Chitwan boasts 68 different species of mammals, including rhinos, tigers, deer, monkeys, elephants, leopards, sloth bears, wild boar and hyenas. Birdwatchers can tick off 544 different species of birds, while butterfly-spotters have identified at least 67 species, some as large as your hand.
The one-horned Indian rhinoceros is the most famous animal at Chitwan and you stand a good chance of seeing one on a safari. Chitwan also has significant populations of gharial crocodiles.
As well as these high-profile animals, you may spot barking deer, spotted deer, hog deer, sambar and massive gaurs (Indian wild oxen). The most commonly seen monkey at Chitwan is the stocky rhesus macaque, but you also have a very good chance of spotting the larger and more elegant grey langur. Spotted deer are often seen following the langurs around, taking advantage of their profligate feeding habits. They also cooperate to alert each other when predators are in the area: the hoots of monkeys or deer serve as a good indicator to keep your eyes peeled for a lurking tiger.
Birds seen in Chitwan include bulbuls, mynahs, egrets, parakeets, jungle fowl, peacocks, kingfishers, orioles and various species of drongos. Keen birders should keep an eye out for rare species, such as ruby-cheeked sunbirds, emerald doves, jungle owlets and crested hornbills.
Chitwan has some high-profile species that everyone wants to see, including the following.
Chitwan is one of the last refuges of the rare one-horned Indian rhinoceros (gaida in Nepali), and they are one of the most commonly seen animals on safaris in the park. Only about 3000 survive worldwide, most of them in Chitwan and Kaziranga National Park in Assam, India.
The Asian elephant (hathi) is the world’s second-largest land mammal behind its African counterpart. The elephants you’re most likely to see in Chitwan are domestic elephants that ferry visitors around on wildlife-spotting safaris, though there’s a small population of approximately 25 to 30 wild elephants in the adjoining Parsa Wildlife Reserve plus wandering migrants from Bihar’s Valmiki National Park.
The intelligence, size and power of the royal Bengal tiger (bagh) make it one of the most majestic and feared animals in the subcontinent. Both locals and foreigners have been attacked by tigers at Chitwan – a very rare occurrence but something to think about before joining a guided walk. There are currently around 120 tigers in Chitwan; sightings are rare as tigers lie low during daylight hours. It’s said that tigers are a hundred times more likely to spot you, rather than vice versa.
The gharial is a bizarre-looking crocodile, with a slender, elongated snout crammed with ill-fitting teeth and a bulbous protuberance at the end of its snout, resembling a ghara (local pot) from which it gets its name. Gharials are adept at catching fish, and 110-million-year-old fossils have been found with the same basic body plan, attesting to the effectiveness of the gharial design. Gharials are endangered but there are breeding programs, and young gharials have been released into many rivers in the Terai.
These shaggy black bears (bhalu), the size of a large dog, have a reputation as the most-feared animal (tiger included) among locals. They get their name from being confused with sloths in the 19th century, owing to their long claws and excellent tree-climbing abilities. The bears’ diet consists mainly of termites and ants – they use their protruding muzzles to vacuum them up through a gap between their teeth, a sound that can be heard up to 100m away.
