Bandipur National Park

Bandipur National Park established in 1974 as a tiger reserve under Project Tiger, is a national park located in the south Indian state of Karnataka. It was once a private hunting reserve for the Maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore but has now been upgraded to Bandipur Tiger Reserve. Bandipur is known for its wildlife and has many types of biomes, but dry deciduous forest is dominant.The park spans an area of 874km2, protecting several species of India's endangered wildlife. Together with the adjoining Nagarhole National Park (643km2), Mudumalai National Park (320km2) and Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (344km2), it is part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve totaling 2183km2 making it the largest protected area in southern India and largest habitat of wild elephants in south Asia.Bandipur is located in Gundlupet taluq of Chamarajanagar district. It is about 80km from the city of Mysore on the route to a major tourist destination of Ooty. As a result, Bandipur sees a lot of tourist traffic and there are many wildlife fatalities caused by speeding vehicles that are reported each year. There is a ban on traffic from 9 pm to 6 am of dusk to dawn to help bring down the death rate of wildlife.