A part of the Sharavathi river basin was declared as a wildlife sanctuary on 20 April 1972. Spread over an area of 431.23 km² (166 sq mi)., it has dense evergreen and semi-evergreen forests. Linganamakki reservoir spread over an area of 128.7 km² (50 sq mi). is a part of this sanctuary. The remaining area has been divided into core zone (74.33 km².), buffer zone (170.67 km²) and tourism zone (57.53 km².). The altitude in the sanctuary varies from 94 to 1102 mts, the highest point being Devarakonda on the southern edge of the sanctuary. Temperatures range from 15° to 38 °C and mean annual rainfall is 4500 mm.

The sanctuary has mainly evergreen, semi-green and some moist deciduous forests. Trees in the evergreen forest include species such as Dipterocarpus indicus, Calophyllum tomentosum, Machilus macrantha, Caryota urens and Aporosa lindleyana. In the semi-evergreen and moist deciduous forests, common species include Lagerstroemia lanceolata, Hopea parviflora, Dalbergia latifolia, Dillenia pentagyna, Careya arborea, Emblica officinalis, Randia sp., Terminalia sp. and Vitex altissima.

The sanctuary is a refuge of the endangered Lion-tailed macaque. Other mammals include tiger, leopard (black panther), wild dog, jackal, sloth bear, spotted deer, sambar, barking deer, mouse deer, wild pig, common langur, bonnet macaque, Malabar giant squirrel, giant flying squirrel, porcupine, otter and pangolin. Reptiles include king cobra, python, rat snake, crocodile and monitor lizard. Some of the avian species found in the sanctuary include three species of hornbill, paradise flycatcher, racket-tailed drongo, blue-throated barbet and Indian lories and lorikeets.

Photo Gallery:

Lion-tailed macaque

Courtesy: Wikipedia