This wildlife sanctuary is spread over 5 districts. They are Prakasam, Guntur, Nalgonda, Kurnool and Mahaboobnagar. The river Krishna flows through the sanctuary. The total length of the river is a long 130 km. there are many reservoirs in the sanctuary which act as important sources for irrigation within the park premises. These reservoirs and temples are famous tourist spots. Each year thousands of people from all over the world come to visit these reservoirs and temples. The area in the sanctuary is very hilly. It has high cliffs and deep valleys as well. The entire landscape of the sanctuary is breath taking. A visit is a must for those people who like to be close to nature. There are many plateaus here as well. Which are a must see. The plateaus suffer from scarcity of water during the winter months. The sanctuary has a rich biodiversity in it. There are several species of trees and shrubs that are found here. The wildlife that is found here is also very extensive. A large variety of birds are found here in the sanctuary. The sanctuary has a great number of water falls in it as well which adds to the beauty of the park.

History

Ancient history: this sanctuary has a lot of history attached to it. One of the oldest temples of Lord Mallikarjuna is located here. Devotees visit this temple in large numbers every year to seek blessing from the deity. The area also has the remains of the ruins of the Nagarjuna Viswa Vidyalayam which was run and looked after the great Buddhist scholar Nagarjunacharya. The wildlife sanctuary has also been named after him. Since he has made such a large contribution to the area in the ancient times. It is said that he was a master of the Mahayana sect of Buddhism and this place had many universities and monasteries in it. The sanctuary has many temples like the Akka Mahadevi Bhilam, Dattatreya Bhilam, Umaa Maheswaram, Kadalivanam, and Palankasari.

Modern History:

In 1978 the sanctuary was recognized and it came under the protection of Project Tiger in 1983. Prior to the Indian independence the sanctuary was known as the Rajiv Gandhi Wildlife sanctuary till the year 1993. Before independence the area was used by the British as a hunting reserve. Royals and guests used it as their playground for hunting. In the year 1983 the total number of tigers in the reserve was 40. Poaching, grazing and deforestation have made the entire sanctuary as well as the natural habitat of the animals to suffer excessive damage. In a recent survey in the year 1989 the number of tigers in the reserve has gone up by a 130% and now the total number has reached to 94. Something which had never been seen in the past 6 yrs.

Weather and Best Time to Visit

The sanctuary has a very hot climate. Summers are very hot. The maximum temperature in summers can go up to 40 degrees Celsius. The winter months are cold and pleasant. The minimum temperature experienced is as low as 10 degrees. The south west monsoon is responsible for rainfall in this area. The best time to visit in summers is from mid March to Mid June , and Mid June to November in the monsoon season. During the winters the best time to visit is from December to February.

How to Reach

By Air : the airport at Hyderabad is the closest. It is about 316 km away from Srisailam. All major cities of India are connected to Hyderabad, like Delhi and Mumbai.

By Rail : the sanctuary is well connected by road. Hyderabad as well and Markapur which is 85 km away are directly connected to the sanctuary.

By Road: Srisailam is at a distance of 190 km from Kurnool. From Guntur it is at 220kms, Chennai is 470 km away and Mannanur is 85 km away.

Location Map

Wildlife

Flora: the flora found here in the wildlife sanctuary is very vast. A large range of medicinal plants are also found here.  Trees like Teak, Terminalia tomentosa, Terminelian bellerica, Chloroxylon swietenia, Boswellia serrata etc are found in bulk.

Fauna

The Nallamalais  have a very diverse flora which makes this all the more appealing to tourists. There arenearly 100 species of butterflies, over 50 species of moths and other insects. Some species of invertebrates like whip scorpion, tarantula spider, etc; have been recently discovered here. East Asian tree frog, Narrow mouthed frog, Indian cricket frog, etc. represent the 18 species of amphibians, while Snakes, Marsh crocodile, monitor lizard, fan throated lizard, Indian pond terrapin, star tortoise, etc make up the reptilian diversity. The forest has around 200 species of birds like wood sand piper, Temmink’s stilt, lesser golden backed woodpecker, grey hornbill, Brown fish owl, Wigeon, fly catchers, grey jungle fowl, peafowl etc. Mammals like Leopard, Indian wolf, Bear, Sambar, Sloth Bear, Wild dog, Jackal, Striped Hyena, Spotted deer, Sambar, Mouse deer, Chinkara, Chowsingha, honey badger,Nilgai, Dhole, Porcupine, etc; also share the Tigers' domain.

Safaris : the service of vehicles is not provided by the Forest Department. One can hire jeeps for safaris at cheap and affordable prices. The entry to the park is authorized only by the Field Director so make sure to take prior permission.

Where to Stay

There are three forest guest houses which have a 40 bed capacity. These rooms are available at Srisailam, Mannanur and Nagarjunasagar.

Bhupal Hotel, Kurnool: is located on the park road in Kurnool. In the year 1996 the hotel became functional for guests. The Shamshabad airport is about 200 km away from the hotel. The hotel is well equipped and has all the basic amenities that are required. There 47 rooms in all. 15 are air-conditioned, while the remaining is non air conditioned.

Address - D.NO.40/383, Park Road, Bhupal Complex, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh - 518001, India

Sai Priyankas Comfort Inn, Kurnool

Address - 40/381, Opp Narayana Murthy Petrol Bunk, Vidya Nagar, Kurnool, Andhra Pradesh - 518001, India

General Information

Precautions: during the night time  that is from 21:00 hrs to  06: 00 hrs remains  closed to traffic. Hence please avoid taking the route between Hyderabad and Srisailam at night. Tourists should check with the authorities whether the time to visit the park is correct or not.

Permits and Reservations: in order to take permission for a visit to the park you need to visit the srisailam tiger reserve. permission for booking a guest house also needs to be taken in advance.

Contact: Proiect Tiger, Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve, Sunnipenta, Srisailam-5181 02.

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