Wilpatthu national park is among the oldest and most important of protected areas in sri lanka its flora and fauna are representative of the dray lowland zone.
It also contains a number of important cultural sites. Extension of the park to include the adjacent waters is identified a priority
Location
The park lies on nirthwest cost, 30km due west of Anuradhapura,and spans the border between north western provins and north central province. The Modaragam Aru .in the south. In the Kala Oya , And in The west Portuguese and Dutch bays and the open sea.
Access
The only practiclaccess from colombo would be via Negombo, chilaw and Putthalam .the turn off is at the little of hamlet of Thimbiriwewa on the 28th mile post along the putthalam Anuradhapura road. The park office, where one obtains permit and guide is Hunuwilagama, 8km from the turn off.
The main topographical feature in this park is the concentration of” villus” or lakes within it. Though looking like lakes, these ‘villus’’ are in flat basin like fault depressions on the earth surface containing purely rain water. Two of these ‘villus ‘are saline, due to a characteristic in the soil. This villu feature is peculiar to this part of the island. The other equally striking feature, though confined to certain sectors of the park. Is copper read, loamy soils extremely varied? The western sector of the park. With deeply forested areas and thorny bushes is reminiscent of yala national park in the southern sri lanka. Wilpatthu national park ranges from sea level to 152m. The area of Wilpatthu national park is 131,693 hectares.
Cultural Heritage;
Much legend and history is associated with the park and its immediate surroundings .Vijaya landed at kudrimalai in 543BC and founded Sinhalese race.Vijaya Married Kuveni, the jungle princess,whose palace lice in ruins at Kali villu. north –east of Maradanmaduwa are Wirandagoda and Galbindi Niyara where Prince Saliya ,son of king Dutugamunu ,is reputed to have lived with his forest bride of low cast,asoka Mala,some 200 years ago .Kudiramalai ,or Horse Point ,was visited by a subject of Emperor Claudius in 47 AD ,who was blown off course by monsoon. The local king later sent his own envoys to Rome during the time Pliny. The palace of Queen Alitani,Aliserrani is reputed to lie burid at Kudrimalai.Pomparippu is an archaeological site where sealed urns containing human remains have been fund. These burials ware probably in pre-Vijayan time. There are engraved stone boundary posts from ancient Hindu temple sit on the top of Kudrimalai Point Nearby,on the beach lies the grave of Muslim saint The old catholic church at Pallakanal is visited by several thousand pilgrims for the annual festival . in the eastern part there are remnants of breached tanks lift over from agricultural systems of ancient Sinhalese civilization.
VEGETATION
Three types of VEGETATION can be distinguished : Littoral vegetation including salt grass and low scrub immediately adjacent to the beach; a 5-10km coastal belt of monsoon scrub of very low stature ; and further inland , monsoon forest with tall emergent’s ,such as Palu (Manilkara Hexandra)and satin Chloroxylon Swietenia, Milla (Vitex Altissima) .Weera(Drypetes Sepiaria) ,Ebony (Diopyros Ebenum)some 73% of the park is dense forest or scrub and the rest is more open habitat.
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