Jhalana Amagarh leopard conservation reserve
| Jhalana–Amagarh Leopard Conservation Reserve | |
|---|---|
Leopard in Jhalana Reserve, Jaipur | |
Location in Rajasthan, India Jhalana Amagarh leopard conservation reserve (India) | |
Interactive map of Jhalana–Amagarh Leopard Conservation Reserve | |
| Location | Jaipur, Rajasthan, India |
| Nearest city | Jaipur |
| Coordinates | 26°53′06″N 75°51′00″E / 26.885°N 75.850°E |
| Area | 3507.17 hectares [1] (Jhalana: 20 square kilometers [2]) |
| Established | 2017 (Jhalana), 2022 (Amagarh) |
| Governing body | Rajasthan Forest Department |
Jhalana–Amagarh Leopard Conservation Reserve is a protected area located in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. Comprising the Jhalana and Amagarh forests, the reserve is managed by the Rajasthan Forest Department.[3][4][5]
Geology
The conservation reserve made of the Jhalana and Amagarh forests,[1] both located in and near Jaipur, with the Jhalana forest on the south side of the Jaipur-Agra national highway, bordering and at some points covering Jaipur and the Aravalli Range.[2] The Amagarh forest contains a fort built by Sawai Jai Singh in the 1700s.[6]
The conservation reserves covers approximately 36 km2 (8,900 acres). 20 km2 (4,900 acres) are in the Jhalana park[2] and 15.24 km2 (3,770 acres).[6]
Ecology
The animal reserve contains civets, foxes, jackals, nilgai, rabbits, sambhar, and wild cats.[7][8][9]
History
In 2017, as part of Rajasthan state's Project Leopard, a section of forest near Jaipur, historically used for hunting by the Jaipur royal family and later for cattle grazing and firewood collecting, was set aside for leopard conservation and declared a forest reserve by the Rajasthan Forest Department.[2][10][7] This was the Jhalana reserve, and it was the first leopard conservation reserve in India.[11]
The Amagarh forest was opened in 2022.[12] The following years, the Jhalana and Amagarh parks were jointly recognized as a conservation reserve, governed by the 1972 Wildlife Protection Act. It was the 21st conservation reserve in Rajasthan.[1]
The total leopard population in the parks was 28 in 2019;[1] by December 2022, the number of leopards in the parks had grown to 40, despite a park ranger's estimation that they could only support between ten and twelve leopards. The overpopulation led to an increase in human-leopard encounters in surrounding urban areas and some leopards entered human dwellings. Park officials responded by clearing land of invasive species in an attempt to increase the numbers of chital for leopards to feed on.[2]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d "Leopard dies at Amagarh reserve due to infighting". The Times of India. 29 January 2024. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- ^ a b c d e "Man-animal conflict on rise in Jaipur with thriving leopard population in its 2 forest reserves". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- ^ "Jhalana Leopard Safari| Jhalana Leopard Safari Park | Jaipur, Rajasthan". Jhalana Leopard Reserve. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- ^ "jhalana-amagarh-conservation-reserve". forest.rajasthan.gov.in.
- ^ "Country's first project leopard coming up in Rajasthan in December". Hindustan Times. 27 October 2017. Archived from the original on 1 February 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- ^ a b Traveller, Condé Nast (25 May 2022). "You can now take a leopard safari just 30 mins from Jaipur". Condé Nast Traveller India. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- ^ a b "First in India, Jaipur is now home to two leopard reserves". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
- ^ Kumbhojkar, Swapnil; Yosef, Reuven; Benedetti, Yanina; Morelli, Federico (18 July 2019). "Human-Leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) Co-Existence in Jhalana Forest Reserve, India". Sustainability. 11 (14): 3912. Bibcode:2019Sust...11.3912K. doi:10.3390/su11143912. ISSN 2071-1050.
- ^ Kumbhojkar, Swapnil; Mahabal, Anil; Rakholia, Shrey; Yosef, Reuven (11 October 2024). "Avian and Mammalian Diversity and Abundance in Jhalana Reserve Forest, Jaipur, India". Animals. 14 (20): 2939. doi:10.3390/ani14202939. ISSN 2076-2615. PMC 11503695. PMID 39457869.
- ^ Kumbhojkar, Swapnil; Yosef, Reuven; Tryjanowski, Piotr (2 October 2020). "Peaceful coexistence with the urban leopards of the city of Jaipur, India". Oryx—The International Journal of Conservation (Blog). Retrieved 1 September 2025.
- ^ Bathla, Nitin (November 2024). "Inhabiting more-than-human ecologies of Extended urbanization: Unruly leopards amidst urban-wild enmeshment in the Northern Aravalli region". Geoforum. 156 104123. doi:10.1016/j.geoforum.2024.104123.
- ^ "Gehlot opens 'Amagarh Leopard Reserve'". The Statesman. Statesman News Service. 22 May 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2025.
Further reading
- Kumbhojkar, Swapnil; Yosef, Reuven; Kosicki, Jakub Z.; Kwiatkowska, Patrycja K.; Tryjanowski, Piotr (2021). "Dependence of the leopard Panthera pardus fusca in Jaipur, India, on domestic animals". Oryx. 55 (5): 692–698. doi:10.1017/S0030605319001145. ISSN 0030-6053.