11 Breathtaking National Park in Madhya Pradesh

There are eleven National parks in Madhya Pradesh covering an area of 4349.14 Sq. Km. The 11th National park of Madhya Pradesh was declared in year 2018, named as Kuno National Park located in the Sheopur district of Madhya Pradesh. The state of Madhya Pradesh have the highest number of National Park in India. The name of all eleven National parks in Madhya Pradesh are:

1. Bandhavgarh National Park
2. Dinosaur Fossil National Park
3. Mandla Fossil National Park
4. Kuno National Park
5. Indira Priyadarshini Pench National Park
6. Kanha National Park
7. Madhav National Park
8. Panna National Park
9. Sanjay National Park
10. Satpura National Park
11. Van Vihar National Park

11 National Park in Madhya Pradesh Map

The area wise list of national park in madhya pradesh in descending order is as follow:

Let’s look at the national park in Madhya Pradesh one by one. 

1. Bandhavgarh national park

Bandhavgarh national park

• It is located in the eastern Satpura hill ranges.
• The Bandhavgarh Fort is located inside the Bandhavgarh National Park.
• Mythologically, the name Bandhavgarh means “bandhav” = brother and “garh” = fort. This fort was built and given to Lakshman by Lord Ram to keep an eye on Sri Lanka.
• Hills, valleys, marshes, and meadows form a diverse topography in Bandhavgarh National Park.

Major species found.

• The density of tigers in Bandhavgarh national park is one of the highest in India.
• The park also has a high population of leopards.
• The tigress, Sita, which was once featured in the famous National Geographic magazine, is also found in the Bandhavgarh national park.
• Bandhavgarh national park has listed 34 species of mammals, 260 species of birds and 70 species of butterflies.

2. Dinosaur Fossil National Park

The Dinosaur Fossil National Park is located near Shivpuri town in the Vindhya hill ranges of central India. Established in 2011, the 0.897 sq km park encompasses a diverse ecosystem of lakes, forests and grasslands. It was originally part of the private game preserves of the former Gwalior princely state. The varied topography creates an ideal habitat for a wide biodiversity of flora and fauna.

Fauna

Salient fauna of Dinosaur Fossil National Park includes chinkara, spotted deer, bluebull, sambar, four-horned antelope, blackbuck, sloth bear and leopard. Avifauna comprises migratory ducks like common pochard, pintail, teal, mallard and resident gadwall. Reptiles include mugger crocodile, Indian python and monitor lizard. The Dinosaur Fossil National Park also hosts wolf, jackal, fox, wild dog and wild boar.

Flora

Prominent flora of Dinosaur Fossil National Park consists of Acacia catechu, Boswellia serrata, Anogeissus pendula, Anogeissus latifolia, Diospyros melanoxylon and Butea monosperma.

The area originally served as game hunting preserves before being declared a national park focused on conservation of biodiversity and paleontological heritage.

3. Mandla Fossil National Park

Located in the Mandla district between the Kanha and Bandhavgarh national parks, the unique 0.27 sq km Fossil National Park is rich in approximately 60 million year old fossils that have provided insights into evolution of ancient plant and animal species.

The main fossil site, Ghughva, covers 6.84 acres with three other associated sites. The park was established in 1983 and encompasses mixed deciduous forest habitats.

Fauna

Salient fauna of Mandla Fossil National Park consists of tiger, leopard, wild dog, gaur, hyena, jackal, sloth bear, sambar, bluebull and wild boar. Avifauna includes vultures, hornbills, pitta and osprey.

Flora

Vegetation in Mandla Fossil National Park includes Sal, bamboo, Tendu, Arjun, amla, palash, salai, mango, jamun, babul, banyan, ber, dhok and khajur trees.

The fossil park provides a unique glimpse into ancestral plant and animal lineage through well-preserved fossil records.

4. Kuno National Park

Kuno National Park spans 748.76 sq km in the Sheopur district of Madhya Pradesh. The Kuno River, a major tributary of the Chambal, flows through the entire park length, dividing the area into two.

Key Features

In September 2022, 12 cheetahs were migrated to Kuno National Park from South Africa under the Cheetah Project. Kuno park is known for its leopard, jackal and chinkara populations.

Conservation Significance

Historically, the Kuno forests harbored thriving populations of all four major big cats – tiger, leopard, Asiatic lion and cheetah. In September 2022, 12 cheetahs were migrated to Kuno from South Africa under the Cheetah Project, which had gone extinct from India since 1948. The ecosystems Aim is to reestablish the park’s capacity to sustain all major feline species that had existed here earlier.

The Kuno river and Chambal river systems traversing the park also enhance its rich biodiversity value for the Central Indian landscape.

5. Indira Priyadarshini Pench National Park

Pench National Park

• The Pench National Park is mentioned in famous natural history books such as Ain-i-Akbari.
• Rudyard Kipling’s famous book, “Jungle Book,” is based on the Pench National Park and its surrounding areas.

Major species found

• Three types of forest are found in Pench National Park.
  • Tropical wet deciduous forest
  • Tropical dry deciduous teak forest
  • Tropical dry deciduous mixed forest.
• Teak, mahua, palash, plum, tendu, moyan, sajja, etc.
• Tiger, leopard, jackal, fox, wolf, Gaur, nilgai, Sambhar, chital, Chinkara, wild dogs, 
• Various migratory birds also found shelter in Pench National Park, such as Pintail, ruddy shelduck, whistling teal, etc.

6. Kanha national park

• Kanha National Park is also a tiger reserve.
• Kanha National Park is situated in the Maikal range of Satpuras.
• Located in Central India, it experiences a tropical monsoonal climate.

Major Species found in Kanha National Park:

• The state animal of Madhya Pradesh, the Hard Ground Barasingha, is found exclusively in the Kanha Tiger Reserve.
• Major species found are hard ground Barasingha, Tiger, Leopard, Dhole, Bear, Gaur, Indian Python etc.
• The lush green forests of Kanha are composed majorly of Sal (Shorea Robusta) and other mixed forest trees.

7. Madhav national park

• Madhav national park is situated in the central highlands of India, intersecting with the upper parts of the Vindhya hills.
• It is interspersed with valleys, hills, plateaus, lakes and forest ecosystems.
• Sakhya Sagar and Madhav Sagar are the two crucial lakes in the national park.
• Sakhya Sagar lake has an abundant population of marsh crocodiles.

Major species found in Madhav national park

• Nilgai, Chinkara, Chowsingha, Sambhar, cheetal, barking deer. 
• Leopards, jackals, wild dogs, wild pigs, wolfs, marsh crocodiles, turtles, etc.
• Tropical dry deciduous mixed forest and dry thorn forest. The Kardhai tree is the most abundant species found.

8. Panna national park

• Panna National Park is located in the Vindhya Hills in northern Madhya Pradesh.
• This land is full of plateaus and gorges.
• The Ken River flows through this terrain.
• Panna national park is bounded north by the Teak forest and east by the Teak-Kardhai forest.
• Vindhyas hill runs from North-East to South-West direction through Panna national park.

Major species found in Panna National Park are:

• Tiger, leopard, hyaena, wild dog, sloth bear, white-necked stork, chital, chowsingha, sambar-the largest of Indian deer, Blue Bull, and Chinkara, five species of vultures
• Dry climates are typical in areas where the Vindhyan soils are shallow. The combination of these two factors leads to dry and hot conditions. This can be difficult for plants since they need water and nutrients to grow well. The dry conditions also make it easier for fires to start, and these can damage vegetation and create problems for people who live in the area.
• Teak and dry mixed forest: The dominant vegetation is Dry Deciduous forest with tall grasses and thorny woodlands.

9. Sanjay national park

• Sanjay National Park is also known as the Sanjay-Dubri National Park.
• Mohan, the world’s most famous white tiger, was found here. He was later bred to the tigress Radha, and most white tigers present around the globe now are their progeny only.
• Sanjay national park was carved into two when Chhattisgarh came into existence in 2000. The area which went to the Chhattisgarh administration is now known as the Guru Ghasidas National Park.

Major species found in Sanjay National Park are:

• Tigers, along with hundreds of other species. 
• Sal forest forms a corridor between Bandhavgarh and Palamu tiger reserve, and animals such as elephants use this corridor for their movement from one park to the other.

10. Satpura national park

• Satpura National Park is located to the south of the river Narmada.
• It is also a tiger reserve.
• The Satpura tiger reserve was the first biosphere reserve in Madhya Pradesh and was declared in 1999.
• The Satpura National Park is considered the northern extremity of the Western Ghats.
• The Satpura National Park is an essential habitat for the Indian tiger.

Major species found in Satpura National Park are:

• The Indian tiger, giant squirrel, Indian skimmer, leaf-nosed bat, hornbill, and the Madhya Pradesh state bird flycatcher (doodhraj)
• It is located on the Pachmarhi plateau, which consists of dense teak forest and sal forest.

11. Van Vihar National Park

The Van Vihar National Park was established in 1979 across 4.45 sq km area for wildlife protection and habitat conservation in central India. Van Vihar is Located in the capital city of Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal.

One of the most revered National Parks of Central India, Van Vihar National Park is known for its efforts towards habitat and wildlife conservation. More popularly known as just ‘Van Vihar’, the park encompasses wetland areas, meadows, mixed bamboo vegetation, grass covered plateau and dry deciduous mixed forest. It is developed and managed by a modern zoological park, following the guidelines of the central zoo authority of India.

Fauna in Van Vihar National Park
Fauna includes ghariyal, star tortoise, tiger, leopard, hyena, jackal, sambar, spotted deer, bluebull, blackbucks, four-horned antelope, common langurs, porcupines, hare, migratory birds like pintail, spotbill, ducks, geese, spoonbill, painted stork and resident birds like purple heron.

Flora in Van Vihar National Park
Flora consists of trees like kusum, ber, karanj, tendu, mahua, bamboos, shisham, palash, amaltas, bahera, goolar and latkan.

Quick revision video for National Park in Madhya Pradesh

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