6
The Road to Mordana
E. Arun Kumar
[email protected]
Kaundanya wildlife sanctuary is a part of the Eastern Ghats that cuts across both Tamilnadu and Andhra Pradesh. These
unique hills are sandwiched between the Seshachalam ranges in the north and the Jawadhu hills in the south. This sanctuary
is unique for the reason that the Deccan plateau ends here and slopes down into the plains of Tamilnadu creating a rich eco
system consisting of valleys , ghats and rivers. Three major rivers originate from these forests and flow as tributaries of River
Palar.
Picture Credits: Google Maps
The major river being Kaundanya which also shares its
name with the sanctuary. A dam across River Kaundanya
is built at Mordana to sustain the water level throughout
the year. This has not only helped the Humans for their
drinking and irrigation purpose, it also has become a ma-
jor water source for animals which has made this forest
their home. The forest hosts a good number of Ele-
phants , Leopards , Sloth Bears etc. The presence of these
animals has reduced the human intervention inside the
forest which in turn has made this place into a heaven for
butterflies.
The road to Mordana dam is about 7 Km into pristine
southern tropical, dry deciduous and thorn forest. The
road is peppered with small streams and ponds that form
a perfect spot for the mud puddling butterflies. Every
turn is decorated with the mud puddling yellow orange
tips making it a riot of colours.
About 43 species of butterflies were spotted along the
road dominated mostly by Pieridae family - Yellows and
White butterflies like Great Orange-tips , Yellow and
White Orange-tips , Crimson-tips , Small and Plain Orange
-tips , Pioneers and Common Gulls , Common Grass Yel-
low , Common Albatross , Emigrants, etc. The other domi-
nating species were from Nymphalidae family (Brush
footed butterflies) like the Common Crows, Plain and
Striped Tigers , Blue Tigers and the most prominent
among all were the Anomalous Nawabs who were
spotted in pretty large numbers.
PATTAMPOOCHI
A TNBS MAGAZINE
WINGS 2 VEINS 1
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