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The need to conserve the environment was deeply ingrained in
traditional Sri Lankan society: in the 3rd c. BC, the
country’s first
Buddhist monarch established the world’s first wildlife
sanctuary.
Today, this tradition continues with 13% of Sri Lanka
conserved as
national parks, reserves, sanctuaries and jungle corridors.
Sri Lanka possesses a high degree of biodiversity. Indeed
the island
(together with the Western Ghats of India) has been
identified by
Conservation International as one of 34 world biodiversity
hot spots.
In addition, The Sinharaja Forest Reserve, the country’s
last viable
area of primary tropical rainforest has been designated a
UNESCO World
Heritage Site. What’s remarkable is the high proportion of
endemic
species.
A safari in one of the 14 national parks offers the chance
to see some
of Sri Lanka’s 91 mammals (16 endemic) - elephant, leopard,
sloth bear,
sambhur, spotted deer, hog, mouse- and barking-deer, wild
boar,
porcupine, ant-eater, civet cat, loris, giant squirrel, and
monkeys
such as the macaque, purple-faced leaf monkey and grey
langur.
The island is an ornithologist’s paradise, with over 233
resident
species, (33 endemic) - but migratory species stretch the
number to an
astounding 482. There are 171 reptiles (101 endemic
including two
crocodile species). Thankfully, only five of the 83 snake
species are
lethal. In recent years there has been a surge in the
discovery of
amphibians, so that by the time you read this, the figure of
106 (90
endemic), will no doubt have risen.
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