Gupteswar Forest

The divine, “Gupteswar Forest” situated in the southernmost region of Odisha and a part of Eastern Ghats, is a great assemblage of significant species of flora and fauna. This sacred place always drags the attention of naturalists, environmentalists, researchers, and tourists for its rich biodiversity and the gigantic Shiva Linga which has rich mythological significance and mesmerizing beauty of the surrounding domain. The 350 hectares of demarcated area that intersects Gupteswar PRF and Dondrakhol RF comprises at least 608 faunal species and 615 floral species. Faunal richness includes 28 species of mammals, .188 species of birds, 18 species of amphibia, 48 species of reptiles, 45 species of Pisces, 141 species of butterflies, 43 species oI moths, 41 species of odonates, 30 species of spiders, six species of scorpion and 20 species of lower invertebrates. Gupteswar is also bestowed with sub terrain vegetation with a rich diversity of threatened and medicinal plants which include, 182 species of tree, 76 species of shrubs, 177 species of herbs, 69 species of climbers, and 14 species of orchids. other than that, 17 species of ferns, 20 species of bryophytes, 15 species of lichens, 44 species of macro fungi and one species of gymnosperm have also been documented in this area.