Current view: Text account
Site description (2004 baseline):
Site location and context
Barnadi Wildlife Sanctuary lies in the northern part of Darrang district, on the international border with Bhutan, 60 km from the district headquarters, Mangaldoi. The Sanctuary is bordered by the Barnadi river and Nalapara river to the west and east respectively, and fringed by cultivation, tea gardens and settlements to the south. On the northern boundary with Bhutan lies a contiguous sanctuary. Barnadi is close to Khalingdaur Reserve Forest in the east. The area, which lies at the foothills of the Himalaya, consists largely of flat bhabar plains, intersected by numerous nullahs (streams) that remain dry for the greater part of the year. Barnadi was established specifically to protect the Pygmy Hog
Sus salvanius and Hispid Hare
Caprolagus hispidus, both of which were thought to be extinct prior to 1971, when they were rediscovered at this site (Oliver 1980, 1981; Rahmani et al. 1988). The Sanctuary is also important as a refuge for other threatened species such as the Asian Elephant
Elephas maximus, Tiger
Panthera tigris and Gaur Bos frontails. Although about 60% of the Barnadi Wildlife Sanctuary is reported to be grassland, most of it is now grassy woodland. Plantation of
Tectona grandis,
Careya arborea,
Artocarpus chaplasha,
Dillenia sp. and
Anthocephalus sp. has destroyed the open grasslands. Only one remains in the Sanctuary along River Deosunga which is about 200 m at its broadest (Anon. 1990). The main Forest types are Tropical Moist Deciduous along the northern edge of the Sanctuary, and mixed scrub and grassland in the southern part with few trees. The vegetation in the south, however, has been drastically modified by human activity. Most of the natural vegetation has been cleared and replaced by commercial plantations of
Bombax ceiba,
Gmelina arborea,
Phoebe goalparensis,
Tectona grandis and
Eucalyptus and by thatch grasses (mostly
Saccharum, with some
Phragmites and
Themeda).
AVIFAUNA: The site has been selected as IBA due to the presence of the Bengal florican Houbaropsis bengalensis which was reported earlier from the grassland. The grassland is still present, albeit not in pristine condition, but there has been no recent record of the florican from this area (G. Narayan pers. comm. 2003). However, if proper protection is given, the grassland could be revived. Much like other similar forests of Assam, Barnadi WLS is also extremely rich in bird diversity but no detailed study has been conducted. As far as general bird life is considered, this site should be considered Data Deficient.
OTHER KEY FAUNA: The fauna of the Sanctuary includes the Capped Langur Trachypithecus pileatus, Asian Elephant, Tiger, Leopard Panthera pardus, Hog Deer Axis porcinus, Pygmy Hog, Hispid Hare and Gaur. Although the Sanctuary is small, it is a favourite haunt of wild elephants, often in large numbers.
Pressure/threats to key biodiversity
MAIN THREATS: Hunting; Uncontrolled burning of vegetation; Grazing.
The Sanctuary suffers from acute water scarcity throughout winter. More than 300 ha in southwest Barnadi was extensively encroached upon, prior to its designation as a Sanctuary. Cattle, domestic buffalo and some sheep graze in the grasslands. Insurgency has played havoc with the inherently weak management of this important site, as a result of which poaching and tree cutting are rampant.
Key contributors: Anwaruddin Choudhury, Goutam Narayan and Bibhuti Lahkar.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Barnadi Wildlife Sanctuary (India). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/barnadi-wildlife-sanctuary-iba-india on 23/11/2024.
