Mount Abu Sanctuary - Mount Abu

The sanctuary includes within its area some of the oldest parts of mountain ranges of India - The Aravalis. It was declared as a wildlife sanctuary in 1960. The highest point of the Aravalis i.e. the Guru Shikhar falls in this sanctuary. The sanctuary is long and narrow but the top spreads out into a picturesque plateau which is about 19 km. in length and 5-8 km. in breadth. Its altitude varies from 300mt. at the foot to 1722 mt. at Guru Shikhar, the highest peak of the Aravali Ranges. The rocks are igneous but have developed large cavities in many places due to the weathering. This feature is typical of the Aravali, particularly of Mt. Abu. Toad Rock in Mount Abu is one such example.

The sanctuary has great potential for Eco-tourism. There are large number of places for sight-seeing.

Mount Abu has diverse vegetation starting with xenomorphic subtropical thorn forest at the foot of the hills to subtropical evergreen forest depending on the quantum of precipitation. These forests consist of 112 plant families with 449 genera and 820 species. Of these, 663 species are dicots while 157 species are monocots. Mount Abu is the only place in Rajasthan where one can observe a variety of orchids. The place is also rich in bryophytes and algae. Three species of wild roses and 16 species of ferns, some of which are quite rare have also been sighted from here. The south-west part of the sanctuary is rich in bamboo forests.