Bird Sanctuaries in Kerala

¤ Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary

Best time to visit : December to April
Nearest Airport : Mysore and Bangalore (250km)
Nearest Railway Station : Kozhikode (110 km)
Nearest Town : Sultan’s Battery (1km)

¤ The Vegetation

A tract of cultivated land bisects the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary into two distinct parts. One falls in the Kozhikode District and the other in the Kannur District. The cultivated strip is the result of years of persistent human encroachment, and rather sticks out from this otherwise billowy marshy landscape, sprinkled with gurgling rivers and streams. Wayanad literally means the ‘land of swamps’. This famous sanctuary has excellent moist deciduous teak forests and marshes dominated by bamboo and other grasses. These forests are also said to be amongst the most extensively forested belts in the Indian Peninsula.


¤ Wildlife Bird Sanctuary Attractions

The sanctuary has a rich bird life also famous for tiger, gaur, leopard, jackal, wild dog, Indian fox and jackal, constitute some of the fauna in the sanctuary. Elephants, sloth bears, chitals, and sambars can be spotted more commonly.
The sanctuary was a game reserve since the early 1920’s, and was established as a Wildlife Sanctuary in 1973. Extensive human encroachment, poaching, and the resettlement plans along with other consequences of the neighbouring Kabini Hydroelectric Project, pose some serious threats to the Wayanad Sanctuary.


¤ Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary

Best Time To Visit : September to March
Nearest Airport : Kochi (70km)
Nearest Railway Station : Aluva (50km)
Nearest Town : Kotamangalam (20km)

Established in the Ernakulam District in the year 1983, the Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary was the first bird sanctuary of Kerala. The sanctuary is spread over an area of 25sq km of moist deciduous forests, between the tributaries of the Periyar River. The reserve boasts of a variety of migratory and resident bird species, including the rare Ceylon frogmouth and the rose-billed roller. The sanctuary is also home to some animal species.

¤ Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary

Time to visit: September to March
Nearest Airport : Kochi (70km)
Nearest Railway Station : Kottayam (16km)
Nearest Town :Kumarakom

12km from Kottayam lies the Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary, bordering the Vembanad Lake, and spread over 14 acres of land. This famous sanctuary is a haunt for migratory birds like darters, egrets, herons, teals, waterfowls, cuckoos and wild ducks amongst others. One can even get a glimpse of the Siberian storks that migrate to this place almost every year.