Exploring the wonders of the Sundarbans National Park
Sundarbans National Park is one of the last remaining Bengal tiger reserves. It covers about 10,000 kilometers in the Ganges delta. The park became a tiger reserve in 1973, a wildlife sanctuary in 1977, and a national park in 1984. UNESCO listed it as a world heritage site in 1987.
The name Sundarbans means beautiful jungle in Bengali. It is also derived from the Sundari trees found within the park.
Sundarbans National Park Geography
Sundarbans is located at South 24 in the Aprgand district of Bengal. It is located at 30 degrees 24” – 30 degrees 28′ north longitude and 77 degrees 40′ – 77 degrees 44′ east latitude. The park has an altitude of 7.5 meters above sea level. It has 54 small islands in the limits of Ganga.
The park is also known as the largest mangrove forest in the world. The vegetation includes mangrove thickets, forests, moist and rich grasslands. The region has rivers of fresh and salt water from the Ganges and salt water from the Bay of Bengal. Coastal evolution includes estuaries, beaches, marshes, tidal streams, back dunes, levees, and coastal dunes.
The park also has seven rivers that flow into the sea. Tidal deposits form streams and new islands. There are mudflats in the estuary where the tidal current occurs. The inner part of the marshes is home to mangroves.
Plant species in the Sundarbans National Park
The 64 plant species can withstand different conditions of tidal effects. You can see the flaming red leaves of Genwa, the crab-like flowers of Kanakara, and the yellow flowers of Khalsi. Common trees are Kankra, Goran, Genwa, Passur and Dhundal.
Sundarbans National Park Wildlife
The wildlife sanctuary is home to tigers and wild animals. There are birds, aquatic animals and reptiles that live in the park. Around 30,000 deer and 400 royal Bengal tigers are seen here. Bengal tigers are great swimmers in saline waters. They are a fierce race that would not hesitate to attack a human. Other mammals include wild boar, fox, pangolin, chital, gray mangoes, and fishing cats. There are bull sharks and saltwater crocodiles that live in the estuaries (area at the mouth of the river that affects the tides of the sea).
The park is very suitable for bird watching. Take the opportunity to see a blue-eared kingfisher, white ibis, mergansers, open-billed storks and spotted doves. Terns, snipes, jungle ravens, cotton teal, night herons, wood sandpiper, paradise flycatchers and gulls can all be seen in the Sundarbans.
The park is also home to some of the fish such as butterfish, silver carp, sawfish, starfish, electric rays, gangetic dolphins and common carp. Amphibians within the sanctuary are jumping frogs, tree frogs, and common toads. You will be able to see some reptiles such as sea snakes, green turtles, chameleons, estuarine crocodiles, king cobras, Russel’s vipers and monitor lizards. Others include common kraits, rat snakes, pythons, mouse ghekos, hawk-billed turtles, and checkered killbacks.
Activities to do in Sundarbans National Park
Town walks are a nice thing to do in addition to exploring the park. Visitors can visit the local school and take a bike trip to the market. You could go crabbing or on fishing expeditions around town. You can take a bird walk, a cooking class and watch cultural programs in the rural theater.
There are boat safaris to the Bhagatpur Crocodile Project, a crocodile breeding farm. Other places to see include Sagar Island, Sudhanyakali Watchtower, Jambudweep, Haliday Island (Barking Deer), Sajankhali Bird Sanctuary and Kanak (Olive Ridley Nesting Site).
Means of transport in the Sundarbans National Park
A boat is the only means of transportation to traverse the park. There are local boats and luxury speedboats managed by the tourism department. This includes MV Madhukar and MV Chitrarekha.
Accommodation in Sundarbans National Park
Forest rest houses are available in Piyali, Sajnekhali and Bakkhali. Sundarbans Jungle Camp on the island of Bali also offers accommodation facilities.