Nilgala Savannah Forest Nilgala Savannah Forest is a savannah-dominated forest located north of Monaragala town in Monaragala District, Sri Lanka. A part of it is a protected forest under the Forest Department, whilst a part is the Gal Oya National Park under the Department of Wildlife Conservation (Goonewardene et al., 2003). The forest extends into an area of 12,432 hectares (Goonewardene et al., 2003; Karunarathna et al., 2019). Its elevation ranges between 200m to 700m within the Irindahela, Hangale, Yakun hela (highest point 700 m), Hamapola, Badangamuwa, Keenagoda, Makada, Karadugala, Kukulagoda, Ewalahela, Gorikkada hills (Karunarathna et al., 2006). The government established the Nilgala dry zone park in 1954 (Goonewardene et al., 2003). The mean annual rainfall in the Nilgala forest area varies between 1,500-2,000 mm, received mainly during the northeast monsoon (October-January), and the mean annual temperature is 28-31 °C (Karunarathna et al., 2019). The major vegetation of the forest is classifie…
