Tumakuru's Environment & Heritage Issues

Background Devarayanadurga state forest (DDSF) has seen many changes in its boundaries since it first got protection status by the British, way back in 1853. When it finally got notified in 1907 as a Reserve Forest, for unknown reasons, some parts of the forest were excluded from its official boundaries. These are chiefly the slopes along the periphery of state forest’s hills. These have been under control of the state's revenue department but protected by the forest department. Proposed 'Devarayanadurga East Yellow-throated Bulbul' Conservation Reserve in relation to Devarayanadurga State Forest (sketched from Survey of India sheet No:57 G/3, Scale 1:50,000) Ameen Ahmed, March 2008 Wildlife India's largest butterfly, over 250 bird species, some of India's most beautiful mammals and snakes, all live in DDSF and its surrounding revenue forests. The Yellowthroated Bulbul (Pycnonotus xantholaemus) , endemic to interior peninsular India and categorised as 'Vulnerab...

Yellowthroated Bulbul: A new home to secure the future of this exclusively 'Indian' bulbul. Pic: Clement Francis ----------Quote--------- Saving the bulbul's home Amit S Upadhye TNN Bangalore: In 1906, when the British government notified a 42.27-sqkm forest patch on the hills along east Tumkur district as Devarayanadurga state forest, it left out 6 sqkm abutting it. Over a hundred years later, the patch is now getting its due, with conservationists formulating a proposal to declare it a yellow-throated bulbul conservation reserve. The area is a nesting ground for these winged beauties, apart from being home to sloth bears and leopards. On World Forestry Day recently, researchers from the Indian Institute of Science, members of the Wildlife Aware Nature Club (WANC), Tumkur, and forest department sleuths began a two-day survey of the patch, which is categorized as southern thorny scrub forest. The forest department will formulate the proposal based on the study re...

Dear WANCers, The Tigers of Devarayanadurga have always haunted nature lovers visiting this place so as many of our 'Tiger Conservationists'. The later deny their existence or attribute them to captive tigers being released by travelling circuses or others. What ever the truth is, the tigers of Devarayanadurga don't seem to go away as quickly as our 'tiger conservationists' want them to. Please read the latest 'sighting' below. Thanks, Ameen ----------------------------------- Tigress with two cubs spotted in Devarayanadurga State Forest 20th February 2008 : Early morning by 00.30 hrs ie., 19th midnight (at 12.30am) Assistant Conservator of Forests, Tumkur Sub-Division Sri T V Srinivas and Range Forest Officer, Tumkur Range Sri. M N Naik along with a guard Ganganna K C, spotted a Tigress with two cubs near Shanimahatma Temple and Ganesh Temple along Belagumba - Oordigere road inside Devarayanadurga state forest. They were returning back to Tumkur from ...