Pant Wildlife Sanctuary
Pant Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary in India, situated near Rajgir in Nalanda district, Bihar, India. It is under the Nalanda forest division.
Climate
The climate is normal for the Nalanda district. There are three distinct seasons, summer when temperature remains 44° C - 20° C, winter when temperature remains 28° C - 6° C, and Monsoon when rainfall is 1860 mm. The average summer temperature is, and the average winter temperature is.Geography
This wildlife sanctuary represents a remnant patch of forests nestled in the picturesque Rajgir Hills within the South Gangetic Plain. This sanctuary lies between latitudes 24°55’ and 25°05’ N and longitude 85°6’ and 85°30’ E in Nalanda District of Bihar and extends over an area of 3584 hectares or 35.84 sq. km. For protection, this forest was notified as Pant Wildlife Sanctuary Rajgir in 1978.Landscape
The landscape of Pant Wildlife Sanctuary is uneven terrain enclosed by five mountains – Ratnagiri, Vipulgiri, Vaibhargiri, Songiri and Udaygiri.Flora and fauna
The forests of this sanctuary intercept rainfall and help recharge ground water aquifer, protect rivers and streams against siltation by minimising soil erosion and the sanctuary has ecologically important species of flora and fauna, with mixed deciduous forest. Wild boar, nilgai, chital, red junglefowl, Indian crested porcupine, Indian hare, northern plains gray langur, rhesus macaque, and golden jackal are the species of vital importance in this sanctuary, besides some of the endangered species like Indian python etc. are also found in the sanctuary.The sanctuary has substantial faunal diversity with 28 species of large mammals, 183 species of birds, 39 species of reptiles, 11 species of amphibians, 13 species of fish and 51 species of butterfly, many of whom are threatened.