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Pench National Park

National Park · India

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Photo © Darren Obbard

Photo © Darren Obbard — CC BY 4.0 — Source: iNaturalist

ABOUT

Where the teak forests of the central Indian highlands open onto grassy clearings and seasonal watercourses, a classic dry-deciduous wilderness reveals itself in layers. The terrain here rolls gently, broken by low ridges and shallow valleys that channel the monsoon rains into pools and muddy wallows before the land dries and the understory thins to a crackling carpet of leaf litter. This is a landscape shaped by a tropical savanna climate with a pronounced winter dry season: from roughly November to February the air turns cool and clear, the vegetation browns and drops, and water sources shrink to a handful of reliable points, concentrating wildlife around them. The habitat mosaic — dense sal and teak stands, open meadow, bamboo thickets and scrub — supports a full guild of large herbivores and the predators that shadow them, alongside small forest mammals, ground-dwelling birds and a rich assemblage of woodland songbirds and raptors working the canopy edge.

For the photographer and the birder, the appeal lies in that winter window, when low, raking light picks out texture in bark and grass and the thinning foliage opens sightlines deep into the forest. Mornings bring mist and long shadows; afternoons turn gold and dusty. Because water and cover are finite in the dry months, patience at a single quiet pool or forest track often rewards more than covering ground, and the park's network of tracks and gates makes early entry and late exit feasible for those chasing first and last light. Come prepared for cool dawns and warm, bright days, carry long lenses and binoculars, and expect the drama of a working ecosystem rather than a staged one — large mammals moving to water, raptors on thermals, and the constant chatter of the woodland understory.

Website penchnationalpark.in

WILDLIFE

Type

Pitta brachyura

Lesser Whistling Duck

Dendrocygna javanica

Tadorna ferruginea

Cotton Pygmy Goose

Nettapus coromandelianus

Spatula querquedula

Northern Shoveler

Spatula clypeata

Mareca strepera

Eurasian Wigeon

Mareca penelope

Indian Spot-billed Duck

Anas poecilorhyncha

Northern Pintail

Red-crested Pochard

Galloperdix spadicea

Painted Spurfowl

Galloperdix lunulata

Grey Junglefowl

Gallus sonneratii

Jungle Bush Quail

Perdicula asiatica

Jungle Nightjar

Caprimulgus indicus

Savanna Nightjar

Caprimulgus affinis

Crested Treeswift

Hemiprocne coronata

Centropus sinensis

Sirkeer Malkoha

Taccocua leschenaultii

Eudynamys scolopaceus

Grey-bellied Cuckoo

Cacomantis passerinus

Oriental Turtle Dove

Streptopelia orientalis

Eurasian Collared Dove

Streptopelia decaocto

Red Collared Dove

Streptopelia tranquebarica

Spilopelia senegalensis

Common Emerald Dove

Chalcophaps indica

Yellow-footed Green Pigeon

Treron phoenicopterus

White-breasted Waterhen

Amaurornis phoenicurus

Tachybaptus ruficollis

Barred Buttonquail

Turnix suscitator

Indian Stone-curlew

Burhinus indicus

Black-winged Stilt

Himantopus himantopus

Yellow-wattled Lapwing

Vanellus malabaricus

Red-wattled Lapwing

Vanellus indicus

Pheasant-tailed Jacana

Hydrophasianus chirurgus

Gallinago gallinago

Common Sandpiper

Actitis hypoleucos

Green Sandpiper

Tringa ochropus

Tringa glareola

Common Redshank

Temminck's Stint

Calidris temminckii

Cursorius coromandelicus

Small Pratincole

Glareola lactea

Sternula albifrons

Brown-headed Gull

Chroicocephalus brunnicephalus

Anastomus oscitans

Mycteria leucocephala

Oriental Darter

Anhinga melanogaster

Little Cormorant

Microcarbo niger

Indian Cormorant

Phalacrocorax fuscicollis

Great Cormorant

Phalacrocorax carbo

Black-headed Ibis

Threskiornis melanocephalus

Pseudibis papillosa

Eurasian Spoonbill

Platalea leucorodia

Indian Pond Heron

Ardea intermedia

Pandion haliaetus

Black-winged Kite

Elanus caeruleus

Crested Honey Buzzard

Pernis ptilorhynchus

Griffon Vulture

Crested Serpent Eagle

Spilornis cheela

Changeable Hawk-Eagle

Nisaetus cirrhatus

Aquila nipalensis

Bonelli's Eagle

Aquila fasciata

Grey-headed Fish Eagle

Icthyophaga ichthyaetus

White-eyed Buzzard

Eastern Barn Owl

Glaucidium radiatum

Ketupa zeylonensis

Mottled Wood Owl

Indian Grey Hornbill

Ocyceros birostris

Stork-billed Kingfisher

Pelargopsis capensis

White-throated Kingfisher

Halcyon smyrnensis

Common Kingfisher

Pied Kingfisher

Asian Green Bee-eater

Merops orientalis

Brown-headed Barbet

Psilopogon zeylanicus

Coppersmith Barbet

Psilopogon haemacephalus

Yellow-crowned Woodpecker

Leiopicus mahrattensis

Black-rumped Flameback

Dinopium benghalense

White-naped Woodpecker

Chrysocolaptes festivus

Rufous Woodpecker

Micropternus brachyurus

Falco tinnunculus

Plum-headed Parakeet

Psittacula cyanocephala

Rose-ringed Parakeet

Psittacula krameri

Common Woodshrike

Tephrodornis pondicerianus

Aegithina tiphia

Pericrocotus cinnamomeus

Indian Cuckooshrike

Black-headed Cuckooshrike

Lalage melanoptera

Black-hooded Oriole

Oriolus xanthornus

Indian Golden Oriole

Greater Racket-tailed Drongo

Dicrurus paradiseus

Dicrurus leucophaeus

White-bellied Drongo

Dicrurus caerulescens

Dicrurus macrocercus

White-spotted Fantail

Rhipidura albogularis

Black-naped Monarch

Hypothymis azurea

Long-tailed Shrike

Dendrocitta vagabunda

Large-billed Crow

Corvus macrorhynchos

Grey-headed Canary-flycatcher

Culicicapa ceylonensis

Ashy-crowned Sparrow-Lark

Eremopterix griseus

White-browed Bulbul

Pycnonotus luteolus

Red-vented Bulbul

Pycnonotus cafer

Hirundo rustica

Wire-tailed Swallow

Hirundo smithii

Eastern Red-rumped Swallow

Cecropis daurica

Hume's Leaf Warbler

Phylloscopus humei

Sulphur-bellied Warbler

Phylloscopus griseolus

Common Chiffchaff

Phylloscopus collybita

Zitting Cisticola

Cisticola juncidis

Grey-breasted Prinia

Prinia hodgsonii

Prinia sylvatica

Prinia socialis

Prinia inornata

Common Tailorbird

Orthotomus sutorius

Indian White-eye

Zosterops palpebrosus

Tawny-bellied Babbler

Dumetia hyperythra

Large Grey Babbler

Acridotheres fuscus

Acridotheres tristis

Chestnut-tailed Starling

Sturnia malabarica

Brahminy Starling

Sturnia pagodarum

Orange-headed Thrush

Geokichla citrina

Indian Blackbird

Turdus simillimus

Oriental Magpie-Robin

Copsychus saularis

Copsychus fulicatus

Tickell's Blue Flycatcher

Cyornis tickelliae

Ultramarine Flycatcher

Ficedula superciliaris

Red-breasted Flycatcher

Taiga Flycatcher

Ficedula albicilla

Phoenicurus ochruros

Blue Rock Thrush

Monticola solitarius

Siberian Stonechat

Saxicola maurus

Brown Rock Chat

Jerdon's Leafbird

Chloropsis jerdoni

Golden-fronted Leafbird

Chloropsis aurifrons

Pale-billed Flowerpecker

Dicaeum erythrorhynchos

Purple-rumped Sunbird

Leptocoma zeylonica

Cinnyris asiaticus

Yellow-throated Sparrow

Gymnoris xanthocollis

Passer domesticus

Indian Silverbill

Euodice malabarica

Scaly-breasted Munia

Lonchura punctulata

White-rumped Munia

Lonchura striata

Amandava amandava

Western Yellow Wagtail

Motacilla flava

Motacilla cinerea

White-browed Wagtail

Motacilla maderaspatensis

Paddyfield Pipit

Anthus godlewskii

Anthus campestris

Bar-headed Goose

Knob-billed Duck

Sarkidiornis melanotos

Ferruginous Duck

Aythya fuligula

Ortygornis pondicerianus

Painted Francolin

Francolinus pictus

Coturnix coromandelica

Jerdon's Nightjar

Caprimulgus atripennis

White-rumped Spinetail

Zoonavena sylvatica

Asian Palm Swift

Cypsiurus balasiensis

Tachymarptis melba

Clamator jacobinus

Cuculus canorus

Orange-breasted Green Pigeon

Treron bicinctus

Gallinula chloropus

Grey-headed Swamphen

Porphyrio poliocephalus

Great Stone-curlew

Esacus recurvirostris

Vanellus duvaucelii

Grey-headed Lapwing

Vanellus cinereus

Anarhynchus alexandrinus

Greater Painted-snipe

Rostratula benghalensis

Bronze-winged Jacana

Metopidius indicus

Black-tailed Godwit

Marsh Sandpiper

Tringa stagnatilis

Spotted Redshank

Tringa erythropus

Common Greenshank

Tringa nebularia

Calidris minuta

Oriental Pratincole

Glareola maldivarum

Chlidonias hybrida

Sterna aurantia

Lesser Adjutant

Leptoptilos javanicus

Plegadis falcinellus

Black-crowned Night Heron

Nycticorax nycticorax

Egyptian Vulture

Neophron percnopterus

Red-headed Vulture

Sarcogyps calvus

Cinereous Vulture

Aegypius monachus

White-rumped Vulture

Gyps bengalensis

Short-toed Snake Eagle

Circaetus gallicus

Rufous-bellied Eagle

Lophotriorchis kienerii

Greater Spotted Eagle

Hieraaetus pennatus

Eurasian Sparrowhawk

Accipiter nisus

Circus macrourus

Western Marsh Harrier

Circus aeruginosus

Ninox scutulata

Oriental Scops Owl

Dusky Eagle-Owl

Ketupa coromanda

Strix leptogrammica

Malabar Pied Hornbill

Anthracoceros coronatus

Black-capped Kingfisher

Halcyon pileata

Blue-tailed Bee-eater

Merops philippinus

Eurasian Wryneck

Brown-capped Pygmy Woodpecker

Yungipicus nanus

Streak-throated Woodpecker

Picus xanthopygaeus

Red-necked Falcon

Falco chicquera

Falco amurensis

Peregrine Falcon

Falco peregrinus

White-bellied Minivet

Pericrocotus erythropygius

White-browed Fantail

Rhipidura aureola

Indian Paradise Flycatcher

Terpsiphone paradisi

Great Grey Shrike

Lanius excubitor

Bay-backed Shrike

Lanius vittatus

Isabelline Shrike

Lanius isabellinus

Lanius cristatus

Corvus splendens

Indian Black-lored Tit

Machlolophus aplonotus

Rufous-tailed Lark

Ammomanes phoenicura

Oriental Skylark

Mongolian Short-toed Lark

Calandrella dukhunensis

Grey-throated Martin

Riparia chinensis

Dusky Crag Martin

Ptyonoprogne concolor

Streak-throated Swallow

Petrochelidon fluvicola

Tickell's Leaf Warbler

Phylloscopus affinis

Phylloscopus nitidus

Greenish Warbler

Phylloscopus trochiloides

Western Crowned Warbler

Phylloscopus occipitalis

Clamorous Reed Warbler

Acrocephalus stentoreus

Blyth's Reed Warbler

Acrocephalus dumetorum

Sykes's Warbler

Yellow-eyed Babbler

Chrysomma sinense

Puff-throated Babbler

Pellorneum ruficeps

Indian Nuthatch

Indian Pied Myna

Gracupica contra

Tickell's Thrush

Turdus unicolor

White-rumped Shama

Copsychus malabaricus

Asian Brown Flycatcher

Muscicapa dauurica

Verditer Flycatcher

Eumyias thalassinus

Luscinia svecica

Malabar Whistling Thrush

Myophonus horsfieldii

Saxicola caprata

Desert Wheatear

Oenanthe deserti

Ploceus philippinus

Tricolored Munia

Lonchura malacca

Dendronanthus indicus

Citrine Wagtail

Motacilla citreola

Anthus trivialis

Olive-backed Pipit

Anthus hodgsoni

Common Rosefinch

Carpodacus erythrinus

Grey-necked Bunting

Emberiza buchanani

Banded Bay Cuckoo

Cacomantis sonneratii

Haliastur indus

Crested Bunting

Emberiza lathami

Black-headed Bunting

Emberiza melanocephala

Red-headed Bunting

Emberiza bruniceps

Panthera tigris

Panthera pardus

Bengal Sacred Langur

Semnopithecus entellus

Lepus nigricollis

Indian Palm Squirrel

Funambulus palmarum

Northern Palm Squirrel

Funambulus pennantii

Indian Giant Flying Squirrel

Petaurista philippensis

Indian Flying Fox

Pteropus medius

Indian Gray Mongoose

Boselaphus tragocamelus

Eurasian Wild Boar

Tetracerus quadricornis

View Complete List (294 more) →

COMMUNITY

0 Community observations

No community observations yet — be the first to log a sighting here.

Natural environment

Pench National Park

Warm throughout the year, with rainfall patterns shaping the seasons.

Usual climateTropical savanna with dry winterLowland · Upland

Average annual temperature 25.7 °C Average of the twelve monthly means

Average elevation 479 m Lowland

Climate pattern Tropical savanna with dry winter Main environment around this hotspot

A year of temperatures

Monthly means, with the coldest and warmest highlighted

Monthly minimum · December 19.3 °C Monthly maximum · May 33.9 °C

Global temperature scale

−40°−20°0°20°40°

Terrain and elevation

479 m · Lowland

Average terrain elevation estimate across the hotspot; the figure does not represent its highest summits.

Elevation scale

479 m

02,0004,0006,0008,000m

Lowland

Long-term climate averages, not live weather.

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