Mount Abu Wildlife Sanctuary

Situated in the oldest mountain ranges of the country – the Aravalli Hills, the Mount Abu Wildlife Sanctuary is one of the most visited wildlife sanctuaries in Rajasthan. It was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1980 and is home to a large number of wild animals, birds, plants, and trees.

Measuring 19 km in length and 6 km in breadth, the altitude ranges between 300 meters to 1722 meters at the Guru Shikhar Peak, which is the highest peak in Rajasthan. The most interesting feature about the rocks in the region is that they are igneous rocks and due to the effect of wind and rain, large cavities have formed on most of them.

The wildlife sanctuary is home to a large number of plants and trees. The sanctuary has as many as 112 plant families belonging to 449 genera and 820 species. As many as 81 species of trees, 89 species of shrubs, 28 species of climbers, and 17 species of tuberous plants are found in the sanctuary.

A variety of orchid species are also found in the sanctuary. A part of the sanctuary also has bamboo forests. Among fauna, the wildlife sanctuary is home to a large number of animal species including lions, tigers, leopards, hedgehogs, porcupines, Indian hares, mongoose, pangolin, bears, wild boars, langurs, foxes, hyenas, jackals, small Indian civets, jungle cats, sambhars, and more. As many as 250 species of birds are found here. The grey jungle fowl is the specialty of the Mount Abu Wildlife Sanctuary.