Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary located in North Goa district covering an area of 8 sq km was first set up in 1969. It lies between the longitudes 74o04'E to 74o07'E and latitudes 15o24'N to15o27'N. Elevation ranges from very low lying areas to areas of moderate altitude (up to 440 m) and annual average rainfall received is around 3,283 mm.

The forest type is mainly secondary moist deciduous forest. Tree species predominant here include Xylia xylocarpa. Terminalia crenulata and Dalbergia latifolia. Other species include Lagerstroemia, Mimusops sp., Saraca indica and kindall and jamba. Woody climbers like Entada sp. occur in many areas.

The state animal, Indian bison or gaur (Bos gaurus) is frequently seen in this protected area. Other mammals found here include the leopard (Panthera pardus), sambar (Cervus unicolor), chital or spotted deer (Axis axis), barking deer (Muntiacus muntjak), mouse deer (Moschiola meminna), wild pig (Sus scrofa), Indian porcupine (Hystrix indica), Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata) and Indian giant squirrel (Ratufa indica). The draco or gliding lizard (Draco dussumieri) is also quite common here. Ruby-throated yellow bulbul (Pycnonotus melanictterus), lesser golden-backed woodpecker (Dinopium benghalense) and hornbills are among the notable bird species seen in the sanctuary.

The sanctuary has a deer safari (PA Update 2003), a Nature Education Centre with several exhibits and a library. Wildlife movies are regularly screened at the centre. From a tourism perspective, the state government has a tourism package that clubs this sanctuary along with Mollem National Park and its many interesting tourist attractions like Tambdi Surla's Kadamba temple, Satpal arboretum and Dudhsagar waterfalls (PA Update 2003).

References and useful links:

Kazmierczak, K. 2000. A field guide to the birds of India, Sri Lanka, Pakistn, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and the Maldives. OM Book Service, New Delhi, India. 352 pp.

Menon, V. 2003. A field guide to Indian mammals. DK (India) Pvt Ltd and Penguin Book India (P) Ltd. 201 pp.

PA Update. 2003. Deer safari at Bondla WLS. April (41&42).

PA Update. 2003. Bondla-Tambdi Surla-Satpal-Mollem tourism circuit. April (41&42).

Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary. http://www.indiatourism.com/goa/bondla-wildlife-sanctuary.html . Accessed on 10 January 2008.

Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary. http://www.goaforest.com/wildlifemgmt/wildlifemgmt.htm. Accessed on 10 January 2008.