Panna Tiger Reserve

About Panna Tiger Reserve

The heartland of Madhya Pradesh is home to some of the magnificent natural habitat of tigers and Panna is one of them. This National Park is located in Panna and Chhatarpur district of Madhya Pradesh. Formally, it is renowned as the 22^nd tiger reserve of India and it secures the fifth place in Madhya Pradesh. It is spread over an area of 542.67 sq km. It forms the part of the central state of India and lies beside the Ken river areas. It is only 57 km away from another famous tourist destination, Khajuraho which is a world heritage city having a glorious past. Under the Project Tiger, Panna Tiger Reserve was developed to protect the tigers from poaching. After coming into existence in the year 1981 the park has earned the award as the best managed and maintained national parks of India by the Ministry of Tourism of India. This reputation led to the park being given the Award of Excellence in the year 2007. The painstaking efforts of Mr. R. Shreenivasa Murthy, a forest officer serving the area brought his best efforts to bring the Panna Park on the roadmap of protected tiger habitat of India. Under his supervision and team efforts, this reserve earned the award as the best managed and developed park in the area.

The tropical region of Panna boasts of pleasant weather. The heavy rainfalls encountered in this region brings forth respite from scorching summers. The abundant rain also contributes to making the region green covered making the overall ambience a pleasant sight to behold. The Ken River that flows through this reserve offers not just the scenic waterfalls on its way to the valley, it is also a source of watering the region providing with the conducive ground to support the rich wildlife.

The other distinctive feature of the park is its numerous sites which are of historical importance. These places are replete with stone paintings dating back to the Neolithic era. The place offers a perfect home to Indian tigers and other predatory animals thanks to its unevenly constructed and green grassland which serve as the food for the animals it preys on. Panna is composed of deciduous forests which offers an ideal breeding ground for other species like Indian wolf, four-horned antelope, sloth bear pangolin, rusty spotted cat, leopard, caracal and amphibians like gharial.

Fauna & Flora

Thanks to its constant access to waterfalls, water bodies and river Ken which flows nearby the Park offers an ideal place for plants and animals to thrive in harmony in the natural habitat. It grows Teakwood, jamun, karanj and plants of dry mixed forest. It also supports the watering of the major vegetation ground of the park which is formed by miscellaneous dry deciduous forest, mixed with grassland area.

Other than providing a safe home for the endangered animals like Tiger, Leopard and Chinkara, this park is also home to the other animals like Chital, Nilgai, Sloth Bear, Sambhar etc. Its wet grassland makes for their natural habitat. Its diverse geographical conditions also makes it an ideal abode for avian lives. It is home to more than 200 species of resident and migratory birds including the King vulture, Indian Vulture and bar-headed goose.