J~ N~ RATA E P A. The Singalila National Park, located in Darjeeling district of West Bengal covers an area of 78 km2 and has an altitudinal range of

Transcription

1 Singalila National Park -.ri-a! Singalila National Park Senchel Wildlife Sanchuary Neora Valley National park SIKKIM J~ N~ BHUTAN BANGLADESH Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary barkhum ollay rkhey amanden ammam irikhola The Singalila National Park, located in Darjeeling district of West Bengal covers an area of 78 km2 and has an altitudinal range of 2,400-3,650 metres. The National Park shares a natural boundary with Nepal on the west and with Sikkim on the north. The international border between India and Nepal is identified by a 52 km road running from Phalut (3,650 m) down to Manebhanjyang (1,920 m). The National Park is an Important Bird Area and an IUCN Category II Protected Area. Singalila National Park is under the administrative control of the Wildlife Division-I, Department of Forest, Government of West Bengal. RATA andakphu eekhay Bhanjyang ÿkalipokhri Kaiyakatta ÿairibas E P A Tonglu irrfing fyleghma ÿrimbic ÿdhotrey _amey Dhura litray îiniybhanjyang Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment

2 History The Singalila area in Darjeeling was purchased by the British Government from Sibbim Durbar in 1882, and notified a Reserve Forest under the Indian Forest Act It was notified as a National Parb in 1992 and was also officially opened up for tourism. However even before this, Singalila has a history of receiving visitors. Some of the I prominent visitors include Sir Joseph Dalton Hoober - one of the greatest British **" y '* botanists and explorers in 1883; Heinrich Harrer author of "Seven Vears in Tibet" visited Singalila several times. Singalila range used to be a regular route for expeditions to Kanchenjunga. Sri Tenzing Norgay Sherpa felicitated the first Kanchenjunga summitters on their return from the mountain at Sandabphu in * * v PATA

3 People Sherpas, Tibetans, Rais, Tamangs, Newars, Lepchas, Chettris, Bahuns, Sunwars, Limbus, Gurungs and Bhujels are the hey ethnic groups in the landscape. Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment

4 The Singalila Landscape encompasses the Eastern Himalaya Broadleaf Temperate and Subalpine Conifer Forests between 2,200-3,636 meters. Conifer Forest 3630m 3300m Conifer Forest The temperate zone comprises of Oaks, Beech (Castanopsis spp.) interspersed predominantly with Magnolia, Michellia, Maple (Acer spp.), Sorbus and Rhododendrons with an understorey of bamboo. Mixed Broadleaf Conifer Forest Broadleaf Deciduous Forest 3 50m The Subalpine zone comprises of conifers such as Silver Fir (Abies densa), Hemlocks interspersed with Birch with an understorey of bamboo. Oar? Forest 2800m 2200m w..-«ÿÿ.ÿsrahunauahvÿ Mixed BroadleafConifer Forest v uffor idation FOUNDAT ON Oak Forest Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment

5 Ground Flora Darjeeling Himalaya is very rich in plant life and is estimated to have about 2,900 species of angiosperms (Das 2011). Singalila National Park has a large number of flowering ground flora of which the Primulas, Aconites, Asters, Arisaema, Meconopsis, Cotoneasters, Geraniums are predominant. Aconitum spicatum Geranium wallichii Cotoneaster microphylla Arisaema sp. Arisaema nepenthoides Arisaema griffithii Iris clarkei Primula capitata Meconopsis napaulensis Primula calderiana ' *. Primula bracteosa Primula listen P«if«4M Travel AivkUWki

6 Rhododendrons Rhododendrons are regarded by many as the best flowering evergreen plants in the temperate landscape. Sir Joseph Hooker, the famous naturalist discovered 25 new species of rhododendrons in the Himalayas. Singalila National Park has 18 recorded species of rhododendrons. Rhododendron cinnabarinum ÿ mf is Rhododendron barbatum Rhododendron edgeworthu Rhododendron dalhousiae I Rhododendronfalcorneri Rhododendronfulqens Rhododendron hodgsonii Rhododendron triflorum 4 >1 * ISP I m émjl Rhododendron campanulatum PATA 'Milk Alla TrawlAwxlallo"

7 Singalila National Park has a record of 350 species of birds. Some of the prominent birds are - Pheasants and Partridges like the Satyr Tragopan, Blood Pheasant, Kaleej Pheasant, Hill Partridge, and Rufous-throated Partridge. Others include Beautiful Nuthatch, Firetail Myzornis, Himalayan Griffon Vulture, Fire-tailed Sunbird, Crimson Sunbird, Brown Parrot Bill. 'ÿé% j- & tx-ai-f '"V" Himalayan Griffon Vulture (.Gyps himalayensis) Singalila National Park with its diverse habitats supports a rich community of birds ranging from small sized birds like warblers, sunbirds and flowerpeckers to the relatively larger sized species like Raptors, Magpies, Jays and Thrushes. Darjeeling Woodpecker (Dendrocopos darjellensis) Beautiful Nuthatch (Sittaformosa) Fire-tailed myzornis (Myzornispyrrhoura) Fire-tailed sunbird (Aethopyga ignicauda) Crimson Sunbird (Aethopyga siparaja) Brown Parrotbill (Cholornis unicolor) Blood Pheasant (Ithaginis cruentus) Kalij Pheasant (Lophura leucomelanos) Satyr Tragopan (Tragopan satyra) Pacific AÙ travpl AivxiâtKOn

8 ÿ ÿ Red Panda (Ailurus fulgens) ssmm I * v * ' -. v ÿljÿ_ - :> ÿ ÿk. -»Çf ÿ»«ill ' \ ÿ* 't - - \ ÿ.:r-i>.1 f*9 ';V$ if ÿ,.!;'ir..«ÿ s. 1KB Red Panda is an Endangered mammal. Red Panda subsists on an extremely specialized herbivorous diet of bamboo leaves, while still retaining its morphological features of a carnivore. Red Panda is distributed across Eastern Himalayas in Nepal, India (Sibbim, Darjeeling and Arunachal Pradesh), Bhutan, extending into Myanmar and China. Red Panda numbers may be as low as 10,000 in its entire distribution range with rapid declines reported. Red Panda is threatened due to loss and fragmentation of its habitat and direct harvest, and trade. Singalila National Parb is an important Red Panda habitat M...rrr ' A /.. -f- & NwS w \ s c,-v. * mdtpfl y& rv* JWl si Xt ' PAPA

9 Destinations 1 To Phalut Sibbim J Phalut Prom To Distance (Kms.) Manaybjanjyang Dhotrey 17 Manaybjanjyang Tumling 13 Dhotrey Rimbicb 26 Tumling Sandabphu 19 Rimbicb Sandabphu 17.1 Sandabphu Phalut 19.4 Sandabphu Mollay 15.1 ; Mollay Rimbicb 16.3 Phalut Gorbhey 11.6 Gorbhey Rimbicb 16.1 andakphu abarkhum ollay rkhey arÿanden \ eekhay Bhanjyang <Kalipokhri P A Kaiyakatta Gairibas mmam irikhola Tonglu rriling lyieghma SIKKIM tlamey Dhura itray inaybhanjyang Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment

10 Mountain Peaks from Singalila Singalila National Park is known for its picturesque views of some of the highest Himalayan Mountain peaks. Many spots within the Park such as Tonglu (3,070 m), Sandakphu (3,636 m) and Phalut (3,600 m) offer magnificent views of some of the highest mountains of the world above 8,000 metres which are the Everest (8,850 m), Lhotse (8,516 m), Kanchenjunga (8,586 m) and Valung Kang (8,505 m). Apart from the mountains of Nepal & Sikkim Himalaya, Mount Chomolhari (7,326 m) which is a watershed boundary between Tibet and Bhutan can also be seen from the Park. Mount Everest is 145 kilometres aerial distance from Sandakphu. It is also recorded that the height of Mt. Everest was measured for the first time from Sandakphu. Kanchenjunga Kumbhakarna Rathong Kabru S Kabru N KrI Pandim Everest range from Sandakphu Kanchenjunga range from Sandakphu Kumbhakarana Everest range from Sandakphu-Phalut Road uffor ' Ashoka Trust tor Research in Ecology and the Environment

11 Do's and Don'ts Remember * Singalila National Park is protecting the important and remaining Eastern Himalaya Broadleaf and Subalpine Conifer Forests. * These forests are home to many animals species such as the Endangered Red Panda, beautiful birds and diverse plant life. * Singalila supports almost 70 percent of the local community with tourism as their livelihood. Do's Don'ts 1. Do take a local guide - they are now being trained. This will 1. Do not litter- apart from dirtying, litter destroys habitats of help you on your trek and will also be contributing to the some important ground flora. Minimise garbage creation. community livelihood 2. Do not damage flowers and plants. 2. Do eat local cuisines 3. Do not play loud music while inside the National Park. 3. If you are taking vehicles, do tell drivers not to play loud 4. Do not dirty the water and the streams. music 4. The fuel/energy used here is largely firewood, which comes from habitats of some of the significant species. Be thoughtful! 5. Respect and be sensitive to local values and culture. Singalila is a beautiful trekking destination- Trek and enjoy! PATA

12 Acknowledgements Singalila National Park? is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Eastern Himalaya (approx. 8,000 tourists annually). At the same time it provides significant habitat for iconic species like the Red Panda, Satyr Tragopan, Blood Pheasant, numerous birds, rich diversity of plants while supporting a landscape with people, their livelihoods, culture, history and heritage. These posters came out of the feedback received from visitors to the Park as part of an assessment carried out by ATREE in We found that there was need for visitors to understand and appreciate the Singalila landscape more holistically. This assessment supported by Rufford Foundation, UK and Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Foundation, USA came up with two initiatives: 1. Capacity building of the local tour guides of Singalila National Park (ongoing) 2. Developing Interpretation Posters Many people generously contributed in making these posters: * Dr. Amal Bawri identified Primula spp. * Mr. Deependra Sunwar validated texts on ground flora. * Mr. Dorjee Lhatoo shared his enormous knowledge in validating the texts for the History and Mountains posters * Mr. Nayan Thapa identified ground flora * Mr. Roshan Pradhan researched on the history of Singalila. * Mr. Saibal Sengupta provided texts for the Mountain poster. * Dr. Santosh Rai reviewed the text on ground flora Potter Detignt Rohit George, ATREE Photo Credit!: History: Dorjee Lhatoo, Laba Paul, Tenzing Sherpa, Wikipedia People: Laba Paul, Rohit George, Sunita Pradhan, Tenzing Sherpa Foreitt: Rohit George, Tenzing Sherpa Ground flora: Deependra Sunwar, Pradip Sherpa, Tenzing Sherpa Rhododendron: "The Rhododendrons of Sibbim-Himalaya" by Joseph Dalton Hooker; Rohit George, Tenzing Sherpa Bird!: Laba Paul, Rohit George, Sagar Gosavi, Tenzing Sherpa, Wikipedia Red Panda: Dhritiman Mukherjee, Rohit George, Sunita Pradhan Mountain!: Laba Paul, Rohit George, Tenzing Sherpa Dettinationt:Anand Gazmer, Laba Paul, Roshan Pradhan, Sunita Pradhan, Tenzing Sherpa For more information contacts DFO Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) Darjeeling Wildlife Division Regional Office Eastern Himalaya Meadow Bank Theyzong Heem, Development Area Bengal Natural History Museum Gangtok , Sikkim, India Darjeeling , West Bengal Phone: Phone: dfowl1darj@gmail.com info@atree.org