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Flora and Fauna
Flora

Flora & Fauna:
About 10% of Bangladesh is still covered by forest. Half of this remaining forest in the Chittagong hill tracts and the further quarter in the Sunderbans, with the rest scattered in small pockets through out the country. The forest fall distinctly into three regional varieties; the forest of the tidal zones along with the coast, often mangrove but some time hardwood, in much of the Sunderbans, the forest of the hardwood (shal) trees around Dhaka, Tangail, and Mymensingh, and the upland forest of tropical and subtropical evergreens in the Chittagong hill tracts and parts of Sylhet. Even away from the forest, Bangladesh is a land of trees. Teak was introduced into the hill tracts last century and its much better then the teak of neighboring India.

Half of the country is located in the tropics flowering plants make up an integral part of the beauty of Bangladesh. Each season witnesses its special variety of flowers. Among those the prolific water hyacinth flourishes. Its carpet of thick green leaves and blue flowers gives the impression that solid ground lies underneath. Other decorative plant which grows easily are jasmine, rose, hibiscus, bougainvillea, magnolia, water lily (national flower) and an incredible diversity of wild orchids in the forest area.

Bangladesh is the home of Royal Bengal Tiger and others of the cat family such as leopards, fishing and jungle cats. Tigers are almost exclusively confined to the Sunderbans, but their smaller relations prey on domestic animals all over the country. There are three varieties of civets, other large animals include Asiatic elephants, a few black bears (in Chittagong division) wild pigs and deer, monkey, languors, gibbons. Reptiles include the see tortoise, mud turtle, river tortoise, pythons, crocodiles and variety of poisonous snakes. The valuable gecko lizard is known as tik-tiki. Marine lives include a wide variety of river and see fish.

It is difficult to imagine that the country can boast of being the habitat of more then 650 species of bird. Bard watching in Bangladesh can be rewarded. Not far from Dhaka the Modhupur forest is great for a variety of owls, including the popular and rear brown wood owl, wintering thrushes and a number of raptors to mention a few.