Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary

The Bondla Sanctuary, 20 km east of Ponda, 38 km from Margao, 50 km from Panaji, is the smallest wildlife sanctuary in Goa. Located in Northeastern Goa, in the Ponda Taluka, the sanctuary spreads over an area of 8 sq km. Bondla is a Paradise for Eco-Tourists as well as other tourists who take excursions here.

Best visited between October to March, it is open on all days of the week except Thursday. it is a peaceful sanctuary that makes a pleasant day-trip. A miniature zoo ( which includes, Panther, Lion, Gaur, Sambar, Spotted deers, Hog , Sloth Bear, Crocodiles, Reptiles etc), A Deer Safari Park in which visitors can move among deers in vehicles inside the sprawling Deer Safari Park etc rendering it a fruitful ecosystem for the various flora and fauna that thrives here.

The botanical gardens with spacious lawns, exotic trees and colourful flowers attracts a large number of botany students and researchers.

The sanctuary also has a Nature Education Center which has an attached library with video movies that are screened occasionally. Students can learn a lot about the wildlife of Goa.

Late evening and nights are ideal time to watch the wildlife. Probably the most important feature of the sanctuary is the bird watching program. For this, one have to contact the Park Range Office. There are few watch towers located inside the sanctuary from where movement of wild animals can be seen. Also a few eco tourism cottages adds add spice to your holiday trip.

Besides flora and fauna there are many Hindu carvings at the sanctuary which were discovered when the sanctuary gardens were being constructed. Different patterns of carvings reflect the different facets of Hindu culture which were probably hidden from the Portuguese invaders.

Eelephant rides are still offered at sanctuary. You can even go on a deer safari through the sanctuary. Bondla is also ideal for trekking. The trails through the forests are best to experience nature close hand.

Flora

The pristine vegetation in the sanctuary consists of Moist deciduous forest and evergreen vegetation patches cover the forest area. The evergreen type of forests are mainly seen on higher altitudes and along the river banks. The State Tree Terninalia crenulata (Matti), Rosewood, Bamboo trees are common here. can be seen. Other floral species include Mimusops, Rosewood, Lagerstroemia, Terninalia Crenulata also known as Matti, Kindall, Saraca indica, Jamba, Mimusops, etc. The thorny bamboo Bambusa arundinacea and Giant Lianas (Entada) can also be seen.

Fauna

The fauna comprises of Wild Boar, Crocodiles, Panthers, Jungle Cats, Leopard Cats, Hog Deer, Barking Deer, Mouse Deer, Sambar Deer, Spotted Deer, Malabar Giant Squirrels, Indian Peafowl and many species of snakes.

The sanctuary is also home to over a hundred bird species. Kingfishers, Ruby throated yellow bulbul, the state bird, the common grey hornbill and golden backed woodpecker are some of the bird species commonly seen in the park.

One of the most interesting features of the Bondla wildlife sanctuary is the Deer Safari Park. Tourists move across the deer in vehicles inside the deer park that has many sambars and spotted deer.