About Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR):
- Location:
- It is located in the Amaravati district of Maharashtra.
- It is located on the southern offshoot of the Satpura Hill Range in Central India, called Gavilgarh Hill.
- It was established as a wildlife sanctuary in 1967 and was declared a tiger reserve in 1974.
- It was the first tiger reserve in Maharashtra.
- It was among the first nine tiger reserves notified in 1973-74 under Project Tiger.
- The name 'Melghat' means the confluence of various 'ghats' or valleys, as is typical from the landscape of this tiger Reserve.
- Vegetation: The forest is tropical dry deciduous in nature, dominated by teak.
- Rivers: The reserve is a catchment area for five major rivers: the Khandu, Khapra, Sipna, Gadga, and Dolar, all are tributaries of the river Tapti.
- The Tapti River and the Gawilgadh ridge of the Satpura Range form the boundaries of the reserve.
- Tribes: The Korkus are the largest tribal community in Melghat. Other communities include the Gawli community, the Gond tribe, and several other smaller tribal communities.
- Flora: Some of the common species are teak, Lagerstroemia Parviflora, Terminalia Tomentosa, Ougeinia Oojeinensis, Emblica Officinalis, Bamboo, etc.
- Fauna:
- Apart from Tigers the other prominent animals are Sloth Bear, Indian Gaur, Sambar deer, Leopard, Nilgais, dhole, hyena, jungle cat, langur, etc.
- It is considered a stronghold of the critically endangered forest owlet.
