About Palamu Tiger Reserve:
- It is located in the western part of the Chotanagpur plateau and is spread over two districts, viz, Latehar and Garhwa in Jharkhand.
- The reserve forms a part of the Betla National Park.
- This tiger reserve has a total area of 1,014 sq.km. with a core area of 414 sq.km. and a buffer area of 600 sq.km.
- It is one of the first 9 tiger reserves created in the country at the inception of ‘Project Tiger’.
- It is the first reserve in the world in which a tiger census was carried out as a pugmark count, as early as 1932 under the supervision of J.W. Nicholson.
- The terrain is undulating with valleys, hills and plains.
- Three rivers namely North Koyal, Auranga and Burha flow through the valleys.
- The area is drought prone with Burha being the only perennial river.
- The geological formation consists of gneiss and includes granite and limestone.
- The area is very rich in minerals like Bauxite and Coal.
- Flora:
- The vegetation in Palamau region comprises moist deciduous and dry deciduous forests to include Sal and bamboo as the major components.
- The western part of the Reserve is composed of dry deciduous forests and the other part shows characters of moist mixed deciduous nature.
- The entire area has a good distribution of bamboo thatches.
- The herbarium recently prepared by the Tiger Reserve authorities records a good number of medicinal plants.
- Fauna: Some keystone and principal species found in the reserve include Tiger, Asiatic Elephant, Leopard, Grey wolf, Wild dog, Gaur, Sloth bear and four horned antelope.
