Point Calimere Wildlife and Bird Sanctuary

Point Calimere Wildlife and Bird Sanctuary is a protected coastal sanctuary at Kodiyakarai (Point Calimere) in Nagapattinam District, Tamil Nadu, covering about 21.47 sq km. Established in 1967 and designated a Ramsar site in 2002, it comprises dry evergreen forests, mangroves, grasslands and tidal mudflats. It is notable for large flocks of migratory waterbirds including greater flamingos, resident blackbuck, and diverse coastal biodiversity along the Palk Strait and Bay of Bengal.

Visitors can expect a low-lying coastal landscape of dry evergreen forest, open grasslands, mangroves and extensive tidal mudflats at the southeastern tip of Tamil Nadu. The sanctuary offers watch towers and forest tracks for birdwatching and wildlife viewing, with large congregations of migratory waterbirds in winter, herds of blackbuck, wild boar and bonnet macaques. Facilities are basic, with forest rest house, watch towers and unpaved tracks; the area is remote and best explored by foot or jeep with forest permission.