Sundarban is the largest delta in the world which is the only mangrove tigerland in the globe.
Apart from the tiger, it is home to a large number of endangered and globally threatened species like estuarine crocodile, fishing cat, irrawady dolphin, King cobra.
Sundarban is the largest deltaic region of the world and encompasses hundreds of islands, with a maze of innumerable rivers, rivulets and creeks. The name 'Sundarbans' means' beautiful forest', and it's believed to be derived from a mangrove tree species ' Sundari. The Indian Sundarbans is the southernmost part of the estuarine delta formed by the Ganga and Brahmaputra, bordering the Bay of Bengal. It's located mainly in the coastal districts of West Bengal, i.e. south 24 Parganas and North 24 Parganas. The Dampier-Hodges line separates the Sundarbans from the rest of West Bengal. There are villages in the fringe area all along the northern boundary of the Tiger Reserve.
Area of the Tiger Reserve:
Sanctuary: 363 sq k.m
Buffer zone: 894 sq.km
Core zone: 1330 sq km
Total Area: 2585 sq.km
Location:
Latitude 21°31¢to 22°31¢ N
Longtitude 88°10¢ to 89° 51¢ E
Significance of Sundarban Tiger Reserve:
∆ One of the first nine Tiger Reserves declared under project Tiger scheme in the year 1973 in India.
∆ The National park area of the Tiger Reserve is a UNESCO world heritage site which was declared in 1987.
∆The Sundarban Tiger Reserve is a part of the Sundarban Biosphere Reserve, which is one of the few globally recognised Biosphere Reserves in India. It was declared a Biosphere Reserve in 1989.
∆ It constitutes over 60% of the total mangrove forest area in the entire India and has 90% of the total Indian mangrove species.
∆ The Sundarbans have been classified as a Tiger conservation landscape of global priority, as it's the only mangrove Tiger habitat which supports a significant tiger population.
∆ The tiger reserve is home to a large number of endangered and globally threatened species like the tiger, estuarine crocodile, and fishing cat. Gangetic dolphin, Irrawaddy Dolphin, king cobras, water monitor Lizard, etc.
∆ It harbours significant populations of the River terrapin, which was once believed to be extinct.
∆ The mangroves serves as nurseries to shell fish and fin fishes and sustain the coastal fisheries of the entire Eastern coast of India.
∆ It is known as a kingfisher's paradise as out of the 12 species of kingfishers found in India, 10 species are found here
∆ Two species of horse shoe crabs( which are considered as living fossils as they are thought to be more than 400 million years old), i e.Tachypleus gigas and carcinoscorpius rotindicauda, out of four species found in the world, are found here.
∆ The mangrove forests act as a natural bio barricade and protect the hinterland from storms, cyclones, tidal surges, sea-water seepage and intrusion.