Goa National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuaries & Ramsar Sites

Goa National Parks

Mollem National Park and Bhagwan Mahaveer Sanctuary

• Mollem National Park and Bhagwan Mahaveer Sanctuary is located in the Western Ghats in Goa. 
• National Highway 4A divides the park into two parts.
• It is home to waterfalls, such as Dudhsagar Falls (on the Mandovi River; it is Goa’s tallest waterfall and India’s 5^th tallest) and Tambdi Falls. It also contains several important temples dating to the Kadambas of Goa.
• It is also home to a community of nomadic buffalo herders known as the Dhangar.
• Vegetation: tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen forests, and moist deciduous forests.
• Major Fauna: Leopard, Bengal tiger, bonnet macaque, gaur, Malabar giant squirrel, porcupine, slender loris.
• Major Avifauna: Greater Indian hornbill, ruby-throated yellow bulbul (the state bird of Goa).
• Threats: Mining & transport of manganese and iron ores.
• This sanctuary is famous for its snakes, particularly the king cobra.

Devils Canyon

• This is an eerie canyon of water carved crevises downstream from Dudh Sagar Falls, created from solid rock by serpentine underwater currents.

Tambdi Falls

• Tambdi Surla Waterfalls is located inside the Bhagwan Mahavir National Park.
• Tambdi Surla temple is a 12^th century Shaivaite temple of Lord Mahadev.

Wildlife Sanctuaries of Goa

Dr. Salim Ali Bird (Chorao) Wildlife Sanctuary

• It is an estuarine mangrove habitat located on the Chorão Island along the Mandovi River.

Madei Wildlife Sanctuary (IBA)

• It is being considered to become a TR under Project Tiger.
• Madei River passes through the Madei Wildlife Sanctuary and meets the sea at Panaji. The Madei River (in Karnataka), known downstream as the Mandovi River (in Goa), the lifeline of the state of Goa.
  • The Madei river originates from springs at Bhimgad in Karnataka.
• In 2020, a Royal Bengal tigress and her cubs were poisoned by villagers due to human-animal conflict in the Wildlife Sanctuary.

Mahadayi Water Dispute

• The sharing of the waters of the Madei (Mahadayi, Mandovi) River is a cause of dispute between Karnataka and Goa.
• The Karnataka government proposes to divert some water from the Mahadayi river to the Malaprabha River basin as part of the Kalasa-Banduri Nala project (drinking water supply to the districts of Belagavi, Bagalkot, Dharwad and Gadag in Karnataka).
• The issue of water sharing is now in the Supreme Court.

Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary

• Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary is located in northeastern Goa.
• Bondla provides sanctuary to leopards who have been injured in human-wildlife conflict, as well as “dancing” bears and cobras.

Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary

• The Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary is located in Canacona Taluka, South Goa district, of Goa.
• There is an eco-tourism complex at the entrance of the sanctuary that houses a nature interpretation centre, cottages, toilets, library, reception area, rescue centre, canteen, children’s park, and forest ranger office.
• The forest supports moist deciduous trees, semi-evergreen trees, and evergreen trees.

Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary

• Netravali Wildlife Sanctuary is located in South-Eastern Goa.
• Netravali or Neturli is an important tributary of River Zuari, which originates in the sanctuary.
• It is adjacent to Dandeli-Anshi Tiger Reserve, Karnataka on the eastern side, Cotigao Wildlife Sanctuary, Goa on the southern side and Bhagwan Mahaveer Sanctuary and Mollem National Park on the northern side which in turn forms a contiguous protected area along with Madei Wildlife Sanctuary, Goa and Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary, Karnataka.

Ramsar Sites of Goa

Nanda Lake

• It is the first and only Ramsar wetland site in Goa.
• It is an intermittent freshwater marsh adjacent to one of the tributaries of the Zuari River.
• Fauna: The wetland is home to red-wattled lapwing, black-headed ibis, bronze-winged jacana, brahminy kite, common kingfisher, wire-tailed swallow, intermediate egret, little cormorant and lesser whistling duck.