MUDUMALAI TIGER RESERVE -
ENVIRONMENT
News: Strategies
planned to halt spread of invasive species over 800 hectares of Mudumalai Tiger
Reserve buffer zone
What's in the news?
● An
invasive species, Senna spectabilis, an
exotic tree, has taken over between 800 and 1,200 hectares of the buffer
zones of the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) in the picturesque Nilgiris
hill district.
● The
Forest Department is coming up with a comprehensive strategy to deal with the
spread of the invasive species, which continues to spread rapidly in the buffer
zone.
Key takeaways:
● Introduced
as an ornamental species and for use
as firewood from South and Central
America, the species has become highly invasive in the SIGUR PLATEAU in
both the core and buffer zones of the MTR.
● Over the last few years, its bright yellow flowers have become more visible across the Tiger Reserve, with conservationists stating that the invasive weed has a negative effect on local biodiversity, crowding out native species and limiting food availability for wildlife.
Mudumalai Tiger Reserve:
● It
is located in the Nilgiris District of
Tamil Nadu state, at the tri-junction of three states, viz, Karnataka, Kerala
and Tamil Nadu.
● It
is a part of Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve
(1st Biosphere Reserve in India) along with Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (Kerala)
in the West, Bandipur National Park (Karnataka) in the North, Mukurthi National
Park and Silent Valley in the South.
● The
name Mudumalai means “The ancient hill range”. Indeed, it is as old as 65
million years when Western Ghats were formed.
● The
Moyar River flows into the Mudumalai
Tiger Reserve and serves as a natural boundary between Mudumalai and Bandipur
Sanctuary.
● Because
of its strategic location as a wildlife corridor between several other
protected areas, Mudumalai Park is a valuable wildlife sanctuary and an
integral part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.
● The
UNESCO World Heritage Committee is considering the Western Ghats Nilgiri
Sub-Cluster, which encompasses all of Mudumalai National Park, for designation
as a World Heritage Site.