Gautam Buddha Wildlife Sanctuary

Gautam Buddha Wildlife Sanctuary, also spelled Gautam Budha, lies across Gaya district in Bihar and Koderma district in Jharkhand. A private hunting reserve until it became a wildlife refuge in 1976, the area now covers 259 sq km.

Its land falls partly in the Chota Nagpur dry deciduous forests ecoregion and partly in the Lower Gangetic Plains moist deciduous forests ecoregion, with dry and moist sal forest, tropical dry riverine forest and ravine thorn forest. Tigers, leopards, wolves, sloth bears, chital and chinkara live here, along with many bird species. A rest house serves the sanctuary, which lies 65 km south-east of Gaya, where there are a railway station and an airport.