Yala National Park

Yala National Park 

Yala National Park is the most visited and second largest national park in Sri Lanka. Actually it consists of five blocks, two of which are now open to the public; and also adjoining parks. The blocks have individual names also, like Ruhuna National Park for the (best known) block 1 and Kumana National Park or 'Yala East' for the adjoining area. It is situated in the southeast region of the country, and lies in Southern Province and Uva Province. The park covers 979 square kilometers (378 sq mi) and is located about 300 kilometers (190 mi) from Colombo. Yala was designated as a wildlife sanctuary in 1900, and, along with Wilpattu it was one of the first two national parks in Sri Lanka, having been designated in 1938. The park is best known for its variety of wild animals. It is important for the conservation of Sri Lankan Elephants and aquatic birds.
There are six national parks and three wildlife sanctuaries in the vicinity of Yala. The park is situated in the dry semi-arid climatic region and rain is received mainly during the northeast monsoon. Yala hosts a variety of ecosystems ranging from moist monsoon forests to freshwater and marine wetlands. It is one of the 70 Important Bird Areas (IBAs) in Sri Lanka. Yala harbours 215 bird species including six endemic species of Sri Lanka. The number of mammals that has been recorded from the park is 44, and it has one of the highest leopard densities in the world.

History of the Yala National Park

YALA is among the oldest and best known of Sri Lanka 's National Parks. Yala covers about 1297 sqkm or 129,700 ha. And it is the largest agglomeration of protected areas in the country. The multifarious ecosystems ranging from Moist Monsoon Forest , to Dry Monsoon Forests, Semi Deciduous Forests, Thorn forests, Grasslands, fresh water & marine wetlands, and sandy beaches, possesses a large number of important plant species and smaller animals.
    Kumbukkan Oya in the North East and Menik Ganga and tributaries on the West, flow through the Park providing a source of water to the animals even during the driest months of the year.
    Yala plays a very significant role in conservation of a large number of flora and fauna in the country. Historical and religious sites such as Kataragama, Sithulpahuwa and Magul Maha Vihara and many archaeologically important places add additional significance to the area.
     Yala West (Ruhuna) National Park is well recognized as one of the best parks in the world to observe and photograph leopards. The park covers an area of over 100,000 hectares and is divided into five blocks.
Block one is the most visited area since it contains the highest density of leopards. However other areas of Yala such as Yala East had been closed to visitors for some years and it will take time to research leopard numbers in these areas. Yala West consists of scrub jungle, brackish lagoons and stunning rock monoliths scattered throughout the park, its eastern edge is bounded by the South East coast. Yala has well over thirty leopards, probably the highest density anywhere in the world. It is also thought that Sri Lankan leopards are a distinct sub-species from their Indian neighbors, and the largest leopards in Asia.

Block	Extent	Date added to the park
Block I	14,101 hectares (54.44 sq mi)	1938
Block II	9,931 hectares (38.34 sq mi)	1954
Block III	40,775 hectares (157.43 sq mi)	1967
Block IV	26,418 hectares (102.00 sq mi)	1969
Block V	6,656 hectares (25.70 sq mi)	1973
Source: Sri Lanka Wetlands Information and Database

 Location:

Yala National Park (divided into Yala East and Yala West) is situated in the southeast corner of Sri Lanka, approximately 300 kilometres from the capital, Colombo. The park covers a surface area of roughly 129,700 Ha which hosts a diversity of ecosystems ranging from dense jungles, grasslands and lakes to waterholes, wetlands, flat plains and sandy beaches. Only a sixth (14,000 Ha) of the park is open to visitors.

Famous for:
the highest concentration of leopards (Panthera pardus) in the world (est. 35) but also elephants, crocodiles. Also Cultural sites, like the Magul Maha Vihara ruins, dating from the 1st century BC.

Weather:
Generally hot and dry as the park is located in an arid region of the country. There are several rainy periods: November to January, March/April and September. The dry season falls between May and August. The average annual temperature is 27 C.
Getting there:
Tissamaharama is the closest town to the park.