Ratapani Tiger Reserve
Ratapani Tiger Reserve a tiger reserve in the Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh in central India. It has been a wildlife sanctuary since 1976 and was declared as a tiger reserve in 2024.
History
Ratapani was declared as a wildlife sanctuary 1976. In accordance with the directives issued by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav in December 2024, the Ratapani forest has been designated as the eighth tiger reserve in the state.
Geography
Ratapani Tiger Reserve is located in Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh. It encompasses a total area of, which includes a core area of and a buffer zone of. The landscape is undulating, with hills, plateaus, valleys, plains and some seasonal streams. Water is retained in some pools along these streams in the summer. Barna Reservoir and Ratapani Dam are among the major waterbodies. The Bhimbetka rock shelters were inhabited by people hundreds of thousand years ago, and some of the rock paintings of the Stone Age are more than 30,000 years old. It has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.
Flora
The forest of Ratapani is dry deciduous and moist deciduous type, with teak as the main tree species. About 55% of the area is covered by teak. The remaining mixed forests consist of various dry deciduous species. Bamboo overlaps the two aforementioned forest types and covers about one quarter of the forest area.
Fauna
Carnivores in the sanctuary include the Bengal tiger, Indian leopard, dhole, striped hyena, golden jackal and fox; herbivores include chital, sambar, nilgai, four-horned antelope and wild boar, and langur and rhesus macaque. The sloth bear is also seen often. Smaller animals, like squirrels, mongooses, gerbils, porcupines, hares are common. Reptiles include lizards, chameleon, cobra, python, viper and krait.
Birds
Ratapani Wildlife Sanctuary harbours more than 150 bird species including the common babbler, coppersmith barbet, black drongo, blue jay, rock dove, bulbul, bee-eater, cuckoo, kingfishers, kite, lark, Bengal vulture, sunbirds, white wagtail, crow pheasant, jungle crow, egrets, myna, jungle fowl, parakeets, partridges, hoopoe, quails, woodpeckers, dove, flycatcher and flower pecker.