Protected areas of Tamil Nadu cover an area of 3,305 km2 (1,276 sq mi), constituting 2.54% of the geographic area and 15% of the 22,643 km2 (8,743 sq mi) recorded forest area of the state ofTamil Nadu inSouth India. It ranks 14th among all thestates and union territories of India in terms of total protected area.[1]
Protected areas inSouth India were created fromprivate hunting grounds of the erstwhile Maharajas of the princely states.Mudumalai National Park was established in 1940 and was the first modernwildlife sanctuary in South India. The protected areas are administered by theMinistry of Environment and Forests ofGovernment of India and theTamil Nadu Forest Department.
There are three Biosphere Reserves in Tamil Nadu.[2]
| Name | District | Area | Established |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gulf of Mannar | Ramanathapuram,Thoothukudi | 10,500 km2 (4,100 sq mi) | 1989 |
| Nilgiris | Nilgiris | 5,520 km2 (2,130 sq mi) | 1986 |
| Agasthyamalai | Kanyakumari,Tirunelveli | 3,500.36 km2 (1,351.50 sq mi) | 2001 |
Tamil Nadu has fiveNational Parks covering 307.84 km2 (118.86 sq mi).[2]
| Name | District | Area | Established |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anamalai | Coimbatore,Tiruppur | 117.1 km2 (45.2 sq mi) | 1989 |
| Mudumalai | Nilgiris | 103.24 km2 (39.86 sq mi) | 1990 |
| Mukurthi | Nilgiris | 78.46 km2 (30.29 sq mi) | 1982 |
| Gulf of Mannar | Ramanathapuram | 6.23 km2 (2.41 sq mi) | 1980 |
| Guindy | Chennai | 2.82 km2 (1.09 sq mi) | 1976 |
Tamil Nadu has 18wildlife sanctuaries.[2][3][4][5][6]
| Name | District | Area | Established |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anamalai | Coimbatore,Tiruppur | 841.49 km2 (324.90 sq mi) | 1976 |
| Cauvery North | Dharmapuri,Krishnagiri | 504.34 km2 (194.73 sq mi) | 2015 |
| Cauvery South | Dharmapuri,Krishnagiri | 686.4 km2 (265.0 sq mi) | 2022 |
| Gangaikondan | Tirunelveli | 288.4 km2 (111.4 sq mi) | 2013 |
| Grizzled Squirrel | Virudhunagar | 485 km2 (187 sq mi) | 1988 |
| Kadavur | Dindigul,Karur | 118.06 km2 (45.58 sq mi) | 2022 |
| Kalakkad | Tirunelveli | 223.58 km2 (86.32 sq mi) | 1962 |
| Kanyakumari | Kanyakumari | 457.78 km2 (176.75 sq mi) | 2008 |
| Megamalai | Madurai,Theni | 269.1 km2 (103.9 sq mi) | 2009 |
| Mudumalai | Nilgiris | 217.76 km2 (84.08 sq mi) | 1940 |
| Kodaikanal | Dindigul,Theni | 608.95 km2 (235.12 sq mi) | 2008 |
| Mundanthurai | Tirunelveli | 282.08 km2 (108.91 sq mi) | 1962 |
| Point Calimere | Nagapattinam,Thanjavur,Tiruvarur | 124.07 km2 (47.90 sq mi) | 1967 |
| Sathyamangalam | Erode | 1,411.6 km2 (545.0 sq mi) | 2008 |
| Periyar | Erode | 805.67 km2 (311.07 sq mi) | 2023 |
| Tirunelveli | Tirunelveli | 356.73 km2 (137.73 sq mi) | 2015 |
| Vallanadu | Thoothukudi | 16.41 km2 (6.34 sq mi) | 1987 |
There are five declared elephant sanctuaries in Tamil Nadu as perProject Elephant.[2]
| Name | District | Area | Established |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agasthyamalai | Kanyakumari,Tirunelveli | 1,197.48 km2 (462.35 sq mi) | 2022 |
| Anamalai | Coimbatore,Tiruppur | 1,457 km2 (563 sq mi) | 2003 |
| Coimbatore | Coimbatore,Tiruppur,Erode | 566 km2 (219 sq mi) | 2003 |
| Nilgiris | Nilgiris | 4,663 km2 (1,800 sq mi) | 2003 |
| Srivilliputtur | Madurai,Theni | 1,249 km2 (482 sq mi) | 2003 |
Tamil Nadu participates inProject Tiger and has five declaredtiger reserves.[2][7][8][9]
| Name | District | Area | Established |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anamalai Tiger Reserve | Coimbatore,Tiruppur | 958.59 km2 (370.11 sq mi) | 2008 |
| Kalakkad-Mundanthurai | Tirunelveli | 895 km2 (346 sq mi) | 1988 |
| Mudumalai | Nilgiris | 367.59 km2 (141.93 sq mi) | 2007 |
| Sathyamangalam | Erode | 1,408.6 km2 (543.9 sq mi) | 2011 |
| Megamalai | Madurai,Theni | 1,016.57 km2 (392.50 sq mi) | 2021 |
There are seventeen declared bird sanctuaries in Tamil Nadu.[2][10][11][12][13]
| Name | District | Area | Established |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chitrangudi | Ramanathapuram | .48 km2 (0.19 sq mi) | 1989 |
| Kallaperambur | Thanjavur | .64 km2 (0.25 sq mi) | 2015 |
| Kanjirankulam | Ramanathapuram | 1.04 km2 (0.40 sq mi) | 1989 |
| Karaivetti | Ariyalur | 4.54 km2 (1.75 sq mi) | 1989 |
| Karikili | Chengalpattu | 0.612 km2 (0.236 sq mi) | 1988 |
| Kazhuveli | Villupuram | 51.56 km2 (19.91 sq mi) | 2021 |
| Koothankulam | Tirunelveli | 1.2933 km2 (0.4993 sq mi) | 1994 |
| Melaselvanur–Kilaselvanur | Ramanathapuram | 5.93 km2 (2.29 sq mi) | 1998 |
| Nanjarayan Tank | Tiruppur | 1.26 km2 (0.49 sq mi) | 2022 |
| Point Calimere | Nagapattinam | 17.26 km2 (6.66 sq mi) | 1987 |
| Pulicat | Thiruvallur | 461.02 km2 (178.00 sq mi) | 1976 |
| Suchindram Theroor | Kanyakumari | 0.94 km2 (0.36 sq mi) | 2002 |
| Udayamarthandapuram | Thiruvarur | 0.45 km2 (0.17 sq mi) | 1999 |
| Vaduvoor | Thiruvarur | 1.28 km2 (0.49 sq mi) | 1999 |
| Vedanthangal | Kanchipuram | 0.3 km2 (0.12 sq mi) | 1936 |
| Vellode | Erode | 0.772 km2 (0.298 sq mi) | 1996 |
| Vettangudi | Sivagangai | 0.344 km2 (0.133 sq mi) | 1977 |
| Viralimalai | Tiruchirappalli |
There is one conservation reserve atTiruvidaimarudur inThanjavur district. There are twozoos recognised by theCentral Zoo Authority of India namelyArignar Anna Zoological Park andMadras Crocodile Bank Trust, both located inChennai.[14] The state has other smaller zoos run by local administrative bodies such asCoimbatore Zoo inCoimbatore,Amirthi Zoological Park inVellore, Kurumpampatti Wildlife Park inSalem, Yercaud Deer Park inYercaud, Mukkombu Deer Park inTiruchirapalli and Ooty Deer Park inNilgiris.[2]
There are five crocodile farms located atAmaravati inCoimbatore district,Hogenakkal inDharmapuri district, Kurumbapatti inSalem district,Madras Crocodile Bank Trust inChennai andSathanur inTiruvannamalai district.[2]
