Wildlife of Karnataka

The state of Karnataka in South India has a rich diversity of flora and fauna. It has a recorded forest area of 38,720 km 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).
This park is present in the Uttara Kannada district and spreads over an area of 250 km. The elevation varies from 27 to 937 metres (89 to 3,074 ft), and temperatures from 15.5 °C to 45 °C. Average annual rainfall is about 4,700 millimetres (185 in) .
The park is within Gundlupet taluk of Chamarajanagar District covering over 800 km 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.
The park is in Bengaluru urban district and Kanakapura taluk of Ramanagara district covers over 260.51 km of area. Elevation varies from 740 to 1,034 metres (2,428 to 3,392 ft), temperature from 20 to 35 °C and the average annual rainfall is 700 millimetres (28 in).
Spread over an area of 600.32 km, it encompasses regions in the districts of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Chikmagalur. Altitude varies from 134 to 1,892 metres (440 to 6,207 ft). The park has a pleasant climate, with temperatures ranging from 17 to 28 °C. Annual rainfall varies from 1,778 to 6,350 millimetres (70 to 250 in), with an average of 4,000 millimetres (157 in). The rivers Nethravati, Tunga and Bhadra are believed to originate here at Ganga Moola.
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 km. The Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary of Kerala adjoins to the Southeast.
Karnataka has 19 wildlife sanctuaries:
Flora and fauna in Karnataka are threatened. Issues include poaching, human–wildlife conflict, habitat destruction, pollution and introduction of invasive species.
Despite the best efforts of conservation activists, poaching remains one of the serious problems affecting the flora and fauna in the state. Between 1997 and 2001, a 98 elephants were poached in Karnataka. Poaching has also affected the breeding of turtles like olive ridley on the beaches of Karnataka as well as otters on the river banks. Tigers are also another species that are threatened by poachers. Sandalwood, famed for its sculptures and its aroma, is frequently poached out of the forests of Karnataka. Teakwood, famed for furniture, is another species affected by this problem. Staff shortage, lack of adequate funds and unscientific anti-poaching camps are some of the reasons quoted for continued poaching activities.
Some of the activities that are causing a destruction of habitat of flora and fauna in Karnataka are:
Due to the loss of habitat, more and more species of fauna have started to venture into human habitation causing a conflict between humans and other animals. A typical species affected by this is the elephant which ventures out of the forest into human cultivations thereby eating or destroying the crops. In some cases, the elephants have also caused human deaths like an incident that happened in Hassan district where a villager was trampled to death. Precautionary measures (sometimes illegally) are taken by humans to prevent such mishaps like electric fencing have also led to disastrous consequences like electrocution of fauna.
Release of industrial waste and human effluents into rivers have caused significant damage to species that reside in rivers and riverbanks. Air pollution is also a significant cause of concern in metros like Bangalore where it has been found that air pollution is discolouring foliage including those of ornamental plants. A comparison of the lichen flora of the garden Lal Bagh in Bangalore has revealed that 18 of the 22 species noted in 1980 were no longer present in 1997. Pollution in rivers like Kabini, Kaveri and Ghataprabha has caused sharp reduction in populations of bird species, including beneficial insectivorous birds like drongos, as well as honeybees.
Introduction of new species into a habitat has caused serious consequences to the existing species. A typical example is the introduction of the African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) in the lakes and rivers of Karnataka. This is a carnivorous fish and has caused serious damage to the indigenous fauna. Weeds like Eupatorium, Lantana and Parthenium have invaded large tracts of land causing destruction. An increase in Eupatorium is attributed as one of the causes for the spread of the deadly Kyasanur forest disease (which has a morbidity rate of 10%) among humans since it harbours tick populations that are vectors for this disease. Eucalyptus plantations in the Ranibennur blackbuck sanctuary have seriously harmed the extremely rare great Indian bustard.
Various conservation activities are in progress to protect the biodiversity present in Karnataka. These activities are mostly done by the Forest Department of the State of Karnataka and other voluntary organisations.
The presence of human habitation within the core area of reserved forests poses many problems like human–wildlife conflict and destruction of habitat due to agriculture and cattle grazing. Systematic efforts have been made to relocate some of this population into proper zones outside the protected area. An example is the relocation of some villagers from Bhagawathi and Nassehalla habitations within the Kudremukh National Park to safer regions outside it.
New scientific methods are being used to protect the flora and fauna. Some of these are:
It is highly important to keep up the morale of forest wardens and other staff members involved in anti-poaching activities and field trips. It is also necessary to keep them up-to-date on the technology and wildlife related laws. The following steps were implemented to address this issue:
Many areas of Karnataka, especially in the forests of Malnad region are unexplored and new species of flora and fauna are discovered periodically. Some of the new species of flora discovered in Karnataka include Paracautleya bhatii (a ginger) and Isachne veldkampii (a grass), both of which were discovered near Manipal in Udupi district. Two species of algae, Cosmarium bourrellyi and Cosmarium desikacharyi were discovered in a paddy field in Belgaum. Other new species of flora discovered in Karnataka include Isoetes udupiensis (a pteridophyte) and Pisolithus indicus (a fungus).
Some of the new species of fauna discovered include two species of ants, Dilobocondyla bangalorica which was discovered on the campus of Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and Discothyrea sringerensis which was discovered near Sringeri. Three new species of frogs; Philautus luteolus, Philautus tuberohumerus and Nyctibatrachus petraeus have been discovered in Karnataka. Explorations in the Sharavathi river have yielded new fish species like Batasio sharavatiensis (a bagrid catfish), Schistura nagodiensis and Schistura sharavathiensis. Another fish species, Puntius coorgensis has been discovered near Bhagamandala in the Kaveri river. Some other species of fauna discovered in Karnataka include two species of whiteflies, Distinctaleyrodes setosus and Aleurocanthus arecae and a caecilian, Gegeneophis madhavai. Explorations in the soil around the Linganamakki reservoir has revealed eleven new species of earthworms.
Karnataka is the home of few critically endangered species of flora that include evergreen trees like Dipterocarpus bourdilloni, Hopea erosa and Hopea jacobi, Croton lawianus (a small tree) and Pinnatella limbata (a type of moss). Some of the critically endangered species of fauna found in Karnataka include Gyps indicus (the Indian vulture) and two species of frogs, Indirana gundia (found only in Gundia range, Sakleshpur) and Micrixalus kottigeharensis (found only near Kottigehara, Chikkamagaluru district).
Some of the endangered species of flora include evergreen trees like Cynometra bourdillonii, Cynometra travancorica, Hopea glabra, Hopea parviflora, Hopea ponga, Hopea racophloea, Hopea wightiana, Shorea roxburghii and Tarenna agumbensis and flowering plants like Glochidion pauciflorum, Glochidion tomentosum, Ixora lawsoni and Syzygium stocksii. Other endangered trees found in Karnataka include Isonandra stocksii, Kingiodendron pinnatum, Maesa velutina, Myristica magnifica, Rapanea striata and Flacourtia latifolia (synonym Xylosma latifolia).
Endangered species of fauna found in Karnataka include the Bengal tiger, Indian elephant, lion-tailed macaque, olive ridley turtle and dhole, the Indian wild dog. Many endangered species of amphibians are found here including frogs, Indirana brachytarsus, Microhyla sholigari, Minervarya sahyadris, Nyctibatrachus aliciae, Nyctibatrachus hussaini, Nyctibatrachus sanctipalustris, Philautus charius, Philautus wynaadensis, Ramanella mormorata and Rhacophorus lateralis and a toad, Bufo beddomii. Other endangered species of fauna include Hipposideros hypophyllus (the Kolar leaf-nosed bat) and Pseudomulleria dalyi (a mollusc).