Corbett National Park

▪ park, India

      national park in Uttar Pradesh state, northern India. It extends over an area of 201 square miles (521 square km). Established as Hailey National Park in 1935, it was first renamed Ramganga in 1954 and then Corbett in 1957 in memory of Jim Corbett, a well-known British sportsman and writer. Located in the foothills of the Himalayas about 36 miles (50 km) northwest of Ramnagar, the park consists mainly of the broad Patlidoon Valley, through which the Ramganga River flows in a westerly direction. The forest cover includes species of sal (Shorea), teak, oak, silver fir, spruce, cypress, and birch. The park was established mainly for the protection of the tiger; it is there that India's Project Tiger was established in 1973 to provide havens for tigers in the national parks. Langurs, sloth bears, Indian gray mongooses, jungle cats, elephants, wild boars, barking deer, nilgai (Indian antelope), black kile, shikras, Indian whitebacked vultures, black partridges, red jungle fowl, and peafowl are also found in the park. It has roads for elephant rides and machans, or observation posts. A reed forest was planted to afford natural cover for the animals, and a large man-made lake on the western side of the park is used for sport fishing.

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