Jaldapara National Park (Pron: ˌʤʌldəˈpɑ:rə) is a

national park A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individua ...

situated at the foothills of the

Eastern Himalaya ] The Eastern Himalayas extend from eastern Nepal across Northeast India, Bhutan, the Tibet Autonomous Region to Yunnan in China and northern Myanmar. The climate of this region is influenced by the monsoon of South Asia from June to Septemb ...

s in Alipurduar, Alipurduar District of northern

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

, and on the banks of the Torsa River. Jaldapara is situated at an altitude of 61 m and is spread across of vast grassland with patches of riverine forests. It was declared a sanctuary in 1941 for protection of its great variety of flora and fauna. Today, the park has the largest population of the Indian one-horned rhinoceros in the state, an animal threatened with extinction, and is a Habitat management area (Category IV). The nearby Chilapata Forests is an

elephant Elephants are the largest existing land animals. Three living species are currently recognised: the African bush elephant, the African forest elephant, and the Asian elephant. They are the only surviving members of the family Elephantidae a ...

corridor between Jaldapara and the Buxa Tiger Reserve.Wildlife Times: Elephants of North Bengal
Nearby is the

Gorumara National Park Gorumara National Park (Pron: ˌgɔ:rʊˈmɑ:rə; ''Gorumara Jatio Uddan'') is a National Park in northern West Bengal, India. Located in the Dooars region of the Himalayan foothills, it is a medium-sized park with grasslands and forests. Goru ...

, also known for its population of Indian rhinoceros. The Office of the Divisional Forest Officer, Jaldapara Office is situated at Nilkuthi, Cooch Behar and the Office of the Assistant Wildlife Warden is situated at the heart point of the national park, i.e. Madarihat.

History

Toto tribes and Mech Tribes (Bodos) used to stay in this area before 1800. At that time this place was known as "

Totopara Totopara is a village in the Madarihat-Birpara CD block in the Alipurduar subdivision of the Alipurduar district of West Bengal, India. Geography Location Totopara is located at . Administratively, this village falls under the Madarihat ...

". Formerly Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary (JWLS; established in 1941) has been elevated to Jaldapara National Park (JNP) in May 2014 and is primarily meant for the conservation of Indian Rhino.

Flora and fauna

The forest is mainly savannah covered with tall elephant grasses. The main attraction of the park is the Indian one-horned rhinoceros. The park holds the largest rhino population in India after

Kaziranga National Park Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. The park, which hosts two-thirds of the world's great one-horned rhinoceroses, is a World Heritage Site. According to the census held ...

in Assam. Other animals in the park include

Indian leopard The Indian leopard (''Panthera pardus fusca'') is a leopard subspecies widely distributed on the Indian subcontinent. The species ''Panthera pardus'' is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List because populations have declined following habita ...

Indian elephant The Indian elephant (''Elephas maximus indicus'') is one of four extant recognised subspecies of the Asian elephant and native to mainland Asia. Since 1986, the Asian elephant has been listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List as the wild pop ...

s, sambar,

barking deer Barking may refer to: Places * Barking, London, a town in East London, England ** London Borough of Barking and Dagenham The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham () is a London borough in East London. It lies around 9 miles (14.4 km) ...

, spotted deer, hog deer,

wild boar The wild boar (''Sus scrofa''), also known as the wild swine, common wild pig, Eurasian wild pig, or simply wild pig, is a Suidae, suid native to much of Eurasia and North Africa, and has been introduced to the Americas and Oceania. The speci ...

s, and

gaur The gaur (''Bos gaurus''; ), also known as the Indian bison, is a bovine native to South Asia and Southeast Asia, and has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1986. The global population was estimated at a maximum of 21,000 m ...

. A floristic investigation was made during 2016 – 2018 to observe the tree diversity and their present status in the Jaldapara National Park (JNP) which is situated in the Dooars region of West Bengal, India. A total of 294 species of trees belonging to 189 genera and 63 families, including 4 species of gymnosperms were recorded. Jaldapara is a paradise for bird watchers. It is one of the very few places in India, where the

Bengal florican The Bengal florican (''Houbaropsis bengalensis''), also called the Bengal bustard, is a bustard species native to the Indian subcontinent, Cambodia, and Vietnam. It is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List because fewer than ...

is sighted. The other birds to be found here are the

crested eagle The crested eagle (''Morphnus guianensis'') is a large Neotropical eagle. It is the only member of the genus ''Morphnus''. The crested eagle can grow up to long, with a wingspan up to , and weigh up to . The plumage varies between a light br ...

, Pallas's fish eagle, shikra, Finn's weaver,

jungle fowl Junglefowl are the only four living species of bird from the genus ''Gallus'' in the bird order Galliformes, and occur in parts of South and Southeast Asia. They diverged from their common ancestor about 4–6 million years ago. Although origin ...

peafowl Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are re ...

(peacock),

partridge A partridge is a medium-sized galliform bird in any of several genera, with a wide native distribution throughout parts of Europe, Asia and Africa. Several species have been introduced to the Americas. They are sometimes grouped in the Perdi ...

, and lesser pied hornbill.

Python Python may refer to: Snakes * Pythonidae, a family of nonvenomous snakes found in Africa, Asia, and Australia ** ''Python'' (genus), a genus of Pythonidae found in Africa and Asia * Python (mythology), a mythical serpent Computing * Python (pr ...

monitor lizard Monitor lizards are lizards in the genus ''Varanus,'' the only extant genus in the family Varanidae. They are native to Africa, Asia, and Oceania, and one species is also found in the Americas as an invasive species. About 80 species are recogn ...

krait ''Bungarus'' is a genus of venomous elapid snakes, the kraits ("krait" is pronounced , rhyming with "kite"), found in South and Southeast Asia. The genus ''Bungarus'' has 16 species. Distribution Kraits are found in tropical Asia, from near Ir ...

s, cobras,

gecko Geckos are small, mostly carnivorous lizards that have a wide distribution, found on every continent except Antarctica. Belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, geckos are found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from . Geckos are ...

s, and about eight species of fresh water turtles can also be found here. Many of the animals in the park are endangered, like the Indian one-horned rhino and elephants. File:Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary at Jaldapara 05.jpg, Gate of Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary File:Wild Elephants at Jaldapara.JPG, Wild elephants grazing at Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary File:EveningAtJaldapara.JPG, Evening at Jaldapara National Park File:Wallowing rhinos Jaldapara WLS AJT Johnsinhgh.jpg, Wallowing rhinos ''Rhinoceros unicornis'' in Jaldapara. File:HollongRidingPoint.JPG, A Riding Point in Jaladapara National Park

References

External links

Official Homepage

Alipurduar District Tourism
at Alipurduar District Tourism

at West Bengal State Tourism
Jaldapara Wildlife Sanctuary
at North Bengal Tourism {{Authority Control Wildlife sanctuaries in West Bengal Dooars Tourist attractions in Alipurduar district Protected areas established in 1941 National parks in West Bengal Lower Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests 1941 establishments in British India