Flanked by the Aravallis, the oldest fold mountain ranges in India, Ranthambore is home to a big number of tigers, but what makes it special is the habitat and environment variance, contained within a very vast 1334 Sq. Km (that includes the adjoining Keladevi Sanctuary in the north and Sawai Mansingh sanctuary).
The wildlife sanctuary is a remarkable blend of dense tropical dry forest, open bushland and rocky terrain, plateaus, meadows and narrow gorges, interspersed with shallow perennial lakes and streams, the vegetation mostly comprises of ‘Dhok’ (Anogeissus pendula) trees.
The Dhok tree has adapted to the extreme climate of Ranthambore (or even the Aravallis). Even on the rocky terrain, the tree grows with ease through the gaps and fissures. The Dhok trees shed leaves with the onset of winter and remain leafless through the summers. For lack of water, the forest generally remains dry with scattered greens.
The forest also abounds in evergreen trees such as Banyan (Ficus bengalensis) and other dry deciduous trees such as Pipal (Ficus religiosa), Khair (Accacia catechu) and Tendu (Diospyrous melanoxylon). While most of the park remains dry through the summers, certain parts remain green.
Prosopis juliflora, a kind of Mesquite is a problem species introduced under the Aravali Afforestation Project, that aimed at limiting desertification and mitigating drought, besides providing for the local demand of fuel and fodder. However, this species has invasively spread across many parts of the forest and injures the soft pads of a tiger’s paw.
The shores of the lakes abound in Khus grass (Vetivaria zizznioides). The shrub and grass cover is stunted owing to the scarcity of water, and unlike the Central Indian forests where the grasses grow to a staggering height of two meters.
The rocks and stones along the river course are weathered by the flowing water. During summers, the streams cease to flow, and the course is now reduced to a patch of rounded quartz boulders and stones.
The unassuming valleys and mountainous caves seem to stand the test of time, both providing recluse to animals from the sweltering heat. Only a powerful animal such as a tiger or the flexible one such a leopard can scale these mountains and valleys with ease.
The patches, devoid of any vegetation, hardly retains water, and there are certain pockets that are filled with water (through artificial means, either through a water-tanker or through a solar-powered borewell). In other pockets, water couldn’t seep through the ground because of the stone awaits evaporation, which slowly exposes the rocks and stones on the bed.
A myriad of habitats within a small boundary, Ranthambore provides quite a flagrant sight to spot a tiger.