Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary

Grizzled Squirrel
Wildlife Sanctuary
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
Map showing the location of Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary
Map showing the location of Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary
LocationVirudhunagar, Madurai and Theni districts
Nearest cityMadurai
Coordinates9°34′30″N 77°33′30″E / 9.57500°N 77.55833°E / 9.57500; 77.55833
Area480 square kilometres (190 sq mi)
EstablishedDecember 1989
Governing bodyTamil Nadu Forest Department
www.forests.tn.nic.in/WildBiodiversity/ws_sgsws.html

The Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary (GSWS), also known as Srivilliputhur Wildlife Sanctuary, was established in 1988 to protect the Near threatened grizzled giant squirrel (Ratufa macroura). Occupying an area of 485.2 km2, it is bordered on the southwest by the Periyar Tiger Reserve and is one of the best preserved forests south of the Palghat Gap.[1]

The sanctuary covers 485 km2 (187 sq mi) in western Tamil Nadu, South India in the eastern water-shed of the Western Ghats and consists of high hills and valleys, with a number of peaks reaching up to 2,019 m (6,624 ft).[2]

  1. ^ "Srivilliputhur Grizzled Giant Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary". Eco-Informatics Centre. Retrieved 8 March 2013.
  2. ^ "Srivilliputhur Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary". Wild Biodiversity. TamilNadu Forest Department. 2007. Archived from the original on 9 April 2009. Retrieved 23 March 2009.