Anamalai Hills Forest Ecology and Tiger Reserve, Coimbatore

The Anamalai Tiger Reserve, straddling Coimbatore and Tiruppur districts, encompasses 1,479 square kilometres of some of South India's most diverse forests — from dry thorn scrub at the foothills to wet evergreen forest at the summits. The reserve is home to tigers, leopards, gaur (Indian bison), Asian elephants, and the lion-tailed macaque. The Kadars, an ancient forest-dwelling tribe of Anamalai, are among India's most isolated indigenous communities, traditionally dependent on forest honey, yams, and small game. Their knowledge of the forest is extraordinary — they distinguish hundreds of plant species and know the seasonal movements of major animals. The Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary overlaps with the tiger reserve, protecting over 2,000 species of flowering plants.