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A Unesco Natural World Heritage site, a Project Tiger and Elephant Reserve, a National Park and a Biosphere Reserve, Manas National Park makes you wonder what so special about this place to get this unique distinction. To satiate your curiosity you better visit the Park, for seeing is believing.

Spread over an area of about 2800 sq km, the Manas National Park lying on the foothills of the Himalayas with a part extending to Bhutan is one of the pristine wildlife habitats of Assam, India. Though years of internal strife in the region had caused some neglect, it nonetheless still retains some of its beauty in its diverse topography and rich flora and fauna.

Named after the serpent Goddess Manasa, and situated along the northern bank of the Brahmaputra River, just in between Kaziranga and Jaldapada, Manas National Park was earlier the hunting reserve of the Royal Family of Cooch Berar before it was declared a sanctuary on December 1928; a Tiger Reserve in April 1973; a National Park on September 7, 1990 and finally a Unesco Natural World Heritage Site in 1985. The Park was recently accorded the status of a Biosphere Reserve on account of its rare wealth of endangered species of flora and fauna viz., the rare endemic Assam Roofed Turtle, Hispid Hare, Golden Langur and Pygmy Hog.

Animals at Manas National Park
Manas National Park is home to over 55 species of mammals, 50 of reptiles, and 3 species of amphibians. In addition to the tigers, elephants and rhinoceros, the park is also a safe haven for the rare Assam roofed turtle, golden langur, hispid hare, and pygmy hog. Other animals also found in the sanctuary are the red panda, clouded leopards, gaurs, swamp deer, capped langurs, Assamese macaques, slow loris, hoolock gibbons, smooth Indian otters, sloth bears, barking deer, hog deer, sambar and chital.The Manas National Park is also the only place in the world where the pure strain Asiatic wild buffaloes are found.

Birds at Manas National Park
The jungles of Manas National Parkwith their sal, simul, khoir, udal, sida, bohera and Kanchan trees give sanctuary to over 380 species of birds. The park is one of the best places to see endangered Bengal florican & the great hornbill. Birds from adjoining hilly terrain of Bhutan can also be seen adding to beauty of the park with their riot of colors and cacophony of sounds. Some of the migratory and predatory birds that can be seen in the area are egrets, herons, mergansers, harriers, ospreys, pelicans, fish eagles, serpent eagles, falcons, scarlet minivets, bee-eaters, magpie robins besides others. Most of the birding was concentrated on the popular Mothanguri-Bhutan circuit which is to the north of the central zone of Manas.

Another of Unesco Natural World Heritage site, the Kaziranga National Park located in the Jorhat Nawgaon district of Assam is famous as the habitat of the endangered one horned Indian Rhinoceros. Spread over an area of 430sq.km, the park bounded by the Mikir Hills on the South and Brahmaputra River on the north was declared a Wildlife sanctuary in 1950 and a National Park in 1974.

The vegetation of Kaziranga National Park comprises of alluvial grasslands, tropical wet semi-evergreen and evergreen forests interspersed with cane brakes, open woodlands, interconnecting streams and numerous lakes or 'beels'. The eastern part or the Agoratoli range comprises of woodland interspersed with grassland and water-bodies and attached to it is the Burhapahar sector. The Baguri range covering the western part of the Park boasts of the highest rhinoceros density while the Central part or Kohora range is the most easily accessible from the range office.

Animals at Kaziranga National Park
Though the one horned Indian Rhinoceros is the king of Kaziranga National Park, the park is also home to the elephants, wild buffalo, swamp deer, hog deer, barking deer, sambar, pythons, civet cat, wild boar and tigers. Around 52 mammalian species & 39 reptiles can also be seen in the Park. They include the Chinese pangolin, hoolock gibbon, hog-badger Gangetic dolphin, parti-coloured flying squirrel, the reticulated and rock pythons, the rare Assam roofed turtle and the endangered Gharial.

Birds at Kaziranga National Park
Kaziranga National Park is home to over 500 species of birds of which around 18 are on the endangered list. One of the best birding paradise of North East India, one can sight here birds like the Bengal florican stork, pied horn bill, fish eagle, egrets, pond herons, river tern, great and wreathed hornbill, jerdon's baza, slender-billed vulture, black necked storks, partridges, pallas's fish eagle, black-necked storks, spot-billed pelicans, jerdon’s babbler, black-breasted parrotbill, finn’s weaver, greater spotted eagle, Imperial eagle, hodgson’s bushchat, white-vented Mynam and many more.

The Panbari Reserve Forest on the south of NH 37 and the tea gardens are a great place to see some rare birds like Asian fairy bluebird, pale-capped pigeon, white-browed scimitar babblers, greater necklaced laughing thrush and rufous-necked laughing thrush, pied falconet, sultan tit and silver-breasted broadbill.

By air: Nearest airport is at Jorhat which is 97 kms away. Guwahati airport is 240 kms from Kohora by road via Nowgong.

By Rail: The nearest convenient railhead is at Furkating, situated 75-km away from the park and Jorhat.

By road: The main gate for Kaziranga, at Kohora is on National Highway 37 which connects Guwahati with Jorhat on the east.  The 4-hr drive from Guwahati along the Brahmaputra south bank on the NH37 passes Dispur, Nowgong and Bagjan to the park entrances at Kohora and Baguri.

Best time to visit Kaziranga: November to April is the best time to visit the Kaziranga National Park. During this period the temperature at Kaziranga may range from 80c in winter to 380C in summer.