Home › Sites › Central Highlands of Sri Lanka
Central Highlands of Sri Lanka

Central Highlands of Sri Lanka

Natural · Inscribed: 2010

Site Information

UNESCO ID
1203
Category
Natural
Country
Sri Lanka
Inscribed
2010
Coordinates
7.4524, 80.8021
Area
568 km²
Components
3

Selection Criteria

(ix) (x)

Criteria: (ix), (x)

Description

Central Highlands of Sri Lanka is a recognised World Heritage Site in Sri Lanka. The site comprises the Peak Wilderness Protected Area, the Horton Plains National Park and the Knuckles Conservation Forest. These are rain forests and montane cloud forests where the elevation reaches 2,500 m (8,200 ft). The region harbors a variety of mammal species including the bear monkey, Trachypithecus vetulus monticola, (a subspecies of purple-faced langur) and the critically endangered [possibly extinct] Horton Plains slender loris, Loris tardigradus nycticeboides, (a subspecies of red slender loris). This is the first Sri Lankan World Heritage site to be designated in 22 years, since the Sinharaja Forest Reserve was enlisted in 1988. Originally submitted for inscription as a mixed cultural and natural site, the Committee recognized only the natural values of the site. On 31 July 2010, the World Heritage Committee holding its 34th session in Brasília inscribed Central Highlands of Sri Lanka and Papahānaumokuākea of Hawaii as new World Heritage Sites.

View image on Wikimedia Commons

View image on Wikimedia Commons

Nearby Sites