Introduction of Chitwan National Park:

Formerly the Chitwan valley was well known over the world as one of the most famous places in Asia for wildlife, as it was covered with dense forest. Between 1846 and 1950 Chitwan valley was completely wild, and well known as a hunting reserve of the Rana dynasty, as Jung Bahadur Rana had declared the Rhinoceros a royal game animal.There were a few scattered settlements of the ethnic Tharu people who were the original inhabitants and had some resistance to the deadly malaria.

The Ranas Prime minister used to invite the royalty and VIP’s from different country of the world, (India, Great Britain And USA ) to take part in the hunting which was organized on a magnificent scale. The History says that King Jorge from England Killed 39 Bengal Tigers and 11 Rhinos in 11 Days period in 1911. Before 1950 the diverse habitats of Chitwan were less disturbed because of the presence of malaria. But all this changed in 1960 when the malaria eradication program came into effect. The name Chitwan has several possible origins, but the most likely one is the junction of two Nepalese words 'Chit' or 'Chita' meaning the heart and 'wan' or 'ban' meaning the jungle. Thus `Chitwan’ is the heart of the jungle and by the combination of luck and good management the meaning still holds true.Two thirds of the forest was lost and mammals such as the swamp deer and water buffalo were completely wiped out, while the numbers of rhino and four-horned antelope were dramatically reduced. The settlers cleared the forest and starting farming the fertile land.

The Chitwan National Park is located 160km from Kathmandu and 145 km from Pokhara in the subtropical inner Terai of southern central Nepal with a latitude 270 34.78' to 270 35.53' N and longitude of 840 28.43' to 840 29.40' E. The Park has an area of 932 sq. km, and was established in 1973, it received worldwide recognition when it was accorded UNESCO's World Heritage Site status in 1984. The Chitwan National Park hold of successful nature conservation

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Vegetation and Habitat of Chitwan Park:

There are three major types of vegetation occurring in the park, namely Sal forest, riverine forest and grassland. 70% of the park is covered by Sal forest, 20% by grassland and 7% by riverine forest with the remaining 3% covered by a mixture of wetlands and Pine forest. The flood plains of the Narayani, Rapti and Reu ,Icharni Rivers as well as several ox-bow lakes, marshlands and swamps such as Lami tal, Tamor Tal, Nanda bhauju Tal, Kamal Tal make prime habitat for wildlife, Mammals, Amphibian, birds, reptiles, etc.

Birds in Chitwan Park:

The Chitwan National Park is Natural Heritage for bird watchers, Researchers as 537 species of birds both residential and migratory have been recorded and chances to find more species. Globally threatened birds found in the park such as Bengal Florican, Lesser Florican, Lesser Adjutant, Sarus Crane, Jorden Babbler, Bristled Grassbird, Grey-Crowned Prinia, Slender billed Babbler, White rumped Vulture, Greater spotted Eagle etc. Among other rarities are the Black capped Kingfisher, Blue eared Kingfisher, Sultan Tit, Ruddy Kingfisher, Eurasian eagle Owl, Spot-bellied eagle Owl, Rufous rumped Grassbird, Barn Owl, Black Baza, Red necked Falcon, Great Hornbill, Black winged Stilt, Eurasian Woodcock and Water Cock are can be seen. There are also a great variety of Woodpeckers, Laughing Thrushes, Flycatchers, Warblers, Bitterns, Drongos, Nuthatches, Green Pigeons, Parakeets, Bulbuls, Bee-eaters, Prinias and Owls etc. and many other species of waders, waterfowl and forest birds can be seen inside or within the Buffer-zone and community forest areas of the park.

Wildlife in Chitwan National Park:

Travellers, researchers and individuals get opportunities to entertain, enjoy, knowledge from its exciting and unique wildlife adventures. Although the park is famous for big game, there are 56 species of mammals in the Chitwan park. The park holds the largest number of endangered Bengal Tigers in Nepalas per the censes 2010 there are 125 numbers recorded. The park is famous for its
                                                                       

protection of the Asian One Horned Rhino ( 503 Rhinos are recorded in 2010) ,as well as the Asiatic Elephant, Asiatic Gaur, Chinese Pangolin and Gangetic Dolphin. Among the other wildlife found in the park are Sambar, Spotted, Hog and Barking Deer, Common Leopard, Sloth Bear, Jungle Cat and several species of Civet cats as well as Common Langur and Rhesus Macaque Monkeys, Ghariyal and Marsh mugger Crocodiles.

There are 126 species of fishes, 47 species of reptiles, 9 species of amphibians, 150 species of butterflies and 570 species of flowering plants found in the park. There are a lot of specious Medicinal plants too but not explored yet.

Climate of the Chitwan Park:

The park has a range of climatic seasons, October to February sees average temperatures of 250c, From March to June temperatures can reach as high as 39oc, then hot humid days give way to the monsoon season that typically lasts from late June until September when rivers become flooded and roads are impassible.