The park lies right in the heart of Kipling country, near the Wainganga river, of which Kipling wrote so vividly in his Jungle Book. It was constituted into a National Park in 1955 and a Tiger Reserve was created in 1974. Kanha has been nominated as the ‘Best Maintained Tourist Friendly National Park’. It covers an area of 1208 sq. kms. comprising of grasslands, sal groves, and bamboo forests and is inhabited by 22 species of animals and 250 species of birds. This haven of the tiger is also the only habitat of the rare hardground barasingha. Other animals seen here are panther, sambar chital, gaur, blackbuck, etc. Best Season- February to June.
