Flora & Fauna in Bangladesh
The forests of Bangladesh cover about 10% of the country and fall distinctly into three regional varieties: the forest in the tidal zones along the coast, mostly Sundarbans (often mangrove but sometimes hardwood); the forest of Sal trees (hardwood) around Dhaka, Tangail and Mymensingh; and the forests of tropical and subtropical evergreens in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and parts of Sylhet. Half of the remaining forest is in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and a further quarter in the Sundarbans, with the rest scattered in small pockets throughout the country. Even away from the forests, Bangladesh is a land of trees. Lining the old Grand Trunk Road in the west are huge rain trees, and every village is an arboreal oasis, often with spectacular Banyan or Ashot trees. The red Silk-cotton or Kapok tree is easily spotted throughout the countryside in February and March, when it loses its leaves and sprouts a myriad of red blossoms. Teak was introduced to the Hill Tracts in the last century, an...