Sri Lanka is an interesting country. It is often referred to as India’s younger sibling. But, with so many things this island is known for, it deserves to be its own country rather than looming in the shadow of another one. One very interesting fact about this country is that it is linked to the etymology of “serendipity.” It is such a beautiful word that means fate. Well, the word originated from Sri Lanka, which is used to be known as Serendip. English writer Horatio Walpole used the word serendipity when writing about the Persian fairy tale, “The Three Princes of Serendip.”
Sri Lanka has a land area of 65,610 square kilometers (16.2 million acres). The country may be small but it is home to some large animals like elephants. It is also home to the oldest human-planted tree in the world. The tree is in Anuradhapura, and it is believed to be 2,300 years old. The mother tree is believed to be the Bodhi tree from which Buddha received enlightenment. Speaking of Buddha, one of his teeth is preserved at the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy. Every year, Sri Lankan’s honor the tooth through a festival called Esala Perahera or Festival of the Tooth.
Among the best places in Sri Lanka are the beaches. As an island country, Teardrop of India is surrounded by stunning blue and turquoise waters. For those wondering why the nation is also called Teardrop of India, well, the country is shaped like a teardrop falling off the country of India.
With so many interesting things in Sri Lanka, the national parks offer the same level of interest. Here are the top 10 unexplored national parks in Sri Lanka:
1. Adam’s Bridge National Park
It is not really what it sounds like. Adam’s Bridge is not the one people are used to. The bridge is a natural one composed of limestone shoals between India’s Pambalm and Sri Lanka’s Mannar Island. In the 15th century, the shoals acted as a bridge connecting the two countries. Storms, though, deepened the channels making the shoals inaccessible. But the waters surrounding the dunes are shallow, ranging from one to ten meters in depth.
This park looks truly magnificent, especially from a bird’s eye view: turquoise waters dotted with beige bits in the middle. The park is also among the favorite destinations of migratory birds. The brown noddy, for example, breed among the dunes of the park. Other aquatic birds also thrive in the shallow waters of the park. The deep waters are home to some dolphins, dugongs, and turtles. The shallow water is also home to several beautiful aquatic fish and grasses.
The area became a national park in 2015.
2. Bundala National Park
This park is of great significance in Sri Lanka. This was the first Sri Lankan wetland to be declared as a Ramsar site, in 1990. Originally a wildlife sanctuary in 1969, the area was elevated to a national park in 1993. It was also declared a UNESCO man and biosphere reserve in 2005.
Tourists will enjoy both aquatic and land resources in the park. It has a forested area, along with shallow lagoons and salt pans. Because of the variation in topography, there are so many different flora habitats in the park. The significant part is the wetlands because of the thriving plant life and the presence of important birds. The greater flamingo species flock the park in thousands during the migrating season. Other birds in the park are the Asian openbill, black-headed ibis, cormorant, Eurasian coot, Eurasian spoonbill, garganey, gray heron, painted stork, lesser adjutant, and lesser whistling duck.
Some Asian elephants roam the park along with black-naped hares, common langurs, fishing cats, Indian muntjac, Indian pangolins, jackals, leopards, mongooses, mouse deer, porcupines, rusty-spotted cats, sambar, spotted deer, toque macaques, and wild boars.
3. Gal Oya National Park
Tourists who want to see elephants should come to this park in the Uva and Eastern provinces. It is known to host an elephant herd all year round. The park was established in 1954 to protect the elephants as well as important medicinal herbs: Terminalia Billerica, Terminalia chebula, and Emblica Officinalis. Unfortunately, the park had to endure some smuggling of these plants because of their importance. Park management claimed there are not a lot of rangers in the park that could stop illegal activities.
There are several tourist spots in the park including the resident mountains that are great hiking areas: Danigala, Nilgala, and Ulpotha. The park also has a small island where birds nest. Tourists can take a boat and traverse the Senanayake Samudraya to do some birding on the island. There is also the Dighavapi, a sacred Buddhist shrine, also found in the park. The shrine is believed to be an area where the Buddha meditated when he visited Sri Lanka.
Aside from hosting a variety of birds in the park’s island, there are also resident mammals: muntjac, Sri Lankan axis deer, Sri Lankan elephant, Sri Lankan leopards, Sri Lankan sambar deer, toque monkeys, water buffaloes, and wild boars.
The park also aims to protect the catchment area for the Senanayake Samudraya, the largest reservoir in Sri Lanka. The park is one of four catchment areas for the dam.
4. Horagolla National Park
The abundance of hora trees prompted authorities to establish this area as a wildlife sanctuary in 1973. It became a park in 2004. The hora is endemic to Sri Lanka and it grows up to 45 meters tall. There was a need to protect this species, as many illegal loggers have been eyeing this type of tree for decades because of its length. One tree was noted to have grown almost 60 meters in height.
Aside from the hora, other flora species in the park are ankenda, atamba, breadfruit, godapara, kekuna, kitul, milla, moonamal, nedun, and ruk attana, among others. Thriving flora also means thriving fauna. Among the animals in the park are the fishing cats, golden jackals, grizzled giant squirrels, and Sri Lankan spotted chevrotain. The park has also made a name for itself in terms of birding sites. There are around 68 species of birds that abound in the area.
5. Hikkaduwa National Park
This marine ecosystem was already a popular tourist attraction decades before it was established as a national park in 2002. It is popular because of the thriving coral reef population that includes the brain, elkhorn, staghorn, and table. The area has been subjected to various exploitations so that it was declared a wildlife sanctuary in 1979. It was elevated to a nature reserve status in 1988. But those protective measures did not stop the exploitation of marine resources.
Hopefully, with its status as a national marine park, it will be able to revive the coral reef destroyed by human divers as well as from coral bleaching. Sea turtles that have been considered threatened species often visit the corals in the park. These are the green turtle, hawksbill turtle, and the Olive Ridley.
6. Maduru Oya National Park
This is a park of great ecological and cultural significance. The park was established in 1983 to protect the catchment area for the Maduru Oya Reservoir and the wildlife, which thrives in this mountainous park. It is home to the eight-kilometer rocky mountain range. The landscape indicates that it is a great hiking venue.
It is considered a culturally significant park because of the presence of ruins of Buddhist hermitages, shrines, statues, stupas, and temples, believed to have been made around the sixth century BC at the height of Buddha’s enlightenment. The ruins also represented different periods in Sri Lankan history.
Wildlife is also abundant in the park with the presence of elephants, leopards, sloth bears, and water buffaloes. Also spotted in the park are the common langurs, fishing cats, jackals, toque monkeys, and wild boars, among others.
7. Pigeon Island National Park
Yes, it got its name from the many pigeons that live on this island. This is just one of two national marine parks in Sri Lanka. Two islands comprise the park: large pigeon island and the small pigeon island. The former is fringed by coral reefs while the latter has some rocky islets. The area was first recognized as a sanctuary, eventually established as a park in 2003.
On the marine part, it is home to some of the best coral reefs in the entire country. Over 100 species of corals provide refuge to many vertebrates and invertebrates, including some unique fritters. Marine animals spotted are the blacktip reef shark, green and hawksbill turtles, and Olive Ridley. It is a great place to do some scuba diving.
8. Somawathiya National Park
This park is of great importance not just because of its natural resources but also because it has a stupa, which holds the relic of one of the teeth of the Buddha. But the area is meant to protect the wildlife in it. It was first declared as a wildlife sanctuary in 1966 and designated as a national park in 1986.
At one point, around 400 elephants were seen roaming the park, which prompted authorities to declare it as a protected area. However, recent documentation only found around 100 elephants. The park is also home to some black-naped hares, fishing and rusty-spotted cats, jackals, leopards, sambar, porcupines, water buffalos, and wild boars. The park also contains marshes occupied by at least 75 species of aquatic fowl during the migration season. On regular days, there is already an abundance of birds in the park.
9. Ussangoda National Park
Established in 2010, this is Sri Lanka’s youngest park. There are so many levels to this park aside from just its natural resources. First, Sri Lankan lore identifies Ussangoda as the place where King Ravana lands his peacock chariot.
As far as protection is concerned, the park is a breeding ground for sea turtles. There are also a wide variety of bird species found in the park and a few roaming animals.
Ussangoda is also geologically significant as evidenced by its red soil. The coloring is a result of the heavy sea breeze. Oxidation enhanced by the presence of the sea breeze caused the soil to “rust,” hence, the color. Ussangoda is also only one of the serpentine sites in Sri Lanka. This prompted authorities to first suggest that the area become a geopark. However, there are also other layers to the park including its biodiversity and archeological
importance. The park is also known to harbor several archeological sites from the prehistoric era.
10. Wilpattu National Park
This park has experienced war and is a keeper of natural beauty. It was first established as a wildlife sanctuary in 1905 and was elevated to a national park in 1938. It is esteemed for its natural lakes locally referred to as willus—there are 106 of them. These sand-rimmed basins collect rainwater during the wet season, which is significant because the park is located in the country’s dry zone. Wilpattu is also the largest park in Sri Lanka. However, it experienced closure at the height of the Sri Lankan Civil War in 2003. It was opened in 2019 but only a quarter of the park was opened to tourists.
The park is renowned for its leopard population. Around 49 of them have been captured in a photo survey within the area. Other animal residents in the park are the elephants, mongooses, sambhur, shrews, sloth bears, spotted deer, and water buffaloes. Among the reptiles that lurk around the park and its many bodies of water are the cobras, Indian pythons, monitor lizards, mugger crocodiles, pond and soft-shelled turtles, and rat snakes.
With its many lakes and ponds, the park is also attractive to many birds including aquatic ones. Among the birds spotted in the park are black-headed ibis, cattle egret, garganey, large white egret, little cormorant, open bill, painted stork, pintail, purple heron, spoonbill, Sri Lankan junglefowl, and whistling teal.
Flora in the park includes salt grass and low scrub monsoon forest. There are also ebony, Mila, palu, satin, weera, and wewarna.