15/07/2015
Wildlife Safaris & Bird Watching-
Sri Lanka despite being an Island, offers many wildlife attractions to visitors that are looking for adventures in the wild. With a rich history of conservation efforts in Sri Lanka dating back to the 3rd Century BC with the first recorded protected reserve in Mihintale, the country today is home to many National parks, protected Rain Forests and scenic Forests & Mountainous Reserves. With some accessible by Safari Jeeps and others by foot with varying difficulty, wild life expeditions are available to the young and the old, to the fitness buff or an amateur. Sri Lanka is popular for its large population of Leopards and Elephants as well as many other mammals such as wild boar, spotted deer, barking deer, jackal, sambar water buffalo, sloth bear, giant squirrel, crocodiles and monkeys amongst many others. There are over 400 varieties of known bird species with some being migratory birds
1Udawalawe National Park & Yala National Park – Located within a 4 hour drive from Colombo/Airport Udawalawe national park consists of over 30,000 hectares of wild nature reserve bordering the dry zone, and is known for its herds of Elephants that roam in the wild. In addition, the park is home to Wild boar, Spotted Deer, Barking Deer, Jackal, Sambar and Water Buffalo as well as migratory birds. Udawalawa also contains a transit home for baby Elephants that are disabled or orphaned
2). Sinharaja Rain Forest – located within a 5 hour drive from Colombo/Airport A UNESCO world Heritage site, Sinharaja Rain Forest Reserve is spread over 18,000 hectares of virgin rain forest, and is the largest remaining rain forest reserve in Sri Lanka. The 21km long 7km wide (at the widest) and 3km wide at the narrowest points, Sihnaraja, consists of several rivers and streams. The area has a height range of 270 to 1,060m and a slope range of 100 to 350. The recorded rainfall has been in the range of 3,000 to 6,000mm. This natural beauty can be explored by trekking through the tropical lowlands where you will discover many of the over 147 recoded bird species and 45 recorded reptile species of which 21 are endemic. Horton Plains National Park – located within a 6 hour drive from Colombo/Airport Horton Plains is a protected area in the central highlands of Sri Lanka. This plateau that is at an altitude of 2,100–2,300 metres (6,900–7,500 ft) and rich in biodiversity, will give sightings of wild life, a glimpse of rare mountain grassland and misty valleys as you climb up to the Planes and on to the World's end. Your encounters with wild life could include herds of Sri Lankan Sambar Deer, exotic birds not only endemic to Sri Lanka but restricted to the Horton Plains and others mammals. Horton Planes is considered to be one of the coldest locations in Sri Lanka with considerable rain fall thus making overnight frost a common occurrence.
