamarajanagar, Mandya and Ramanagara. The sanctuary was originally notified in 1987 with an area of about 510 km2 . Subsequently it was expanded by adding more forest areas in stages, and its present extent is 1,027 km2. Cauvery wildlife division has two sub-divisions, namely, Hanur and Kanakapura sub-divisions, and consists of seven ranges, namely, Kothnur, Hanur, Cowdally, Gopinatham, Halagur, Sangam and Muggur ranges. The sanctuary provides a vital link between Bannerghatta National Park in the north and BRT Tiger Reserve and MM Hills Wildlife Sanctuary in the south. The area is drained by three rivers, namely, Cauvery, Arkavathi and Shimsha, along with their numerous rivulets. The forest is primarily of dry deciduous and scrub types, but a wide range of forest types including moist deciduous, semi-evergreen, evergreen, shola, riverine, Hardwickia forest, etc. are encountered at different altitudes. Important animals found in the sanctuary are tiger, elephant, leopard, bison, wild dog, sambar, spotted deer, barking deer, sloth bear, wild boar, common langur, bonnet macaque, giant squirrel, honey badger (ratel), chevrotain, kollegal ground gecko, varieties of reptiles and birds and many. Adichunchanagiri Wildlife Sanctuary,Adichunchanagiri Wildlife Sanctuary in Mandya district, is spread over . It was created mainly for the conservation of peacocks. It also houses nearly 250 other species of birds. Arabithittu Wildlife SanctuaryArabithittu Wildlife Sanctuary is in Mysore district and is spread over . This park consists of eucalyptus and sandalwood plantations. Leopard, fox and spotted deer are found here. Also around 230 species of birds have been observed here. Biligiriranga Swamy Temple Wildlife Sanctuary is in Chamarajanagar district and is spread over . Some of the species of flora found here are Anogeissus latifolia, Grewia tilaefolia and Syzygium cumini. Mammals include elephants, tigers, leopards, sloth bear, gaur, barking deer and sambar. Among the 215 species of birds are the Nilgiri wood pigeon, Malabar whistling thrush, yellow-throated bulbul, peregrine falcon, rufous-bellied hawk-eagle. An endangered amphibian, Icthyophis ghytinosus has been reported in the sanctuary.