Delft National Park

Delft National Park (Tamil: நெடுந்தீவு தேசிய பூங்கா, romanized: Neṭuntīvu Tēciya Pūṅkā; Sinhala: ඩෙල්ෆ්ට් ජාතික වනෝද්‍යානය, romanized: Delfṭ Jātika Vanōdyānaya) is a national park on the island of Neduntivu (Delft) in northern Sri Lanka, approximately 35 km (22 mi) south west of Jaffna.

Delft National Park
நெடுந்தீவு தேசிய பூங்கா ඩෙල්ෆ්ට් ජාතික වනෝද්‍යානය
IUCN category II (national park)
Delft National Park Location within Northern Province
Location	Northern Province
Nearest city	Jaffna
Coordinates	09°29′50″N 79°42′00″E
Area	18 km^2 (7 sq mi)
Established	22 June 2015
Administrator	Department of Wildlife Conservation

History

Wild ponies on Delft island.

An Integrated Strategic Environmental Assessment of Northern Province produced by the government with the assistance of United Nations Development Programme and United Nations Environment Programme and published in October 2014 recommended that a national park with an area of 1,846 ha (4,562 acres) be created on a part of Delft island.[1][2] In May 2015 the government announced that a part of Delft, along with Adam's Bridge, Chundikkulam and Madhu Road would be designated national parks.[3] Delft became a national park on 22 June 2015 with an area of 1,846 ha (4,562 acres).[4][5]

Flora and fauna

Delft island is the only place in the world with wild ponies.[3] They are believed to have been brought to the island by the Portuguese.[3]

References

1. Mallawatantri, Ananda; Marambe, Buddhi; Skehan, Connor, eds. (October 2014). Integrated Strategic Environment Assessment of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka (PDF). Central Environmental Authority, Sri Lanka and Disaster Management Centre of Sri Lanka. p. 75. ISBN 978-955-9012-55-9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-01-26. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
2. Abhayagunawardena, Vidya (29 March 2015). "Will conservation boom in the north?". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka).
3. Rodrigo, Malaka (10 May 2015). "Wild north gets Govt's helping hand at last". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka).
4. "PART I : SECTION (I) — GENERAL Government Notifications THE FAUNA AND FLORA PROTECTION ORDINANCE (CHAPTER 469) Order under Subsection (4) of Section 2" (PDF). The Gazette of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka Extraordinary. 1920/03. 22 June 2015.
5. "National Parks". Department of Wildlife Conservation. Archived from the original on 2016-01-20. Retrieved 2016-01-23.