Pench National Park
Pench National Park is a national park in Madhya Pradesh, India, located in Seoni and Chhindwara districts. It was established as a wildlife sanctuary in 1977 and became a national park in 1983. Since 1992, it has been the core area of the Pench Tiger Reserve, which covers about 299 square kilometers, while the park itself is about 293 square kilometers.
The Pench River and many small streams run through the park. The climate ranges from very cold in winter (down to about -2°C) to very hot in summer (up to around 49.5°C), with average annual rainfall of about 1,400 mm. Elevation is 425–620 meters.
The forest is dry deciduous, with teak trees and many other species such as saja, bijiayasal, lendia, haldu, dhaora, salai, amla, amaltas, mahua, and white kulu. The ground is grassy with bushes and saplings, and bamboo is found in places.
Pench is home to a rich mix of wildlife: more than 40 mammal species, 13 reptile species, and over 210 bird species. Mammals include Bengal tiger, Indian leopard, golden jackal, dhole, sloth bear, chital, sambar, muntjac, four-horned antelope, gaur, nilgai, chinkara, wild boar, langur, rhesus monkey, hare, and porcupine. Snakes such as cobras, pythons, and Indian krait can be seen here.
Birdlife is diverse and includes Indian peafowl, junglefowl, Indian vulture, crimson-breasted barbet, red-vented bulbul, racket-tailed drongo, crested serpent eagle, Indian roller, magpie robin, teals, pintails, shoveller, egrets, herons, minivet, oriole, wagtail, munia, myna, and kingfisher.
Pench National Park is widely believed to have inspired Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book. It was also a filming location for the BBC documentary Tiger: Spy in the Jungle.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 07:03 (CET).