NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Yala National Park

Yala National Park, in Ruhuna is an important national park on the south east coast of Sri Lanka. The reserve covers 979 km², although only the original 141 km² are open to the public. Yala NP, my image copyright waived This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Yala NP, my image copyright waived This image has been released into the public domain by the copyright holder, its copyright has expired, or it is ineligible for copyright. ... Brecon Beacons National Park, Wales A national park is a reserve of land, usually owned by a national government, protected from most human development and pollution. ...

Much of the reserve is parkland, but it also contains jungle, beaches, freshwater lakes and rivers and scrubland. The latter zone is punctuated with enormous rocky outcrops. The range of habitats give rise to a good range of wildlife.

Yala has the world's highest concentration of Leopards, although seeing this largely nocturnal carnivore still requires some luck. There are good numbers of Asian Elephants, crocodile, Wild Boar, Water Buffalo and Grey langurs amongst other large animals. Binomial name Panthera pardus (Linnaeus, 1758) Leopards (Panthera pardus) are one of the four big cats of the genus Panthera. ... Binomial name Elephas maximus Linnaeus, 1758 Asian Elephant range The Asian Elephant, sometimes known as the Indian Elephant (Elephas maximus) is one of the three living species of elephant, and the only living species of the genus Elephas. ... Genera Mecistops Crocodylus Osteolaemus See full taxonomy. ... Binomial name Sus scrofa Linnaeus, 1758 The Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) is the wild ancestor of the domesticated pig. ... Binomial name Bubalus arnee (Kerr, 1792) The Water Buffalo is a very large ungulate and a member of the wild oxen family. ... Species Semnopithecus schistaceus Semnopithecus ajax Semnopithecus hector Semnopithecus entellus Semnopithecus hypoleucos Semnopithecus dussumieri Semnopithecus priam The gray langurs are a group of Old World monkeys and make up the entirety of the genus Semnopithecus. ...

The open parkland attracts birds of prey such as White-bellied Sea Eagle and the wetlands have waders, Painted Storks, and the rare Black-necked Stork. Orders Accipitriformes Cathartidae Pandionidae Accipitridae Sagittariidae Falconiformes Falconidae A bird of prey or raptor is a bird that hunts its food, especially one that preys on mammals or other birds. ... Binomial name Haliaeetus leucogaster Gmelin, 1788 The White-bellied Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster) is a large bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, buzzards and harriers. ... Families Charadridae Jacanidae Rostratulidae Ibidorhynchidae Recurvirostridae Haematopodidae Scolopacidae Dromadidae Burhinidae Glareolidae Thinocoridae Waders, called Shorebirds in North America (where wader is used to refer to long-legged wading birds such as storks and herons), are members of the order Charadriiformes, excluding the more marine web-footed seabird groups. ... Binomial name Mycteria leucocephala (Pennant, 1769) The Painted Stork, Mycteria leucocephala, is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. ... Binomial name Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus (Latham,, 1790) The Black-necked Stork, Ephippiorhynchus asiaticus, is a large wading bird in the stork family Ciconiidae. ...

Landbirds of course are in abundance, and include Sirkeer Malkoha, Indian Peafowl and Sri Lanka Junglefowl. Binomial name Phaenicophaeus leschenaultii (Lesson, 1830) The Sirkeer Malkoha, Phaenicophaeus leschenaultii , is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the roadrunners, the anis, and the Hoatzin. ... Binomial name Pavo cristatus Linnaeus,, 1758 Indian Peahen with chicks The Indian Peafowl, Pavo cristatus, is a species of bird in the peafowl genus Pavo of the pheasant family, Phasianidae. ... Binomial name Gallus lafayetii Lesson, 1831 The Sri Lanka Junglefowl, Gallus lafayetii, is a member of the pheasant family which is endemic to Sri Lanka. ...

The park was badly damaged by the tsunami of 26th December 2004, with the destruction of the wildlife centre and tourist lodge. Many tourists, including a party of 22 Japanese, died in the disaster, as did several of the national park and lodge employees. The tsunami caused by the December 26, 2004 earthquake strikes Ao Nang, Thailand. ...

Now it is again open to the public visitors.

A monkey Image File history File linksMetadata Monkey_yala_park. ...

Crocodile Image File history File linksMetadata Crocodile_yala. ...

Water Buffalo Image File history File linksMetadata Yala_WaterBuffalo. ...

Painted Stork Image File history File linksMetadata Yala_Painted_Stork. ...

References

P. Fernando, Eric D. Wikramanayake and Jennifer Pastorini, Impact of tsunami on terrestrial ecosystems of Yala National Park, Sri Lanka, Current Science, Vol. 90, No. 11, pp. 1531-1534, June 2006 [Online].

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