Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve

Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve
Location	Gangentic Delta (West Bengal, India)
Coordinates	21°54′19″N 88°37′09″E / 21.9052°N 88.6191°E / 21.9052; 88.6191
Area	9,630 km2 (3,720 sq mi)
Established	29 March 1989; 35 years ago (1989-03-29)
Governing body	West Bengal forest department, Project Tiger
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The Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve is a biosphere reserve in the Indian state of West Bengal, based on the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme list.^[1] It is one of the 18 biosphere reserves in India and the third largest in terms of area. The Biosphere Reserve is constituted of the Sundarbans area spread across South 24 Parganas and North 24 Parganas district districts of West Bengal. The Indian Sundarbans as a Biosphere Reserve is bounded by the Muri Ganga River in the west and the Hariabhanga and Raimangal rivers in the east. Sundarbans has a very rich diversity of aquatic and terrestrial flora and fauna. In fact, the highly productive ecosystems of the Sundarbans act as natural fish nurseries. It provides habitat for the Royal Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris tigris).^[2]

The Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve or Indian Sundarbans covers an area of 9,630 square kilometers (3,720 sq mi) and is divided into core, buffer, and transi-tion zones.^[3] The area of reserved forest under the Biosphere Reserve is about 4263 km²,^[3] of which 55% land is under vegetation cover and the remaining 45 per cent under wetland/intertidal zone. About 40% of the reserved forest area is covered under the protected area. The protected areas under the Biosphere Reserve are Sundarbans National Park, Sajnekhali Wildlife Sanctuary, Lothian Island Wildlife Sanctuary and Haliday Island Wildlife Sanctuary. The Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve area includes the Sundarbans Tiger Reserve, which comprises a total of 2558 km² of protected forest area.