NATIONAL PARKS & WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES
- February 26, 2022
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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NATIONAL PARKS & WILDLIFE SANCTUARIES
TOPIC: Environment
Context- On February 26, 1919, US President Woodrow Wilson signed an act of Congress establishing the Grand Canyon National Park.
Concept-
About Grand Canyon:
- Grand Canyon, immense canyon cut by the Colorado River in the high plateau region of northwestern Arizona, U.S., noted for its fantastic shapes and coloration.
Other Parks & Sanctuaries:
| National Parks & Sanctuaries | Famous For |
| Mukurthi National Park -Tamil Nadu | It is part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve and is also a UNESCO World Heritage site. ● It is home to Endemic NilgiriTahr |
| Dachigam National Park – J&K | Kashmir stag Hangul, a subspecies of Elk |
| Sable Game Reserve – South Africa | It was set up in 1898 by the then President of the South African Republic and in 1926 was named after that first president i.e. The Kruger National Park, named after President Paul Kruger |
| Komodo National Park- Indonesia in the Lesser Sunda islands | It is spread over 29 islands, is home to the world’s largest lizard, the Komodo Dragon. |
| The Keoladeo National Park, also known as the Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary, famous for its migratory birds | It is named after a Shiva temple within its boundaries and was flooded on the instructions of MaharahaSuraj Mal in the 18th century to create a hunting ground for Maharjas and later Viceroys |
| Gahirmatha- Odisha | Declared a national park in 1997. This is the only breeding ground of the olive ridley turtle species in the Indian Ocean |
| Serengeti National Park- Tanzania | The Serengeti national park from the word ‘Siringet’. The Serengeti, spread over almost 15,000 sq km, is home to the largest animal migration on the planet. Derives its name from a Masai word that literally means “the place where the land runs on forever |
| Fiordland National Park | The country of Norway is famous for its fjords, but the Fiordland National Park is a tourist attraction in New Zealand and a part of a World Heritage site. |
| Torres del Paine National Park- Chile | It is in an area between the subpolar forests and the Patagonian Steppes Torres del Paine National Park is famous for its spectacular beauty encompassing mountains, lakes and glaciers and is home to Guanacos, Pumas and the Andean Condor |
| Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary – Madhya Pradesh | set up in 1981, and was selected as a possible site for the Asiatic Lion Reintroduction Project to establish a second lion population in India. In 2022, environment minister Bhupender Yadav announced a proposal to populate the sanctuary with Cheetah which went extinct in India in the early 20th century. |