Keibul Lamjao National Park | |
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![]() Endangered Sangai deer (Cervus eldi eldi) | |
Location | Bishnupur District, Manipur, India |
Nearest city | Moirang, Imphal |
Coordinates | 24°30′00″N 93°46′00″E / 24.50000°N 93.76667°E |
Area | 40 km2 (15 sq mi) |
Established | 28 March 1977 |
Governing body | Government of India, Government of Manipur |
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The Keibul Lamjao National Park (Meitei: Keibul Lamjao Leipakki Lampak) is a national park in the Bishnupur district of the state of Manipur in Northeast India. It is 40 km2 (15.4 sq mi) in area, the only floating national park in the world, and an integral part of Loktak Lake.[1][2] It is currently under the tentative lists of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites, under the title "Keibul Lamjao Conservation Area (KLCA)", additionally covering the buffer of Loktak Lake (140 sq km) and Pumlen Pat (43 sq. km).[3][4]
The national park is characterized by floating decomposed plant material locally called phumdi. It was created in 1966 as a wildlife sanctuary to preserve the natural habitat of the endangered Eld's deer (Cervus eldi eldi). In 1977, it was gazetted as national park.[5][6]
The largest island is home to the Keibul Lamjao, the world's only floating national park. It serves as a habitat for the endangered brow-antlered sangai, or "dancing deer," whose hooves have adapted to the island's spongy ground. The park, covering 15 square miles (40 km2), was specifically created to preserve the deer, which were once thought to be extinct.