Bundala National Park is an internationally important wintering ground for migratory water birds in Sri Lanka. The national park is situated 245 kilometers (152 mi) southeast of Colombo.
Bundala harbors 197 species of birds, the highlight being the greater flamingo, which migrates in large flocks. Bundala was designated a wildlife sanctuary in 1969 and redesignated into a national park on 4 January 1993. In 1991 Bundala became the first wetland to be declared a Ramsar site in Sri Lanka. In 2005 the national park was designated as a biosphere reserve by UNESCO, the fourth biosphere reserve in Sri Lanka.
The area is mainly underlain with hornblende-biotite gneiss of the eastern Vijayan series. The low-country dry zone climate prevails in the area. The area has an average relative humidity of 80%. The national park contains five shallow, brackish lagoons with salt pans in three. They are Bundala lagoon of 520 hectares (2.0 sq mi), Embilikala Lagoon of 430 hectares (1.7 sq mi), Malala Lagoon of 650 hectares (2.5 sq mi), Koholankala lagoon of 390 hectares (1.5 sq mi), and Mahalewaya of 260 hectares (1.0 sq mi). The Koholankala and Mahalewaya are almost totally developed for salt production. The climatic conditions are tropical monsoonal, with a mean annual temperature of 27 °C (81 °F). Annual rainfall ranges from 900–1,300 millimeters (35–51 in), with a dry period persisting from May to September. The elevation of the park ranges from sea level to 10 meters (33 ft).
A total of 383 plant species belonging to 90 families have been recorded from the park. The dry thorny shrubs and herbs are the most abundant plant life. "The Phytoplankton in all the lagoons is dominated by blue-green algae" including species such as Macrocystis, Nostoc, and Oscillatoria. Hydrilla is in abundance in Malala-Ambilikala Lagoons. Water hyacinth, water lilies, and Typha angustifolia reed beds are found in the marshes and streams. The vegetation mainly consists of Acacia scrubs including Dichrostachys cinerea, Randia dumetorum, Ziziphus sp., Gymnosporia emarginata, Carissa spinarum, Capparis zeylanica and Cassia spp. The trees of the forest are Bauhinia racemosa, Salvadora persica, Drypetes sepiaria, Manilkara hexandra (Palu in Sinhalese), and less common Chloroxylon swietenia, Azadirachta indica, and Feronia limonia. Halophyte plants thrive in the national park's environmental conditions. Salicornia brachiata and Halosarcia indica are examples of salt-tolerant plants. In the small degraded patch of mangrove found at the Bundala lagoon area, Lumnitzera racemosa trees are widespread. The strip of Palu tree Manilkara hexandra forest on the sand-dunes east of Bundala village is a unique type of forest in Sri Lanka.
The Bundala National Park has been identified as an outstanding Important Bird Area in the South Indian and Sri Lankan wetlands. 324 species of vertebrates have been recorded in the national park, which includes 32 species of fish, 15 species of amphibians, 48 species of reptiles, 197 species of birds, and 32 species of mammals. 52 species of butterflies are among the invertebrates. The wetland habitats in Bundala harbour about 100 species of water birds, half of them being migrant birds. Of 197 avifaunal species, 58 are migratory species.
The greater flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus which visits in large flocks of over 1,000 individuals, from Rann of Kutch of India is the highlight. Waterfowl (lesser whistling duck Dendrocygna javanica, garganey Anas querquedula), cormorants (little cormorant Phalacrocorax niger, Indian cormorant P. fuscicollis), large water birds (grey heron Ardea cinerea, black-headed ibis Threskiornis melanocephalus, Eurasian spoonbill Platalea leucorodia, Asian openbill Anastomus oscitans, painted stor
Province
Southern Province
District
Hambantota
Location
Weligatta, bundala
