Located near Khulna about 320 Km. west of Dhaka. Here in the south, spread over an area of about 6000 sq. km. of deltaic swamps along the coastal belt of Khulna is the biggest mangrove forest, Sundarbans (beautiful forest)- the home of the Royal Bengal Tiger. Its dense rain forests are criss crossed by a network of rivers and creeks. One finds here tides flowing in two directions in the same creek and often tigers swimming across a river or huge crocodiles basking in the sun. Other wildlife in this region are cheetahs, spotted dears, moneys, pythons, wild bears and hyenas. The forest is accessible by river from Khulna and Mongla. There are rest houses for the visitors to stay and enjoy the unspoiled nature with all its charm and majesty. Spending some times inside the forest can be a rara treat for the lovers of nature. Guided Tours in Sundarbans TRAVEL BANGLADESH (TRAVELBD) arranges guided package tours for groups of 2 to 8 and above from Dhaka to Sundarbans.
The Sundarbans (Bengali:
সুন্দরবন, Shundorbôn) is the largest single block of tidal halophytic mangrove forest in the world.[1] The name Sundarban can be literally translated as "beautiful jungle" or "beautiful forest" in the Bengali language (Sundar, "beautiful" and ban, "forest" or "jungle"). The name may have been derived from the Sundari trees that are found in Sundarbans in large numbers. Alternatively, it has been proposed that the name is a corruption of Samudraban (Bengali:
সমুদ্রবন Shomudrobôn "Sea Forest") or Chandra-bandhe (name of a primitive tribe). But the generally accepted view is the one associated with Sundari trees.[1]
The forest lies in the vast delta on the Bay of Bengal formed by the super confluence of the Padma, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers across Saiyan southern Bangladesh. The seasonally-flooded Sundarbans The forest lies in the vast delta on the Bay of Bengal formed by the super confluence of the Padma, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers across Saiyan southern Bangladesh. The seasonallfreshwater swamp forests lie inland from the mangrove forests on the coastal fringe. The forest covers 10,000 sq.km. of which about 6,000 are in Bangladesh.[2] It became inscribed as a UNESCO world heritage suite in 1997. The Sundarbans is estimated to be about 4,110 km², of which about 1,700 km² is occupied by waterbodies in the forms of river, canals and creeks of width varying from a few meters to several kilometers.
The Sundarbans is intersected by a complex network of tidal waterways, mudflats and small islands of salt-tolerant mangrove forests. The interconnected network of waterways makes almost every corner of the forest accessible by boat. The area is known for the eponymous Royal Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), as well as numerous fauna including species of birds, spotted deer, crocodiles and snakes. The fertile soils of the delta have been subject to intensive human use for centuries, and the ecoregion has been mostly converted to intensive agriculture, with few enclaves of forest remaining. The remaining forests, pain together with the Sundarbans mangroves, are important habitat for the endangered tiger. Additionally, the Sundarbans serves a crucial function as a protective barrier for the millions of inhabitants in and around Khulna and Monglaagainst the floods that result from the cyclones. Sundarbans have also been enlisted amongst the finalist in the New7Wonders of Nature.
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