Melghat Tiger Reserve:
The Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) has released 15 critically endangered Indian vultures at the Melghat Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra.
- Melghat Tiger Reserve is situated in Maharashtra.
- It is located on the southern offshoot of the Satpura Hill Range in Central India, called Gavilgarh Hill.
- It was the first tiger reserve in Maharashtra.
- The name ‘Melghat’ means the confluence of various ‘ghats’ or valleys, as is typical from the landscape of this tiger Reserve.
- The forest is tropical dry deciduous in nature, dominated by teak.
- The reserve is a catchment area for five major rivers: the Khandu, Khapra, Sipna, Gadga, and Dolar, all of which are tributaries of the river Tapti.
- The Tapti River and the Gawilgadh ridge of the Satpura Range form the boundaries of the reserve.
- The Korkus are the largest tribal community in Melghat. Other communities include the Gawli community and the Gond tribe also reside here.
- Some of the common species are teak, Lagerstroemia Parviflora, Terminalia Tomentosa, Ougeinia Oojeinensis, Emblica Officinalis, Bamboo, etc.
- 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.
