Bhimbandh Wildlife Sanctuary

Covering an area of 681.99 km2 on the hills and scenic rolling tract of Kharagpur Hills, the sanctuary is located at a distance of 56 km at the southern border of Munger, and at an altitude of 260 ft. Bhimbandh is situated south of the Ganges River, at the northern border of Chota Nagpur Plateau and west of SanthalPargana. Densely inhabited non-forestry areas cover the sanctuary from all sides. There are several hot springs in the valley portions and at the foothills - Bhimbandh, SitaKund and Rishi Kund being the finest of all.

The climate of Munger district is normal ? with three distinct seasons namely summer (March to May), monsoon (June to September) and winter (October to February). The area gets an annual rainfall of 1146 mm.

The best time to visit Bhimbandh Wildlife Sanctuary is between November and March, as the temperature remains soothing and perfect to explore the regions. However, it is a must to obtain a prior permission to enter to this place from the forest department office in Kharagpur.

Bhimbandh Wildlife Sanctuary is famous for animals like tigers, panthers, wild boars, sloth bear, sambar deer, chitals, four-horned antelope and nilgais. However, theavifauna is more distinct and crowded than the land animals. The sanctuary is home to more than 100 species of resident birds, which stay here all year around. During the migratory season of winter, the number of birds goes up when there is an influx of birds from the Central Asia region.

You can also spot jungle cat, fishing cat and leopard cat along with small mammals like the rare hispid hare, Indian gray mongoose, small Indian mongoose, large Indian civet, small Indian civets, Bengal fox, golden jackal, sloth bear, Chinese pangolin, Indian pangolins, hog badger, Chinese ferret badgers, and particolored flying squirrel. Reptiles like crocodile, snakes, cobra and kraits are found very commonly in the area.

Common bird species found here are peafowl, grey partridge, quail, , mainas, pigeon, wood pigeon, blue jay, owl, falcon, kite, eastern imperial eagle, greater spotted eagle, malabar, pied hornbill, swallow, nightjars, dronge, paradisefly, kingfisher, bulbul,white-tailed eagle, Pallas's fish eagle, grey-headed fish eagle, lesser kestrel and vulture.

The sanctuary is quite rich in flora as well, flaunting both the grassland and the forest biomes. Worth mentioning is the flora of the sanctuary that is quite diverse and unique differentiating it from other popular sanctuaries.