Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary (KWLS)

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Context

• A team of researchers and the forest department have found a rare bioluminescent mushroom in the Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary (KKWLS).

Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary

• Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary is a protected area in Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, declared in 2008.
• The area is a tiger habitat.
• Seven rivers originate in the forest including the Thamirabarani River and Pahrali River.
• Several new species of plants, amphibians and insects discovered here are found nowhere else, making it an endemic region.
• The area is a wildlife corridor with high biodiversity, and in addition to tigers, is home to the threatened species: Indian bison, elephant, Indian rock python, lion-tailed macaque, mouse deer, Nilgiri tahr and sambar deer.
• The Arasu Rubber Corporation had destroyed 12,000 acres of forest land to promote rubber estates. This triggered wide protests among the locals and environmentalists.
• Another incident was the uprooting of 20,000 forest trees in the guise of clearing the damage caused due to Cyclone Ockhi. This caused anthropogenic disturbance.