Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary

Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary has an expanse of 55 km. Located in Kannur district of Kerala, the sanctuary runs along the gradual slopes of the Western Ghats spreading over the rippling highlands. It has different altitudes at different regions. Due to this unique feature, the wildlife sanctuary supports diverse flora and fauna. The sanctuary is covered with thick tropical and semi-evergreen forests. Katti Betta, rising to a height of 1145 m above sea level, is the highest peak in this sanctuary. This sanctuary provides shelter for a large variety of native fauna population of the Western Ghats. Leopards, elephants, herds of deer, wild boar, jungle cats and bison can easily be sighted in the dense forests here. The forest is protected by the Government of India under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972, and hence is free from poachers. Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary is well connected by the network of roads and also by other modes of transportation.

Apart from trekking and safaris in the buffer zone, tourist can indulge in the most interesting activity in a wildlife sanctuary - bird watching. The sanctuary also provides facility of camping. However, the tourists ought to take permission from the forest authorities for camping. Usually 50-60 such camps are organized every year. Jungle safaris are interesting too, as through these one gets an easy access to the wilderness and one might also get a chance to get a glimpse of rare animals at Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary.

Geography
Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary is located on a slope of the Western Ghats. Hence, the sanctuary slopes from East to West, which is quite evident as the natural drainage system flows accordingly. The terrain of this place is rugged with the presence of a number of hillocks. Because of these hillocks, the altitude of this place varies from 60 m to 1489 m. The place also has steep slopes that make it an ideal shelter for the carnivorous and other small animals. The place has high humidity and moisture content in the air. Hence, it receives high rainfall. The annual rainfall is seldom below 4000mm. At specialized locales the rainfall goes up to as high as 6000 mm. The lawful limits of the forest are not in harmony with the ecological bounds of this place. There are widespread evergreen and semi-evergreen forest areas in the immediate surrounding area of Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary, which are not under protected area management.

Flora
The foliage in Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary consists of east coast tropical evergreen forest and west coast semi evergreen forest. The teak and eucalyptus trees cover an area of about 490 hectares within the protected forest area. The plant life present on this part of the forest is unique in its own kind, as the trees present here are reinforced at base. The boles of these trees are clean, cylindrical and un-branched till the two-thirds of their height and generally with a spreading or umbrella shaped crown at the top. The rich array of species co-exists with each other in complex organic balance, here.

Fauna
The mammals predominantly found in Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary include Sambar deer, Indian elephant, mouse deer, barking deer, gaur and wild boar. The predators present in the area are tigers and leopards. Arboreal mammals other than primates seen in Aralam are the Malabar giant squirrel and the flying squirrel. Different kinds of monkeys are also common in this area including the Hanuman Langoor.