The Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary is a

wildlife sanctuary A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

Thiruvananthapuram district Thiruvananthapuram District (), is the southernmost district in the Indian state of Kerala. The district was created in 1949, with its headquarters in the city of Thiruvananthapuram, which is also Kerala's administrative centre. The present d ...

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

, India. It consists of the catchment area of the

Karamana River Karamana is a river flowing through the city of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, India. The river starts near the southern tip of the Western Ghats(Sahyadri Mountains) at Agastyar Koodam. The river flows 66 km westward and merges with the Ara ...

, which originates from Chemmunjimottai, the tallest hill within the sanctuary. The sanctuary is named after the Peppara Dam, commissioned in 1983 to augment the drinking water supply to

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

city and suburban areas. Considering the ecological significance of the area, it was declared a sanctuary in 1983. The terrain is undulating with elevation ranging from 100 m to 1717 m. The area of the sanctuary is 75 km2 with tropical moist evergreen forests and myristica swamps. It is part of the Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve. Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary is by car from the nearest railway station, at

, and from the Thiruvananthapuram airport.

History

The area was formerly a part of the Paruthippally range of the Thiruvananthapuram territorial division. Forests consist of part of the Palode reserve () and part of Kottoor reserve (). The total water spread of the reservoir is .

Geography

The Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary is situated on Thiruvananthapuram-

Ponmudi Ponmudi (the Golden Peak) also known as Kashmir of Kerala is a hill station in the Peringamala gramapanchayath of Trivandrum District of Kerala in India. It is located 22km west of Vithura town, 53 km north-east of Trivandrum City, ...

Road, about 50 km northeast of Thiruvananthapuram. The area is hilly, with elevation varying from to . The major peaks in the sanctuary are Chemmunjimottai (1717m), Athirumalai (1594m), Arumukhamkunnu (1457m), Koviltherimalai (1313m) and Nachiyadikunnu (957m). Annual average rainfall is . The major rivers are Karamana River and its tributaries.

Biology and ecology

Forest types include West coast tropical evergreen, Southern hilltop tropical evergreen, West coast semi-evergreen, Southern moist mixed deciduous forest, Myristica swamp forest, sub-montane hill valley swamp forest etc.

Trees

Common tree species are ''

Terminalia paniculata ''Terminalia paniculata'' is a tree native to southwest India (including the Western Ghats and Karnataka). Known in the timber trade as kindal, it has a variety of names in local languages. It is economically important for wood, medicinal uses, ...

'', ''T. bellerica'', ''

Pterocarpus marsupium ''Pterocarpus marsupium'', also known as Malabar kino, Indian kino, Vijayasar, or Venkai is a medium to large, deciduous tree that can grow up to tall. It is native to India (where it occurs in parts of the Western Ghats in the Karnataka-Kerala ...

'', '' Palaquium ellipticum'', ''

Mesua ferrea ''Mesua ferrea'', the Ceylon ironwood, or cobra saffron, is a species in the family Calophyllaceae. This slow-growing tree is named after the heaviness and hardness of its timber. It is widely cultivated as an ornamental due to its graceful sh ...

'', ''

Hopea parviflora ''Hopea parviflora'' is a species of plant in the family Dipterocarpaceae. It is endemic to India. It is called 'kampakam' or 'thampakam' in Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian st ...

'', ''

Bombax ceiba ''Bombax ceiba'', like other trees of the genus ''Bombax'', is commonly known as cotton tree. More specifically, it is sometimes known as Malabar silk-cotton tree; red silk-cotton; red cotton tree; or ambiguously as silk-cotton or kapok, both of ...

'', '' Syzygium cumini'', '' Lagerstroemia microcarpa'', '' Albizia procera'', '' Alstonia scholaris'', etc.

Animals

The sanctuary has several mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians. 43 species of mammals, 233 species of birds, 46 species of reptiles, 13 species of amphibians and 27 species of fishes are reported from the sanctuary. The common mammals found are

tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on ...

, leopard,

sloth bear The sloth bear (''Melursus ursinus'') is a myrmecophagous bear species native to the Indian subcontinent. It feeds on fruits, ants and termites. It is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, mainly because of habitat loss and degradation. ...

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 ...

sambar (deer) The sambar (''Rusa unicolor'') is a large deer native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia that is listed as a vulnerable species on the IUCN Red List since 2008. Populations have declined substantially due to severe hunting, local ins ...

bonnet macaque The bonnet macaque (''Macaca radiata''), also known as zati,Chambers English Dictionary is a species of macaque endemic to southern India. Its distribution is limited by the Indian Ocean on three sides and the Godavari and Tapti Rivers, along wit ...

Nilgiri langur The Nilgiri langur (''Semnopithecus johnii'') is a langur (a type of Old World monkey) . This primate has glossy black fur on its body and golden brown fur on its head. It is similar in size and long-tailed like the gray langurs. Females have ...

Nilgiri tahr The Nilgiri tahr (''Nilgiritragus hylocrius'') is an ungulate that is endemic to the Nilgiri Hills and the southern portion of the Western and Eastern Ghats in the states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala in southern India. It is the state animal of Tami ...

Gallery

Image:Peppara Dam Reservoir Gate IMG 20141003 174618.jpg, Peppara Dam Reservoir Entrance Image:Peppara Reservoir.jpg, Peppara Reservoir as seen from the dam File:Peppara Dam Reservoir IMG 20141003 174412.jpg, Dam top view

External links

Kerala tourism official site

Information about Nedumangad

Notes

{{Tourism in Kerala, state=collapsed Geography of Thiruvananthapuram district Wildlife sanctuaries in Kerala Tourist attractions in Thiruvananthapuram district South Western Ghats moist deciduous forests Wildlife sanctuaries of the Western Ghats South Western Ghats montane rain forests Protected areas of Kerala 1983 establishments in Kerala Protected areas established in 1983