Measuring only 100km x 50km Goa is India's smallest state, yet it is endowed with a biological diversity that belies its size, a reflection of the considerable variety of habitats found within its boundaries.  

Low-lying coastal plains intersected with mangrove-lined waterways and marshy lakes provide sanctuary for a variety of waders and waterfowl, while in contrast the eastern border of the state is largely forested, interspersed with villages and small-scale agriculture, and home to an important selection of regional endemics and forest specialities.

Approximately 755 sq km, almost 20% of Goa's total geographical area and almost 60% of its forest, is protected within a series of sanctuaries.  The majority of these are located in the gently undulating terrain of the Sahyadri Range of the Western Ghats.

The Western Ghats are recognised as one of the richest reservoirs of biodiversity in the world, with the exceptional degree of endemism contained within this mountain range a result of its unique situation. As with all mountain regions, the altitudinal gradients exhibited here encourage species diversity.  What makes the Western Ghats remarkable is their favourable location in the tropical zone, with an absence of severe cold that would otherwise impose a limit to this diversity. Furthermore, the ghats are highly fertile, a result generated by the intensity of India’s southwest monsoon of which the Western Ghats bear the brunt. 

Running for almost 1000 miles parallel to the west coast of peninsular India and into Sri Lanka to the south, the ghats yield an astounding array of both flora and fauna.  Along their full extension within India they support an incredible number of endemic species:  1400 plants, 23 mammals, 24 birds, 89 reptiles, and 90 amphibians.  Not to mention numerous unique subspecies.  In acknowledgment of their avifaunal significance the Western Ghats have been classified by Birdlife International as one of the most important ‘Endemic Bird Areas’ in the whole of Asia.

In Goa the ghats decrease in elevation, forming what is termed the ‘Goa gap’, yet this does not diminish their ecological importance and from a biological perspective it is this region of Goa that is most notable.

The entire stretch of the Sahyadri Range of the Western Ghats that falls within Goa's boundaries is protected in a series of adjoining wildlife sanctuaries along the state’s eastern border with the neighbouring state of Karnataka.  

The Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary is the largest of these areas, and with an area of 240 sq km (107 sq km of which is also designated as Mollem National Park), is the largest protected area in Goa, providing some degree of security to a large tract of moist deciduous and evergreen forests in the foothills.  

With the exception of those species restricted to areas of higher altitude in the southern states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, possible to find 13 of the 24 Western Ghats endemic birds within the Bhagwan Mahaveer Wildlife Sanctuary.

In addition, the sanctuary hosts an array of forest specialities and southern Indian endemics, alongside migratory birds during the winter months and an array of other fauna.