Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary


The Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area located in the Mandya, Chamarajanagar and Ramanagar districts of Karnataka, India. The Cauvery River passes through its midst. An area of was established as Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary on 14 January 1987 under Section 18 of the Wildlife Protection Act 1973 with the objective of providing protection, conservation and development of Wildlife and its environment. The sanctuary was expanded to its current area of in 2013. On its east, it adjoins Dharmapuri forest division of Tamil Nadu state.

Geography

The sanctuary, established on 14 January 1987 under Section 18 of the Wildlife Protection Act 1973, is spread over an area of It lies in an elevation range of with its northern and southern boundary delimited by the Cauvery River on the Eastern Ghats, which drains from west to east. Its eastern and northeastern borders are bounded by the Tamil Nadu state. The river forms the interstate boundary between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu states over a river reach of with dense forests on both banks. The sanctuary is named after the Cauvery River which flows through it over a total length of.
Important places along the river stretch flowing through the sanctuary covering its forested central and eastern parts are the Hogenakal Falls, Mekedatu, and Sangam, the Chilandavadi S.F, the Muggur S.F, the Chikkayalur S.F, and the Mahadeswara Reserve Forest. The boundary of the sanctuary is well demarcated with the surrounding border areas consisting of agricultural lands and forests; the bordering forest areas are: the Kollegal forest division to its west and south, Mandya and Ramanagaram forest divisions to its north, and Dharmapuri Forest division of Tamil Nadu state to its east.
Human habitation inside the sanctuary and within radius of the sanctuary consists of eight enclosed villages and 30 villages respectively with a total population of 39,000 whose main occupation is agriculture. Along the boundary of the sanctuary, a trench is excavated to prevent elephant migration to neighbouring villages and to check damage to agricultural lands.

Climate

The sanctuary has a semi-arid climate, where the average temperatures are a minimum of and maximum of, and during summer it touches a maximum of. The sanctuary receives rainfall both during the Northeast monsoon and Southwest monsoon. The rainfall varies between and.

Biology and ecology

The sanctuary mainly consists of dry deciduous forest, southern tropical dry thorn and riverine forests. Hardwickia binata and Albizia amara are the dominant forest types. There is hardly any vegetation in the northwestern part while good forests exist in the rest of the sanctuary.

Flora

The dominant species of trees found in this sanctuary are Terminalia arjuna and jambul. Other tree species in the sanctuary are Albizia amara, Feronia sp., Tamarindus indica, Mangifera indica, Hardwickia binata, Acacia amata, and several other species of acacia, Feronia and Ficus.

Fauna

It is home to mammals like tiger, elephant, wild boar, leopard, dhole, spotted deer, barking deer, sambar, four-horned antelope, black-naped hare, chevrotain, common langur, bonnet macaque, honey badger malabar giant squirrel, grizzled giant squirrel which is under the highly endangered category in the state of Karnataka, smooth-coated otter The smooth-coated otter sites in the sanctuary’s river reach were specifically studied. It was noted that the otters inhabited riverine areas which were loosely packed sand and rock without compacted sand, rocks, gravel, and plant cover.
The river Cauvery is also habitat for various species of reptiles like the mugger crocodile, Indian mud turtles. Reptile species in the sanctuary are Indian rock python, Indian cobra, Russell’s viper and banded krait. This is also one of the few places to find the IUCN Red List Critically Endangered hump-backed mahseer fish. It was also, previously, part of the distribution of the Critically Endangered Nilgiri Mystus, known locally as haddu.

Avifauna

The sanctuary is listed as an IBA assessed bird area by the BirdLife International in 2004 which extends over the same semiarid area as the sanctuary. The two most endangered species in the sanctuary are Gyps species of vultures – the white-rumped vulture and Indian vulture. The four vulnerable species reported are Nilgiri wood-pigeon, greater spotted eagle, white-naped tit and yellow-throated bulbul. Other bird species reported are 25 species of Malayan Tropical Dry Zone which includes the near threatened red-headed vulture. The species of least concern reported here is the resident white-bellied blue-flycatcher.
In a recent bird survey carried out in the sanctuary, reported in January 2014, the total number of bird species identified in the park are 280, which include 19 new species. Some of the notable species reported are: Indian courser, Malabar parakeet, large-billed leaf warbler, green leaf-warbler, western crowned leaf warbler, fairy-bluebird, the Indian blue robin, the yellow-throated bulbul, the crested goshawk, rosefinch, Blyth's swift, Orphean warbler, European bee-eater, and Eurasian crag martin.

Threats

The threats faced in the sanctuary have been recorded to be mostly of recent origin and of low intensity. These low level threats are related to farming and fishing activities, use of forest resources in the form of logging, tree harvesting, extraction of minor forest produce, least degree of recreational disturbance from human activities and low level of natural changes in the form of water harvesting structures. Upstream water impoundments have resulted in very low flows even in monsoon seasons, and dam releases introduce cold, low mineral content water at unpredictable times, all of which impact on riverine species. However, the threats from exploitation of biological resources in the form of hunting and capture of animals is assessed as high.
Introductions of alien fish species have put huge pressures on the native fish, especially the most endangered species.

Conservation measures

Conservation measures in force in the sanctuary are in the form of patrolling on foot and in jeeps, and functioning of 11 moving anti-poaching camps; two permanent camps have been proposed. Drinking water to wild animals are provided through building of water conservation structures. Fire lines are cut and burnt well in advance before the beginning of the forest fire season; fire lines are created and dry material burnt. Fire watchers are stationed at strategic locations. A 10-year conservation plan for the period 2006–16 has been instituted. Zoning of forest into Core, Buffer, and Tourism zones has been planned. The tourism zone has four specific areas – Bheemeshwari and Muthathi, Sangam and Mekedatu in the
Kanakapura Wildlife Range, Gopinatham and Hogenakal falls of M.M.Hills Wildlife Range. Administrative set up has been proposed to be reorganized with additional staff. Improvement of patrolling paths has been envisaged. To increase awareness among the general public publicity pamphlets are planned, apart from fixing signages and plaques with information on the importance of preservation of wildlife of the sanctuary.