Goa Wildlife – A Short Break From Beaches & Parties

February 7th, 2012 |

Known for its beaches, nightlife, seafood and laid back lifestyle, Goa is a land of surprises. Goan diversity is thoroughly dependent on the western ghats called the Sahyadris, extended for a total of 600 km in Goa of their total distance of 3702 km. These ghats make it a exquisite place for some species of birds and animals and also furnish a corridor for migration.

Popular Wildlife Sanctuaries

The forests of Goa include of the rarest species of mammals, birds, amphibians and reptiles. The sublime Goa wildlife sanctuaries are:

Dr. Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary (Goa’s only bird sanctuary, 1.8 sq km in area)
Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary (located in the Goan town of Mollem)
Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary (famous for its mini zoo, sprawling deer park, and botanical & rose gardens)
Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary (popular for multi-storeyed forests, tall trees and rare plants)

Diverse Wild Species

Goa wildlife comprises of over 1512 documented species of plants, over 275 species of birds, over 50 genera of animals and over 60 types of reptiles. While enjoying safaris in the dense greens of Goa, one can genuinely spot a estimate of leopard, monkeys, deer, leopard cat, Indian civet, the gaur or Indian bison, the sloth bear, the Indian porcupine, the pangolin, the slender loris, the wild boar and the mongoose. Discrete bats, flying foxes, long-beaked dolphins are a few other attractions.

Botanical

Goa is rich in avifauna as well. There are some colourful species of birds like kingfisher, blue and yellow bee-eaters, golden oriole, Indian roller, purple sunbird, bulbul, babbler and drongo. Apart from that, the snowy white cattle egret, whitebellied fish eagle, brahminy kite and the pariah kite are most common in the paddy fields and the villages.

The coastal areas offer overwhelming opportunities for spotting reptiles & amphibians together with a variety of frogs, lizards, crocodiles and turtles along with 23 species of snakes. These beautifully preserved jungles (wildlife protected areas) here include of about 20 percent of the total land of Goa.

Goa Wildlife – A Short Break From Beaches & Parties