Nature & Wildlife

Trekking and rafting often take you through mountainous areas of great natural beauty but it can be difficult to see or track wildlife. For those who want to make nature the focus of their trip, the reserves and national parks of the Terai region are ideal. Open woodland covers large areas of the parks, but the widely spaced Sal trees allow the wildlife to be seen and there are areas of grassland and marsh too. Together these habitats are home to hundreds of species of birds and mammals. The main attractions are the Bengal Tigers and the one horned rhinoceros, but there are also leopards, blue sheep, huge buffalo called gaur and two different types of crocodile.

Royal Chitwan National Park (RCNP)

RCNP, covering an area of 932 sqkm, is the oldest national park of Nepal. Established in 1973, it was granted the status of a World Heritage Site in 1984. The RCNP is located at the foot of the Himalayas in the Terai region and this region possesses a beauty that’s totally unexpected in a country known mainly for soaring snow-covered mountains. Royal Chitwan National Park is considered to be one of Asia’s finest national parks popular for dense concentration of wildlife and its top class tourist lodges, which provide the opportunity to see animals in their natural environment. The main attractions are the Bengal tigers and the last populations of single-horned Indian Rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis), but the park is home to at least 43 species of mammals, 450 species of birds, and 45 species of amphibians and reptiles. A few of these animals include leopards, blue sheep, huge buffalo called gaur, sambars, chitals, rhesus monkeys, langurs and two different types of crocodile. The most popular way of viewing the animals is by taking an elephant ride which has an advantage of getting you more in touch with the natural setting. The area used to be known as the Chitwan Valley. It was a place for big game hunting and until 1951 it was a hunting reserve. At the park there is canoeing, elephant rides, and guided jungle walks.

Royal Bardia National Park

Established in 1976- 1988, Bardia is another good alternative to Chitwan in case you want to be more in wilderness. It is situated in the mid far western Terai, east of the Karnali River of Nepal. The park is similar to Chitwan but is the largest and is drier and more remote. It encompasses 968 sq km of a mixture of riverine grassland, savannah and about 70% of the park area is covered with Sal forest. It is the most undisturbed wilderness area in the Terai and has got a more peaceful atmosphere then Chitwan due to its relative isolation.

Being situated in far western Nepal, you will need to have sufficient time since it is not easily accessible like Chitwan. You either need to take a long drive by local bus or an hour flight to Nepalgunj and then around 4 hrs drive to the Park Lodge. Bardia has the country’s second largest tiger population. You can also find rhinoceros, blackbuck antelopes, wild elephant, tiger, swamp deer, black buck, gharial crocodile, marsh mugger crocodile and some rare Gangetic dolphin. Endangered birds include the Bengal florican, lesser florican, silver-eared mesia and Sarus crane. More than 30 different mammals, over 200 species of birds, and many snakes, lizards and fish have been recorded in the park's forest, grassland and river habitats. A good number of resident and migratory birds are found in the park. It is also the home of one of the last known herds of wild elephants.#?-:nbsp;Bardia was a royal hunting reserve of Nepal's Rana rulers from 1846 to 1950. In Nepal, wildlife lost whatever protection the royal hunting reserve conveyed when the Rana rule ended in the 1950s. Wildlife populations declined with the combination of increased settlement and widespread poaching. The approximately 1500 people who used to live in this valley have been resettled elsewhere. Since farming has ceased in the Babai Valley, natural vegetation is regenerating, making it an area of prime habitat for wildlife.

Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve

Established in 1976 Koshi Tappu is 175 sq km of wildlife refuge and wetlands habitat. For birds lovers Koshi Tapu Wildlife Reserve can be described as a paradise. It is located in Eastern Nepal, and can be accessed from the Mehendra Highway. Over 350 species of birds including ibises, storks, egrets, herons, swamp partridges and Bengal floricans are found here. It is also home to the water buffalo, deer, nilgai, mugger crocodile and the rare Gangetic river dolphins. Koshi Tapu is easily reached by the East West Highway, which runs along the edge of the reserve. The vegetation here is mainly wetland grassland, scrub and deciduous forests. The reserve is unique for its wild arna buffaloes. Other mammals are the hog deer, wild boar, spotted deer and blue bull. Also the endangered gharial, marsh crocodile and Gangetic dolphin are recorded in the Koshi river. Exploration is best done on foot or in a small boat so as not to disturb the wildlife.

Bird Watching

Nepal is a paradise for bird lovers with over 848 species (almost 8% of the world total) of birds. And among them almost 500 hundred species are found in the Kathmandu Valley alone. The most popular bird watching spots in Kathmandu are Phulchoki, Godavari, Nagarjun, Bagmati river, Taudaha and so on. Get your binoculars and look forward to a rewarding experience. Read More