In Karnataka, the two attractive wildlife parks of Nagarhole and Bandipur, though separate entities, are part of a larger contiguous wildlife reserve that includes the Mudumafai Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu and the Waynad Reserve in Kerala. Both the parks are easily accessible from Mysore. The 874.20 sq. km. Bandipur National Park, which is also a Tiger Reserve, with its open grassy woodland, lies to the south of the Kabini River white Nagarhole, 643.39 sq. km. in area, to the north of the river, has taller and denser forests.

A dam on the Kabini and its picturesque reservoir separate the two parks. In the dense moist deciduous forests of this area the upper canopy reaches heights of 30m and valuable hardwoods like teak and rosewood are also to be found here. Bandipur, lying in the shadow of the Western Ghats, is one of the finest habitats of the Asian elephant.

Drained by the Moyar River, its open forest makes it easy for visitors to see the elephant and gaur in natural surroundings. At Nagarhole, too, there are excellent facilities for viewing wildlife and large groups of gaur, elephant, sambar, chital and even the occasional tiger or leopard is seen.

Among other mammals are the muntjac, the tiny mouse deer, wild boar, pangolin, giant squirrel, slender oris, langurs and macaques. The Park has about 250 species of birds md the Malabar trogan, the Malabar pied hornbilf, the great black woodpecker, the Indian pitta and the green imperial pigeon are part of its avian variety.

Lesser cats like the jungle cat, leopard cat and rusty spotted cat are also resident species.

General Information:

Best Time to Visit: March to August.
Nearest Town: Gundulpet (20 km)

How to Get Here:
Air : Bangalore (190 km)
Rail : Mysore (65 km)