Longwood Shola bags Ramsar wetland status

UDHAGAMANDALAM: The Longwood Shola, known to the local Badagas in the Nilgiris as ‘dodda solai’ or ‘big forest’, was declared as Ramsar wetland on Wednesday along with four other sites in India, including the Karaivetti bird sanctuary in Ariyalur district. With this, Tamil Nadu now has 16 Ramsar wetlands, the highest in the country.

Ramsar status is an international recognition for conservation and wise use of wetlands.

Spread across 116 hectares, the Longwood Shola has been a source of water and firewood for several villages around Kotagiri town. In a first in Tamil Nadu and second in India, the site had bagged the Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy accreditation in August 2022.

It is the only shola (evergreen forest of indigenous trees) pocket located in an urban area in the Nilgiris. Home to several species of flora and fauna, this shola is a critical factor in balancing the fragile ecosystem of the Nilgiris. It is also home to around 170 rare and endangered species of birds, making it an ideal spot for birdwatching. According to various sources, 14 of the 170 bird species are endemic to western ghats.

Another important thing is that the shola is well connected to the local community and provides water to at least 18 habitats located in its surroundings and a larger part of Kotagiri town.

Supriya Sahu, additional chief secretary, department of environment, climate change and forest, told TOI, “This is the only hill wetland in Tamil Nadu to be declared as the Ramsar site. There is a huge wetland in the heart of the shola which acts as a water source to 18 nearby villages. The Longwood Shola has fulfilled four of the nine criteria set for a Ramsar site. It is a unique place.”

B J Krishnan, senior environmental lawyer and a member of Madhav Gadgil Committee, told TOI, “Taking this as a precedent, all national parks and sanctuaries with underground aquifers could be declared as wetlands. The tag could be effectively used to challenge questionable developmental activities.”

Given its uniqueness, he said, the Longwood Shola could have been declared as a small sanctuary or national park to provide it legal protection under the Wildlife Protection Act.

While there are many shola pockets in the reserve forests in the Nilgiris, the Longwood Shola is the only one located in the urban town. Though exploited much in the past, it somehow grabbed the government’s attention for conservation.

One of the builders of modern Kotagiri, Margret Cockburn was the first to move into the area with her ‘Longwood’ bungalow. Thus, the reserve area got its name. A renowned ornithologist and artist, she was the daughter of M D Cockburn, collector of Salem district in Madras presidency.

Until the 1900s, the shola was not inhabited by anyone. However, it became a victim of environmental degradation in the 1980s. In 1998, a group of committed people living in and around the shola got together to form a Longwood Shola Watchdog Committee with the help of forest officials. Their sincere efforts brought a remarkable change in the protection and preservation of the Longwood Shola.


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