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Sinharaja
Forest
Reserve
is a
national
park
in
Sri
Lanka.
It
is
of
international
significance
and
can
been
designated
a
Biosphere
Reserve
and
World
Heritage
Site
by
UNESCO. |
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The
hilly
virgin
rainforest,
part
of
the
Sri
Lanka
lowland
rain
forests
ecoregion,
was
saved
from
the
worst
of
commercial
logging
by
its
inaccessibility,
and
was
designated
a
World
Biosphere
Reserve
in
1978
and
a
World
Heritage
Site
in
1988.
The
reserve's
name
translates
as
Kingdom
of
the
Lion. |
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The
reserve
is
only
21
km
from
east
to
west,
and
a
maximum
of 7
km
from
north
to
south,
but
it
is a
treasure
trove
of
endemic
species,
including
trees,
insects,
amphibians,
reptiles,
birds
and
mammals. |
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Because
of
the
dense
vegetation,
wildlife
is
not
as
easily
seen
as
at
dry-zone
national
parks
such
as
Yala.
There
are
no
elephants,
and
the
15
or
so
leopards
are
rarely
seen.
The
commonest
larger
mammal
is
the
endemic
Purple-faced
Langur. |
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An
interesting
phenomenon
is
that
birds
tend
to
move
in
mixed
feeding
flocks,
invariably
led
by
the
fearless
Greater
Racket-tailed
Drongo
and
the
noisy
Orange-billed
Babbler.
Of
Sri
Lanka's
26
endemic
birds
(suranganet),
the
20
rainforest
species
all
occur
here,
including
the
elusive
Red-faced
Malkoha,
Green-billed
Coucal
and
Sri
Lanka
Blue
Magpie. |
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Reptiles
include
the
endemic
Green
pit
viper
and
Hump-nosed
Vipers,
and
there
are
a
large
variety
of
amphibians,
especially
tree
frogs.
Invertebrates
include
the
endemic
Common
Birdwing
butterfly
and
the
inevitable
leeches. |
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