Ranthambore National Park is one of the biggest and most renowned national park in Northern India, located 2 kms from Sawai Madhopur & gets its name from the Ranthambore fort located within its boundaries. It is about 130 km from Jaipur, situated between the Aravallis & the Vindhya ranges surrounded by wide area of desert ecology of Rajasthan .It spreads over an area of 392 square Kms of thick forest covered with nullahs & waterfalls. It was one of the famous & former hunting grounds of the Maharajas of Jaipur which is today the Ranthambore National Park terrain; a major wildlife tourist attraction spot. It has grabbed the attention of many wildlife photographers and lovers in this destination. Ranthambore became a national park in 1980 & in 1984, the neighbouring forests were announced as the Sawai ManSingh Sanctuary & Kela Devi Sanctuary.
This National park has a huge variety of animals, birds & reptiles inside it. Mainly the population consists of animals such as Tigers, Leopards , Sambar deer, Chital, Striped Hyena, Nilgai, Common or Hanuman langurs, Jackals, Macaques, Jungle cats, Sloth bears, Black bucks, Caracals, Rufous tailed Hare, Common Palm Civets, Toddy cat , Indian Wild Boar, Chinkara, Common Yellow Bats ,Five striped Palm Squirrels, Desert Cats, Indian False Vampires, Indian Foxes, Indian Gerbils ,Indian Flying Foxes, Indian Mole Rats, Lon geared Hedgehogs, Rattles , Common mongoose and Small Indian Mongoose.
The park has more than 300 varieties of birds. Apart from common birds like parakeets, doves, eagles, Partridges and owls, woodpeckers, Graylag Goose, Common Kingfishers, Bee Eaters, Parakeets, Asian Palm Swift, some rare birds like the black eagles & the crested hawk eagle are also there in the park.
The amphibian species only consist of the Common Frog & the Common India Toad. The park is most famous for its diurnal tigers.
The park has a large number of marsh crocs Reptiles such as Marsh Crocodiles, Tortoise, Desert Monitor Lizards, Banded Kraits, Cobras, Common Kraits, Flap Shelled Turtles, Rat Snakes, Saw-scaled Vipers Russell’s Vipers and the Indian Chamaeleon.
In total, a list of 272 species has been documented in this park. Some of the best locations to watch birds are Malik Talao, Rajbagh Talao, the Ranthambore Fort, Padam Talao and in the Jhalra area.
The vegetation in the park is mostly of the dry deciduous type with a wide variety consisting of approx. 300 species where majority of the tree cover is however mainly made up of Am, Imli, Babul, Banyan, Ber, Dhak or Chila, Dhok, Jamun, Kadam, Khajur & Khair .The forests of Ranthambore have a lot of contrasting vegetation such as Karel, Khejda, Kakera, Mohua, Neem etc. Dhok forms a majority of the tree cover.
In Ranthambore almost every tiger has a special name, reputation and legend that precede their ancestry. From a toothless but majestic veteran tigress (Machali, T-16) who loves to pose for the tourists and observers, who continues that heritage by introducing her cubs to the world even if they are too young. She is the royal tigress who is most famed in India and is exclusively the pride of Ranthambore National Park. There are glorious palaces, lakes and fort of Ranthambore which are the major strong hold for Machali. She is the most photographed tigress in Ranthambore and is also being known as the “lady of the lake” as it can mostly be found along the water territory of the jungle. Machali has long been under media spotlight and has gained lots of attentions between the vast ranges of animal and tiger lovers. Today, Machali has grown old and has lost almost all of her teeth & most of her territory as well but still her royalty resounds at every corner of Ranthambore. In the same way, the tourists can equally get attracted to the desirable lover called Romeo(T-6) that tries hard to catch & hold the attention of her companion Laila (T-41) that in turn attracts her regular mates & flirts with others, that really sounds interesting.
The perfect time to visit- The Best Time to Visit Ranthambore National park while travelling golden triangle India is from 1st October to 30th June because rest of the time Park is closed for the Visitors.
What you should wear- Take lightest clothes in the summers with the inclusion of a cap and dark glasses. November to beginning February in the winter months, the weather is just the opposite. Morning drives inside the park are freezing cold whereas days however are extremely pleasant and a light sweatshirt can more than suffice. Here evenings and night once again get very chilly. For more information visit The Golden Triangle India
