Location: in Warangal district,
40 km east of Warangal, Andhra Pradesh
Area: c. 1500 ha
Altitude: 85-90 m
Description of site: A small, freshwater lake set
in rolling hill country with good forest cover. The lake was created in the
16th century by the construction of an earthen dam which was renovated in
1918; it is fed by numerous ephemeral and semi-permanent streams. The lake
and its environs form the core area of the Pakhal Wildlife Sanctuary. Although
a relatively small lake (maximum extent 1500 ha), Pakhal is of considerable
significance as it remains in an undisturbed situation well within a sanctuary.
Laknavaram Lake (600 ha) is 20 km to the north, and both lakes lie some 60
km west of the Godavari river. The entire area was once the hunting preserve
of the Nizam of Hyderabad
Climatic conditions: Tropical monsoon climate, with
an average annual rainfall of 1225 mm and a temperature range of 15-45�C
Principal vegetation: The lake supports a luxuriant
growth of aquatic and emergent marsh vegetation. The extensive grasslands
around the lake are composed of Apluda mutica, Echinochloa colonum, Eragrostis
pilosa, E. tenella, Hackelochloa granularis, Heteropogon contortus, and Vetiveria
zizanoides. Dominant trees near the lake include Barringtonia acutangula and
Xeromphis uliginosa. The sanctuary protects extensive tropical deciduous forest
with a few evergreen species
Fauna: The lake is known to support large concentrations
of migratory waterfowl during the winter months, but no details are available.
Fish species include Catla catla, Labeo rohita, and Ophicephalus striates.
The forested areas of the sanctuary support Tiger (Panthers tigris), leopard
(P. pardus), and sloth bear (Melursus ursinus) together with a variety of
ungulates
Special floral values: The lake vegetation is of considerable
interest in that it remains in a relatively undisturbed condition
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