about
Flora & fauna of sanctuary
Phansad Wildlife Sanctuary is located in the Murud and Roha talukas of Raigad district. It was created to preserve some of the coastal woodland ecosystem of the Western Ghats and consists of 17,250 acres of forest, grasslands and wetlands. The area was once part of the hunting reserves of the princely state of Murud-Janjira.
The forest on the top hill of the sanctuary are evergreen which include mostly Anjan (Memecylon umbellatum), Phansada (Garcinia talbootii) while those on the slopes are dry deciduous which include ain, kinjal, teak, hirda, jamba, mango, and various ficus. The sanctuary has 710 species of Plants which include 179 species of trees, 66 shrubs and 141 herbs.
The sanctuary has a small population of Indian giant squirrel which is fragmented from the Western ghats. The fauna include 16 species of mammals, 62 species of birds, 17 reptiles, 47 insects and 27 marine invertebrates. The White-rumped vulture (Gyps bengalensis) which is noted as critically endangered is also found in the sanctuary.
