Machia Biological Park (also known as Machia Safari Park) is a

zoological garden A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility where animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for Conservation biology, conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden ...

and wildlife conservation facility located near

Kaylana Lake Kaylana Lake is located 8 km west of Jodhpur in Rajasthan, India. It is an artificial lake, built by Pratap Singh in 1872. The lake spreads over an area of . In ancient times this region had palaces and gardens made by two rulers of Jodhpur ...

, approximately 7–8 km west of

Jodhpur Jodhpur () is the second-largest city of the north-western Indian state of Rajasthan, after its capital Jaipur. As of 2023, the city has a population of 1.83 million. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Jodhpur district and ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

, India. Established on 41 hectares of protected forest land, the park opened to the public on 20 January 2016.Rajasthan Forest Department – Machia Biological Park
/ref> It was developed as a modern satellite zoo to replace the older heritage zoo in Umaid Garden, which had become obsolete and had lost recognition from the

Central Zoo Authority The Central Zoo Authority (CZA) is the body of the Government of India responsible for oversight of zoos. It is an affiliate member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA). The CZA was formed to bring Indian zoos up to internatio ...

. Construction cost approximately ₹32.4 crore and took around six years to complete. The park is managed by the Rajasthan Forest Department as part of its wildlife conservation and public education mandate.

History and establishment

The idea of creating a zoological park near Jodhpur was first proposed in 1982–83, when a portion of the Machia Forest Block was earmarked for development. In 1990, 604 hectares of this forest area were declared protected under the Rajasthan Forest Act to facilitate the development of a biological park. The need for a modern zoo arose due to outdated enclosures at the previous city zoo and the withdrawal of recognition by national authorities. After a prolonged period of planning and construction, the park was inaugurated by Chief Minister

Vasundhara Raje Vasundhara Raje Scindia (born 8 March 1953) is an Indian politician, who has held two terms as the chief minister of Rajasthan. She was previously a minister in the Union Cabinet of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and was India's first Minister of Small ...

on 20 January 2016.

Flora and fauna

Machia Park represents the dry thorn-scrub ecosystem of western Rajasthan. Native vegetation includes species such as ''

Acacia senegal ''Senegalia senegal'' (also known as ''Acacia senegal'') is a small thorny deciduous tree from the genus ''Senegalia'', which is known by several common names, including gum acacia, gum arabic tree, Sudan gum and Sudan gum arabic. In parts of In ...

'', ''

Prosopis cineraria ''Prosopis cineraria'', also known as Persian mesquite or ghaf or khejri, is a species of flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. It is native to arid portions of Western Asia and the Indian Subcontinent, including Afghanistan, Bahrain, ...

'' (khejri), ''

Prosopis juliflora ''Neltuma juliflora '' (, ''Cuji'' in Venezuela, ''Trupillo'' in Colombia, ''Aippia'' in the Wayuunaiki language and long-thorn kiawe in Hawaii), formerly ''Prosopis juliflora'', is a shrub or small tree in the family Fabaceae, a kind of mesquit ...

'', ''

Capparis decidua ''Capparis decidua'', commonly known as karira, is a useful plant in its marginal habitat. Description It is a small much-branched tree or shrub. It bears a mass of slender, gray-green leafless branches, the small caducous leaves being found ...

'', ''

Ziziphus nummularia ''Ziziphus nummularia'', commonly known as wild jujube or jharberi in Hindi, is a species of ''Ziziphus'' native to the Thar Desert of western India and southeastern Pakistan, south Iran, Afghanistan, Lebanon and Zimbabwe. ''Ziziphus nummulari ...

'', and ''

Commiphora wightii ''Commiphora wightii'', with common names Indian bdellium-tree, gugal, guggal, guggul, gugul, or mukul myrrh tree, is a flowering plant in the family Burseraceae, which produces a fragrant resin called gugal, guggul or gugul, that is used in i ...

''. In areas with shallow or rocky soil, staff have planted native species like ''

neem ''Azadirachta indica'', commonly known as neem, margosa, nimtree or Indian lilac, is a tree in the mahogany family Meliaceae. It is one of the two species in the genus '' Azadirachta''. It is native to the Indian subcontinent and to parts of S ...

'', ''

peepal ''Ficus religiosa'' or sacred fig is a species of fig native to the Indian subcontinent and Indochina that belongs to Moraceae, the fig or mulberry family. It is also known as the bodhi tree, bo tree, peepul tree, peepal tree, pipala tree or ...

'', ''

gular Gular may refer to: Pertaining to the throat * Gular scales in reptiles * Gular scute, or gular projection, in turtles and tortoises * Gular fold in lizards * Gular skin, or gular sac, in birds and some gibbons Other uses *Gular, another name of ...

'', and ''

banyan A banyan, also spelled banian ( ), is a fig that develops accessory trunks from adjacent prop roots, allowing the tree to spread outwards indefinitely. This distinguishes banyans from other trees with a strangler habit that begin life as ...

'' using rock-blasting techniques to aid root penetration. The park contains about 20 enclosures with native animal species including: * Large carnivores:

Asiatic lion The Asiatic lion is a lion population of the subspecies ''Panthera leo leo''. Until the 19th century, it occurred in Saudi Arabia, eastern Turkey, Iran, Mesopotamia, and from east of the Indus River in Pakistan to the Bengal region and the Narm ...

(''Panthera leo persica''),

Bengal tiger The Bengal tiger is a population of the ''Panthera tigris tigris'' subspecies and the nominate tiger subspecies. It ranks among the largest wild cats alive today. It is estimated to have been present in the Indian subcontinent since the Late ...

(''Panthera tigris tigris''),

Indian leopard The Indian leopard (''Panthera pardus fusca'') is a subspecies of the leopard (''P. pardus''). It is widely distributed on the Indian subcontinent. It is threatened by illegal trade of skins and body parts, and persecution due to human-leopard ...

(''Panthera pardus fusca'') * Herbivores:

Chital The chital or cheetal (''Axis axis''; ), also called spotted deer, chital deer and axis deer, is a deer species native to the Indian subcontinent. It was first described by Johann Christian Polycarp Erxleben in 1777. A moderate-sized deer, mal ...

(''Axis axis''), Indian gazelle or chinkara (''Gazella bennettii''),

blackbuck The blackbuck (''Antilope cervicapra''), also known as the Indian antelope, is a medium-sized antelope native to India and Nepal. It inhabits grassy plains and lightly forested areas with perennial water sources. It stands up to high at the sh ...

(''Antilope cervicapra'') * Reptiles:

mugger crocodile The mugger crocodile (''Crocodylus palustris'') is a medium-sized broad-snouted crocodile, also known as mugger and marsh crocodile. It is native to freshwater habitats from south-eastern Iran to the Indian subcontinent, where it inhabits marsh ...

(''Crocodylus palustris''),

gharial The gharial (''Gavialis gangeticus''), also known as gavial or fish-eating crocodile, is a crocodilian in the family (biology), family Gavialidae and among the longest of all living crocodilians. Mature females are long, and males . Adult males ...

(''Gavialis gangeticus''),

monitor lizard Monitor lizards are lizards in the genus ''Varanus,'' the only extant genus in the family Varanidae. They are native to Africa, Asia, and Oceania, and West African Nile monitor, one species is also found in south America as an invasive species. A ...

(''Varanus bengalensis'') and

spiny-tailed lizard ''Uromastyx'' is a genus of lizards in the Family (biology), family Agamidae. The genus is native to Africa and the Middle East (West Asia). Member species are Common name, commonly called spiny-tailed lizards, uromastyces, mastigures, or dabb l ...

(''Uromastyx hardwickii'') * Other mammals:

striped hyena The striped hyena (''Hyaena hyaena'') is a species of hyena native to North and East Africa, the Middle East, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Hyaena''. It is listed by the IU ...

(''Hyaena hyaena''),

Indian wolf The Indian wolf (''Canis lupus pallipes'') is a subspecies of gray wolf that ranges from Southwest Asia to the Indian subcontinent. It is intermediate in size between the Himalayan wolf and the Arabian wolf, and lacks the former's luxuriant wint ...

(''Canis lupus pallipes''),

golden jackal The golden jackal (''Canis aureus''), also called the common jackal, is a wolf-like canid that is native to Eurasia. The golden jackal's coat varies in color from a pale creamy yellow in summer to a dark tawny beige in winter. It is smaller a ...

(''Canis aureus''),

Indian fox The Bengal fox (''Vulpes bengalensis''), also known as the Indian fox, is a fox endemic to the Indian subcontinent from the Himalayan foothills and Terai of Nepal through southern India, and from southern and eastern Pakistan to eastern India and ...

(''Vulpes bengalensis''), desert fox (''Vulpes vulpes pusilla''),

jungle cat The jungle cat (''Felis chaus''), also called reed cat and swamp cat, is a medium-sized cat native from the Eastern Mediterranean region and the Caucasus to parts of Central, South and Southeast Asia. It inhabits foremost wetlands like swamps, ...

(''Felis chaus''),

desert cat Desert cat may refer to * African wildcat, sometimes referred to as 'desert cat' * Arabian Mau, formerly known as the 'Desert cat' * Asiatic wildcat, sometimes referred to as 'desert cat' * Sand cat, also sometimes referred to as 'desert ca ...

(''Felis lybica''),

sloth bear The sloth bear (''Melursus ursinus''), also known as the Indian bear, is a myrmecophagous bear species native to the Indian subcontinent. It feeds on fruits, ants and termites. It is listed as vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, mainly because of ...

(''Melursus ursinus''),

Indian porcupine The Indian crested porcupine (''Hystrix indica'') is a hystricomorph rodent species native to southern Asia and the Middle East. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. It belongs to the Old World porcupine family, Hystricidae. De ...

(''Hystrix indica''), and

Indian hedgehog The Indian hedgehog (''Paraechinus micropus'') is a species of hedgehog native to India and Pakistan. It mainly lives in sandy desert areas but can be found in other environments. Description The Indian hedgehog can be compared to the long-eare ...

(''Paraechinus micropus'')Fauna of Machia Park – Rajasthan Forest Department
/ref> The park is notable for housing endangered species such as the Asiatic lion, which survives in the wild only in Gir, Gujarat.

Visitor information

The park is open daily except Tuesdays and major public holidays such as

Republic Day Republic Day is the name of a holiday in several countries to commemorate the day when they became republics. List January 1 January in Slovak Republic The day of creation of Slovak republic. A national holiday since 1993. Officially calle ...

and

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event memorialization, commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or Sovereign state, statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or after the end of a milit ...

. * Winter timings (October–March): 08:30 – 17:00 * Summer timings (March–October): 08:00 – 18:00 Entrance fees are: * ₹30 for Indian adults * ₹300 for foreign visitors * ₹15 for school students (with valid ID) * Free for children under five Camera charges range from ₹80–₹200 depending on equipment. Visitor amenities include a cafeteria, shaded resting pavilions with toilets, and drinking water facilities. Paths are largely paved, making the park moderately accessible to wheelchairs and strollers. Parking near the entrance accommodates about 150 two-wheelers, 25 cars, and a few buses. Wayfinding signage and a site map are provided at the entrance. The park is approximately 8 km from

Jodhpur Junction railway station Jodhpur railway station (station code:- JU) is a major railway station located in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India. The railway station is under the administrative control of North Western Railway of Indian Railways. Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw a ...

, and is accessible via local transport along Kaylana Road.

Conservation and education

Machia Biological Park is designed to support

ex situ conservation FILE:Entrance to the Seed Vault (cropped).jpg, Svalbard Global Seed Vault, Svalbard Global Seed Bank, an ' conservation ''Ex situ'' conservation () is the process of protecting an endangered species, variety, or breed of plant or animal outside ...

and environmental education. Facilities include: * A Nature Interpretation Centre focused on local ecosystems * Informational signage at each enclosure * An "Adopt-an-Animal" programme for public sponsorship A dedicated veterinary hospital and post-mortem lab are located within the park to provide health care and facilitate breeding. In 2016, an Asiatic lioness brought from Junagarh Zoo gave birth to three cubs at Machia, all of which were hand-reared under veterinary supervision. The park conducts school outreach programs, wildlife awareness events, and guided tours. Occasional demonstrations and talks are held in collaboration with NGOs and the forest department on dates such as

World Environment Day World Environment Day (WED) is celebrated annually on 5 June and encourages awareness and action for the protection of the environment. It is supported by many non-governmental organizations, businesses, government entities, and represents the ...

References

{{Reflist Zoos in Rajasthan 2016 establishments in Rajasthan