Flora and Fauna

Despite the small size, Sri Lanka has one of the highest density of endemic plants and animals thus the country is rated as one of the top five biodiversity hotspots in the world. Ninety-one species of mammals including large herds of Asian wild  elephants, spotted deers,  sambars, sloth bears, leopards inhabit the land while the ocean around the country is home for  mighty blue whales, sperm whales,  and lively dolphins. Sri Lanka is  one of the best locations for whale and dolphin watching in the world.
Among the 433 bird species recorded in Sri Lanka, 233 are residents while 80 species have developed distinct Sri Lankan races with 20 endemic species.  Sri Lanka has one of the richest diversity of amphibians in the world, containing over 120 species of amphibians of which 105 are endemic.
The highest endemic amphibian species density of the country is recorded within the world heritage Sinharaja rainforest of Sri Lanka.