Pench National Park Internationally Popular Must Visit Safari
Pench Tiger Reserve, also known as Pench National Park, is one of India’s most prominent tiger reserves and the first one to straddle two states- Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Usually, whenever we refer to Pench, we refer to the park in Madhya Pradesh as part of the park that is nestled in the southern slopes of the Satpura mountain range.
Pench Tiger Reserve consists of the Indira Priyadarshini Pench National Park, the Pench Mowgli Sanctuary and a buffer zone. Interestingly, Pench Tiger Reserve is the same forested area portrayed in the classic “The Jungle Book” by Rudyard Kipling. The story tells the tale of a boy who was raised by wolves and brought an end to the terror of Sher Khan’s reign in the forest. Pench started attracting international attention since The Jungle Book.
Featured in a famous documentary
Pench tiger reserve is featured in a David Attenborough documentary called “Tiger Spy in the Jungle”. In this series, Attenborough lends his voice while footage comes from concealed cameras. During the documentary, you see not only the tiger but also a variety of flora and fauna in the Pench Tiger Reserve. Through this documentary, Pench attracted wildlife lovers from across the world.
Well-organized Day and Night safaris
If you decide to visit the Pench Tiger Reserve with your loved ones, be prepared to have a great time. The reserve has a well-organized safari you can take if you want to traverse the length and breadth of the reserve. View tigers and other fascinating animals when you undertake a safari at Pench. The park is closed from safari during the monsoon months of July to September.
The best time to visit the park is in the winter. During the summer holidays, it gets very crowded and hence, slowly people are preferring to take a night safari in the summers.
Pench Tiger Reserve, you can choose whether you want to go on a night safari or a day safari. Tigers and leopards are active during nocturnal hours. Herbivores like nilgai are active during the day. No matter when you choose to go, you will be treated to sightings of magnificent animals. The night safaris are now gaining popularity as they are quieter, relaxed, and shorter and the chances of sightings are higher. However, night safaris are not great to get pictures so one has to choose accordingly.
Animals at Pench National Park
The carnivores at Pench include the Bengal tiger, the Indian leopard, dhole, jungle cat and small Indian civet. Wolves are there on the fringes and outside reserve limits.
Striped hyena, sloth bear, golden jackal and common palm civet make up the carnivores here. Among the herbivores, we have the Chital, sambar, gaur, nilgai, wild pig, Indian muntjac and chousingha. Barking deer occur in the riverine stretches, while Chinkara is seen in the open areas. Representing the apes we have the hanuman langur, and rhesus macaque.
Finally, there’s the Indian porcupine, two species of mongoose and a black-napped hare, and several different birds, thus rounding off the fauna that one can expect to see at Pench.
Famous tigers at Pench Wildlife Sanctuary
Over time, certain tigers in Pench have become very popular. One of them is Badi Madav (translates to Big Mother). She gave birth to 29 cubs over 17 years. One of these cubs was Collarwali. She and her mother starred in the BBC WildlifeTiger: Spy in the Jungle. Collarwali became one of India’s most famous tigers, giving birth to 26 cubs in 7 liter as of April 2017. These tigers may have spread out to other parts of Pench or crossed over to other reserves like Kanha.
Collarwali was born in 2005 and was initially dubbed T-15. She was named Collarwali because she was the first tigress in the park fitted with a radio collar in 2008. She was a huge female and reportedly quite friendly – because she was the most frequently sighted tiger in the park. Collarwali died in January 2022 and was cremated by a local tribal leader.
Opportunities for stargazing
Pench offers excellent opportunities for stargazing enthusiasts. Being a tiger reserve, it spans over 700 square kilometres with minimal light pollution. In addition, the tiny number of villages that dot the landscape are devoid of street lighting facilities, which is why Pench is an excellent place for stargazing.
Slow trails for you to explore
Pench Tiger Reserve has slow trails where you can either walk, cycle or travel by elephant. Travelling by elephant is the best and safest way to view tigers, leopards, and herbivores. An elephant can go where jeeps cannot, giving you access plus a vantage viewpoint given that you’re sitting on such a high platform. Whether you choose to walk, cycle or use an elephant, there will be trained forest guides who will accompany you to ensure your safety.