The Madhav National Park, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh

The Madhav National Park is situated on the northern fringe of the Central Highlands of India. It is a part of the upper Vindhyan hills, forming plateaus, and having small and big nallas. The slopes are generally gentle, rarely steep. Spreading over an area of almost 355 sq.kms., the Madhav National Park is fascinating mix of natural splendors of history and architectural wonders. The park, one of the oldest, is situated in the northern part of Madhya Pradesh, near Shivpuri town. Madhav got the status of a National Park in 1958.

The park is unique in having both lake and forest ecosystems. Sakhya and Madhav Sagar are the two lakes in the park, which are important biodiversity support systems. These lakes not only add to the natural beauty of the area, but also provide a permanent source of water to the wildlife, and a fine wetland habitat to the aquatic fauna including thousands of migratory waterfowls. Marsh Crocodiles are in abundance in Sakhya sagar lake. Due to this, the lake looks like a "Crocodile Safari" and attracts special attention of tourists.

The park represents the Northern Tropical dry deciduous mixed forest type, as well as dry thorn forest, typical of North-Western Madhya Pradesh. The forests here are home to antelopes like Nilgai, Chinkara and Chowsinga and Deer including Chital, Sambar and Barking Deer. One can see animals like the Leopard, Wolf, Jackal, Fox, Wild Dog, Wild Pig, Porcupine, Marsh Crocodile and the Python.

Having a varied terrain of wooded hills, dry, mixed deciduous forests, and flat grasslands around the lakes, the park offers abundant opportunities of sighting a variety of wildlife.