Terai Arc Landscape
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The Terai Arc Landscape (TAL) is composed of 14
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
n and
Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...
ese trans-border protected ecosystems of the
Terai The Terai or Tarai is a lowland region in parts of southern Nepal and northern India that lies to the south of the outer foothills of the Himalayas, the Sivalik Hills and north of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. This lowland belt is characterised by ...
(
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...
for "lowlands") and nearby foothills of the
Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...
. and encompassing 14 protected areas of Nepal and India. The area spans approximately 12.3 million acres (5 million hectares) and includes Nepal's
Bagmati River The Bagmati River flows through the Kathmandu valley of Nepal, separating the cities of Kathmandu and Patan, before flowing through Madesh Province of southern Nepal and joining the Kamla River in the Indian state of Bihar. It is considered ...
to the east and India's
Yamuna River The Yamuna (; ) is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in List of major rivers of India, India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a height of about on the southwestern slopes of B ...
to the west. The TAL is home to many endangered mammals including the
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 ...
(of which it has one of the world's highest densities), the
Indian rhinoceros The Indian rhinoceros (''Rhinoceros unicornis''), also known as the greater one-horned rhinoceros, great Indian rhinoceros or Indian rhino, is a species of rhinoceros found in the Indian subcontinent. It is the second largest living rhinocer ...
, the
gaur The gaur (''Bos gaurus''; ) is a large bovine native to the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia, and has been listed as Vulnerable species, Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1986. The global population was estimated at a maximum of 21,000 ...
, the wild
Asian elephant The Asian elephant (''Elephas maximus''), also known as the Asiatic elephant, is the only living ''Elephas'' species. It is the largest living land animal in Asia and the second largest living Elephantidae, elephantid in the world. It is char ...
, the
hispid hare The hispid hare (''Caprolagus hispidus''), also known as the Assam rabbit and bristly rabbit, is a species of rabbit native to South Asia. It is the only species in the genus ''Caprolagus''. Named for its bristly fur coat, the hispid hare is a ...
, the
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 ...
, the
South Asian river dolphin South Asian river dolphins are toothed whales in the genus ''Platanista'', which inhabit the waterways of the Indian subcontinent. They were historically considered to be one species (''P. gangetica'') with the Ganges river dolphin and the Indu ...
and the
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 ...
, as well as over 500 species of birds, many endangered. Examples of birds are the endangered
Bengal florican The Bengal florican (''Houbaropsis bengalensis''), also called the Bengal bustard, is a bustard species native to the Indian subcontinent, Cambodia, and Vietnam. It is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List because fewer than 1,00 ...
, the
sarus crane The sarus crane (''Antigone antigone'') is a large nonmigratory Crane (bird), crane found in parts of the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, and northern Australia. The tallest of the flying birds, standing at a height of up to , they are a c ...
, and the
black stork The black stork (''Ciconia nigra'') is a large bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of his ''Systema Naturae''. Measuring on average from beak tip to end of tail with a wingspan, t ...
. The rivers and wetlands of the TAL are rich and diverse
ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...
s with many
endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
species that support, besides birds and mammals, a wide range of fish, amphibians, and fresh water crustaceans. However, the area faces many challenges to the wildlife. Of the 14 protected areas within the TAL, none is large enough, by itself, to sustain a population of tigers over time. If the protected areas were to be linked by wildlife corridors, individual tigers would be able to move from area to area, furthering its ability to survive long-term. TAL is densely populated and its welfare is of critical importance to its human and animal life. Its approximately three million people are among the world's poorest (50% live below the poverty live) and generally subsist on the land. As of the beginning of 2013, the Indian government will give a donation to farmers who grow flowers in the Terai.


Protected areas within the Terai Arc Landscape

The following are
protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewood ...
s within the boundaries of the TAL: *In Nepal:
Shuklaphanta National Park Shuklaphanta National Park is a national park in the Terai of the Far-Western Region, Nepal, covering of open grasslands, forests, riverbeds and wetlands at an elevation of . It is bounded by the Mahakali river in the west and south. A small p ...
, Bardia National Park, Banke National Park,
Blackbuck Conservation Area The Blackbuck Conservation Area is located in Gulariya, Bardiya District, Nepal and was established in 2009 to conserve the endangered blackbuck The blackbuck (''Antilope cervicapra''), also known as the Indian antelope, is a medium-sized ant ...
,
Chitwan National Park Chitwan National Park is the first national park of Nepal. It was established in 1973 as the Royal Chitwan National Park and was granted the status of a World Heritage Site in 1984. It covers an area of in the Terai of south-central Nepal. It ra ...
and
Parsa National Park Parsa National Park is a national park in the Terai of south-central Nepal covering an area of in the Parsa, Makwanpur and Bara Districts and ranging in elevation from in the Sivalik Hills. It was established as a wildlife reserve in 1984 and ...
*In India:
Jim Corbett National Park Jim Corbett National Park is a national park in India located in the Nainital district of Uttarakhand state. The first national park in India, it was established in 1936 during the British Raj and named ''Hailey National Park'' after Willi ...
,
Rajaji National Park Rajaji National Park is a national park and tiger reserve in the Haridwar, Dehradun and Pauri Garhwal districts of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It encompasses an area of in the Sivalik Hills. In 1983, three wildlife sanctuaries in th ...
, Pilibhit Tiger Reserve,
Kishanpur Wildlife Sanctuary The Kishanpur Wildlife Sanctuary is a part of the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve near Mailani in Uttar Pradesh, India. It covers an area of and was founded in 1972. It is 13 km away from Bhira town in Lakhimpur Kheri District. The sanctuary is covered w ...
,
Dudhwa National Park Dudhwa National Park is a national park in the Terai belt of marshy grasslands in northern Uttar Pradesh, India. It stretches over an area of , with a buffer zone of . It is part of the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in the Kheri and Lakhimpur districts ...
,
Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary The Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area in the Upper Gangetic plain, near Bahraich city in Bahraich district of Uttar Pradesh, India and covers an area of in the Terai of the Bahraich district. It was established in 1975.Tripa ...
, Suhelva Sanctuary and
Valmiki National Park Valmiki National Park is a national park and tiger reserve in the West Champaran District of Bihar, India covering . It is the only national park in Bihar. History The extensive forest area of Valmikinagar was owned by the Bettiah Raj and ...


References

{{Coord missing, India, Nepal Protected areas of Nepal Protected areas of India