Travel Guide Sundarbans

The Sundarbans Forest Reserve (RFS) is the largest mangrove forest in the world. As a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987, it encompasses the delta of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers, on horseback on India and Bangladesh. The entire site covers a vast territory of 1 000 km 2, of which 60% are located in Bangladesh. This entrelac of submerged waterways, islets and mud mudflats, which are subject to the rhythm of the tides, has a unique biodiversity reserve in the world. The Bengal tiger is the most famous of its representatives, but the site hosts many threatened species such as the marine crocodile or the Python python and no fewer than 315 species of birds. Strong pressures threaten this fragile ecosystem, linked to climate change and human activities: rising sea level, increased frequency of cyclones and tidal waves, siltation, salt water infiltration, agricultural encroachment, overexploitation of animal and forestry resources… The RFS is divided into three sanctuaries of wild fauna and flora to the south of the area where access is granted. It is protected by a buffer zone where villages and human activity remain, while trying to safeguard the natural environment.Specificities of the SundarbansIn Bangladesh, the Sundarbans Forest Reserve is bounded by the Harinbanga River to the west and the Baleshwar River to the east and the Bay of Bengal to the south. The three sanctuaries of wild fauna and flora occupy one third of the submerged areas and are considered to be central breeding areas of a number of endangered species. Rich in landscapes of great beauty and natural resources, the site is internationally recognized for the diversity of the flora and fauna of its mangrove, both terrestrial and maritime. The immense mangrove is actually a mosaic of islands and sand benches separated by large rivers or narrow canals of brackish water that rise and descend over the tides. At a low tide, the mangrove reveals the quirky roots of the trees that inhabit it and its mud bottoms. At a high tide, the water lick the leaves of the plants and shrubs that frangent the islands. Water, a mixture of river and Sea rivers that infiltrate from the Bay of Bengal, has a high rate of salinity for freshwater and low water for seawater. This explains the typical of certain species of flora and fauna endemic to mangrove areas, and some to that of the Sundarbans in particular.WildlifeThe tiger: The royal Espèce species is the Bengal Tiger (tiger tiger and baghera in Bengali). There would be between 400 and 450 big cats in the thick mangrove forest, which makes the highest density of tigers in the world. However, the chances of seeing it remain thin for several reasons. There are only 150 tigers in the Bangladeshi part while the territory is larger than in India. On the other hand, the tiger is a solitary animal that needs an extensive area to live and hunt. A male can defend a territory of 100 km ². It also passes the clearest of its days to sleep, not moving to hunting and drinking only in the morning or late morning. Sundarbans is the only mangrove in the world to host a tiger population.Endangered Species: the tiger is part of the long list of endangered species, but it is not the only one. The Sundarbans houses a large population of marine crocodiles (salted crocodile or estuarine crocodile), even though it has almost disappeared from the shores of Southeast Asia (Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Philippines). However, it is the least likely to disappear completely due to large colonies on the coasts of Australia, Borneo and Papua New Guinea. But once, the marine crocodile populated the African coast and Madagascar from where it was completely eradicated.The South Asian River Dolphin, or dolphin of the Ganges, is exclusively navigue in fresh water. This endangered species goes back to the rivers of the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers. It is more than two metres long and is narrow and elongated. He is a cousin of the dolphin of Irrawady (Irrawady dolphin), also present in the waters of Des, but smaller numbers. This species is in critical danger of extinction since the destruction of the mangrove from the Irrawady in Borneo in 1975. The Dauphin dolphin is bright, almost white and looks like beluga.The Indian River turtle (northern river malaclemys) is also part of the critical endangered species. This aquatic turtle is happy in freshwater and brackish waters and can reach 60 cm in adulthood. Formerly present throughout South and South-East Asia, there are now only a few specimens in the wild in India (West Bengal and Orissa), Cambodia, Indonesia and Malaysia. Bangladesh has undertaken a conservation programme of the species in Vawal National Park near Gazipur. Considered to be one of the most delicate and delicate dishes by Hindus in particular, the river turtle of India had almost disappeared from the Sundarbans.Birds: Ornithologists have counted 315 species of different birds, some of which migrate only in winter, looking for a milder climate than cold Siberia's cold. In the early morning, mangrove rings are marked with joyeux of martin-fishermen (kingfisher), peaks (woodpecker), rare grébifoulque of Asia (masked finfoot) or pourprés herons (heron purple). In hot hours, only the eagle pêcheur white-breasted (white bellied sea eagle) dares to go out and walk over rivers in search of prey. Les are a Paradise for all types of birds of water, birds of prey and forest birds.Other animals: As we have already written, the amazing Sundarbans ecosystem has a diverse fauna, each species being the predator of another. Deer axis (spotted deer), aboyeur deer (barking deer), which emits a cry close to the dog's bark bark, is made of choice for the tiger or the Indian leopard (leopard). Mangrove trees are also populated with wild boar, otters, macaques rhesus (macaque macaque), snakes or pangolins. The aquaculture fauna is not, with at least 24 different varieties of shrimp, 14 species of crabs, including the mangrove crab crab (crab crab crab), 43 species of molluscs and more than 200 different white fish.FloraSundarbans is named after sundari, a mangrove and ban tree, which means forest. The mangrove ecosystem is unique because it needs to adapt to a particularly hostile environment: high salinity, low soil oxygenation, warm water, foreshore. For this reason, there are only 54 varieties of mangrove trees around the world, 26 of which are present in the Sundarbans. They generally rise high in the sky and form a compact canopy that prevents other plants from spreading to the ground. Apart from the sundari, there are different mangrove varieties, including the black palétuvier, recognizable at its stilts roots and pneumatophores, these spades which occur at 10 cm from the tight ranks. There are also some varieties of palm trees, including golpata, dear to Bangladesh, because its leaves were used to plaiting the roofs of traditional huts. The Sundarbans forest is a tropical rainforest that can be classified in several sub-genera, which depend on the nature of the soil (alluvial, sand, vase), salinity of water and its renewal (standing or routine waters): coastal forest, mixed water forest (salted and soft), brackish water forest and marsh forest.The threatsClimate change: The mangroves of the Sundarbans form a complex and fragile natural shield against cyclones and tsunamis. The thick forest spread over thousands of hectares prevents water from returning and flooding the plain of the Ganges delta, located at sea level, or below. Climate change and its devastating effects weigh heavily on the future of the Sundarbans. A UNESCO study of 2007, entitled «Case Study on Climate Change and World Heritage», concludes on a 45-centimetre rise in sea level by the end of the st century. This will erode 75% of the mangrove Des. The rise in water has already completely submerged two islands in the south of the zone and partially another. On the other hand, the School of Dependent Oceanographic Research at the University of Jadavpur noted a electrogram of the sea level of 8 mm between 2000 and 2010 and an increase in the temperature of the water surface of 1,5 ° C. These two interdependent factors profoundly alter the salinity of water, directly threatening the Sundarbans ecosystem and particularly sundari. sensitive to salinity. The problem is not so much a change in the environmental environment as the speed of this change, preventing ecosystems from adapting.Human Activity: the entire Sundarbans region is not sanctuarisée and some parts are inhabited, particularly in border areas, otherwise called "buffer zones". 5 million people are economically dependent on this area. The Forest Reserve established by a legislative act in 1875 was intended to protect the forest of Sundarbans subjected to significant human pressure. In 200 years, almost 50% of its surface had disappeared to create arable surfaces and timber trade. Sundari is always very popular and victim of illegal slaughter. It is used in particular in the construction of vessels. More recently, the rice fields have left shrimp farms, more profitable. The voluntary flooding of coastal land with seawater changes in depth the nature of the soil. Increased salinity may prevent any change in culture in the future.Projects with dubious ecological impacts and ecological disasters are equally affecting the stability of the Sundarbans ecosystem. First, the Bangladeshi government has partnered with an Indian consortium for the construction of a coal power plant. It was inaugurated at the end of 2015 and is only 14 km north of the protected area, in direct violation of the Ramsar Convention ratified by Bangladesh and guarantees the preservation of wetlands. On the other hand, an oil slick on December 9, 2014 in the Sundarbans protected area has significantly and sustainably damaged the ecosystem. An oil tanker with 358 000 litres of oil was harponné by a freighter and failed in Sela, spilling his Cargo into the waters of the river. Currents and tides have 350 fuel boulettes over km ², polluting many rivers.Despite these half-teintes observations, UNESCO welcomes good administrative management of the property, with trained and regular staff who protect the area. On the other hand, several laws on Bangladesh's fauna and flora, as well as on the forest, provide a strict framework for protection at this mangrove unique in the world.