Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area in the Western Ghats,

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 so ...

, located in

Kollam district Kollam district (), (formerly Quilon district) is one of 14 districts of the state of Kerala, India. The district has a cross-section of Kerala's natural attributes; it is endowed with a long coastline, a major Laccadive Sea seaport and an in ...

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 ...

and comes under the control of

Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve The Agasthyamala Biosphere Reserve is a biosphere reserve in India established in 2001, located in the southernmost end of the Western Ghats and includes of which 1828 km2 is in Kerala and 1672.36 km2 is in Tamil Nadu. It encompasses ...

. It was established on 25 August 1984 and comprises . The name is a corruption of the Chengurinji, a tree endemic to the region ( Gluta travancorica). The sanctuary has an artificial lake of nearly 18.69Sq.km size and also surrounded by the reservoir of

Thenmala Dam The Thenmala dam is the second largest irrigation project in Kerala, India. It impounds the longest reservoir in the state and water from the reservoir is also used for power generation. The dam was started in 1961 under the Kallada Irrigation ...

. The Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary is a treasure house of plant diversity. About 1257 species of flowering plants belonging to more than 150 families are reported from this sanctuary of which 309 species are endemic to Western Ghats. Birds from 267 species including migratory, endemic and endangered species have been reported here. Tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen forest cover a major area of the sanctuary. It has a presence of lion-tailed macaque, a highly endangered species. A brood of the highly elusive nocturnal forest bird, the

Great Eared Nightjar The great eared nightjar (''Lyncornis macrotis'') is a species of nightjar in the family Caprimulgidae. It is found in southwest India and in parts of Southeast Asia. This very large nightjar has long barred wings, a barred tail and long ear-tufts ...

was spotted for the first time at Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary in Kollam, Kerala. Earlier, it was recorded from the Siruvani foothills in

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

in May 1995. The Great Eared Nightjar (Eurostopodus macrotis bourdilloni) belongs to the nightjar family. It gets its name from the two erect earlike tufts of feathers on its head, behind the eyes). The first eco-tourism project in India, Thenmala Eco-tourism Project has been formulated in and around Shenduruney Wildlife Sanctuary. Another important aspect of the Shendurnani Sanctuary is that there is no sandalwood trees here.

References

{{Kollam district South Western Ghats montane rain forests Wildlife sanctuaries of the Western Ghats Wildlife sanctuaries in Kerala 1984 establishments in Kerala Geography of Kollam district Protected areas of Kerala Tourist attractions in Kollam district Protected areas established in 1984