Parsa Wildlife Reserve, National Parks, Reserves
The uninterrupted range of the Churiya hills dominates the landscape of the Parsa Wildlife Reserve providing an interesting composition to the park as a whole. It was during the early 1980’s that a large amount of this natural reserve was established and now stands at approximately 499 square kilometers. To a great extent much of the Parsa reserve cuts into four particular areas, which includes the Parsa, Makawanpur, Chitwan and Bara districts within central Nepal. Some of the most prevalent types of flora that you will expect to find in this region lie at the base of the Churiya hills, such as the common Chir pine (Pinus roxburghii) and the silk cotton tree (Bombax ceiba), which tend to thrive along the Khair and Sissoo rivers. Not forgetting the vital sabai grass (Enlaliopsis binata), which is classified as a medicinal and aromatic plant and grown for its commercial usage.
The Parsa Wildlife Reserve’s sub-tropical monsoon climate allows for a varied woodland area consisting of both tropical and subtropical forest types. However it must be noted that 90% of this vegetation is made up of shorea robusta or as it is commonly known, Sal, a tree native to the eastern parts of the Himalayas as well as other areas such as Southern Asia, India and Bangladesh extending all the way to central India where it can be found in the Satpura and Vindhya ranges.
The Parsa reserve of Nepal supports an abundance of wildlife such as the residential wild elephant, leopard and tiger to the striped ‘laughing’ hyena, sloth bear and the elusive wild dog, to name a few. For the avid birdwatchers there are over 300 species to be found, including the endangered hornbill that can be located in certain parts of the forest patches. If you should require assistance of any type, the main headquarters of the Parsa Wildlife Reserve can be found along the Hetauda-Birgunj highway at Adabar, where much of the wildlife management and scientific research also takes place.
There are four main seasons for this area. Winter lasts up to three months of the year, starting in October and ending in late December. Spring starts in January and runs all the way through to March, while the characteristically hot summer days begin in April to June. Interestingly the monsoon season is defined purely on the basis of the amount and consistent rainfall received during that period, therefore it usually begins in July and ends in September. Unfortunately erosion is a big problem here, as much of the soil comprises of gravel thus weakening its ability to hold during the rainy seasons. It is, hence, not unusual to come across heavy scarring caused by the dry stream beds and numerous gullies on the rugged hillside in Parsa Wildlife Reserve.