Hurulu Forest Reserve of Sri Lanka was designated as a

biosphere reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

in January 1977. The forest reserve is an important habitat of the Sri Lankan elephant. Hurulu forest reserve represents

Sri Lanka dry-zone dry evergreen forests The Sri Lanka dry-zone dry evergreen forests are a tropical dry broadleaf forest ecoregion of the island of Sri Lanka. Geography The ecoregion covers an area of , about 75%, of the island of Sri Lanka, with the exception of the islands' southwe ...

. There are many other protected areas situated around Hurulu Forest Reserve viz. Ritigala strict nature reserve, Minneriya-Girithale and Mahaweli flood plains nature reserves, Wasgamuwa National Park and Kahalla-Pallekele sanctuary. Carved out at the edge of the Hurulu Forest Reserve is the ''Hurulu Eco Park'' which offers jeep safaris.An eco paradise in Habarana

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...

, April 25, 2010

Physical features

The annual mean temperature is 27.3 °C. and the area receives 1,600 mm of

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...

annually. A distinct dry season of three to six months persists during the months April/May to September. The elevation ranges from 90 m to 150 m above sea level.

Flora and fauna

Chloroxylon swietenia ''Chloroxylon swietenia'' , the Ceylon satinwood or East Indian satinwood, is a tropical hardwood, the sole species in the genus ''Chloroxylon'' (from the Greek χλωρὸν ξύλον, "green wood"). It is native to southern India, Sri Lank ...

'' (

Sinhalese Sinhala may refer to: * Something of or related to the Sinhalese people of Sri Lanka * Sinhalese people * Sinhala language, one of the three official languages used in Sri Lanka * Sinhala script, a writing system for the Sinhala language ** Sinha ...

"Burutha"), ''

Manilkara hexandra ''Manilkara hexandra'' is a tree species in the tribe Sapoteae, in the family Sapotaceae. It is native to much of south Asia (China: Hainan and southern Guangxi provinces; the Indian subcontinent: Bangladesh, India, and Sri Lanka; Indo-China: C ...

'' ("Palu") and ''

Diospyros ebenum ''Diospyros ebenum'', or Ceylon ebony ( si, කළුවර ''Kaluwara''), is a species of tree in the genus Diospyros and the family Ebenaceae. The tree produces valuable black wood. Description This middle-high evergreen tree grows very sl ...

'' ("Kaluwara") are the dominant tree species. The

Indian star tortoise The Indian star tortoise (''Geochelone elegans'') is a threatened tortoise species native to India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka where it inhabits dry areas and scrub forest. It has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 2016, as the pop ...

Sri Lanka junglefowl The Sri Lankan junglefowl (''Gallus lafayettii'' sometimes spelled ''Gallus lafayetii''), also known as the Ceylon junglefowl or Lafayette's junglefowl, is a member of the Galliformes bird order which is endemic to Sri Lanka, where it is the nati ...

, Sri Lankan elephant, Sri Lanka leopard and

rusty-spotted cat The rusty-spotted cat (''Prionailurus rubiginosus'') is one of the cat family's smallest members, of which historical records are known only from India and Sri Lanka. In 2012, it was also recorded in the western Terai of Nepal. Since 2016, the gl ...

are among the endangered species of the forest reserve.

Human impact

20160123 Sri Lanka 3683 Habarana sRGB (25144290133)

There is no record of the number of people who live in the forest reserve.

Shifting cultivation Shifting cultivation is an agricultural system in which plots of land are cultivated temporarily, then abandoned while post-disturbance fallow vegetation is allowed to freely grow while the cultivator moves on to another plot. The period of cu ...

is their main means of living. The Sri Lankan elephant is known for its migratory behavior and does so especially in the dry season between the forests situated around the area. Expansion of human settlements and forest clearance resulted in a human–elephant clash. Translocation is the conventional solution taken to solve the issue. But translocation has not been a good solution as some of the translocated elephants are returning to their original habitat. Recently a distinguished one-tusked adult male individual walk past Hurulu Forest reserve to reach its home, traveling for a month and 243 km after being translocated in Somawathiya National Park, 93 km away in a straight line. Its wanderings were tracked by a radio collar. Elephants' strong attachment to their home range is being credited for such returnings.

Endangered animals of Hurulu Forest Reserve

Image:Indian Star Tortoise.jpg,

Image:SrilankaLeopard in wild.jpg, Sri Lanka leopard Image:Rostkatze Zoo Berlin.JPG,

Rusty-spotted cat The rusty-spotted cat (''Prionailurus rubiginosus'') is one of the cat family's smallest members, of which historical records are known only from India and Sri Lanka. In 2012, it was also recorded in the western Terai of Nepal. Since 2016, the gl ...

References

{{Biosphere reserves of Sri Lanka Biosphere reserves of Sri Lanka Forest reserves of Sri Lanka Forests of Sri Lanka Protected areas in North Central Province, Sri Lanka

Physical features

Flora and fauna

Human impact

Endangered animals of Hurulu Forest Reserve

See also

References