Margalla Hills

Margalla hills
The Margalla hills are above the city of Islamabad
Ecology
RealmIndomalayan
BiomeTropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forest
Borders
Bird species431
Mammal species38
Geography
CountryPakistan
StateIslamabad Capital Territory
Elevation1,604 m (5,262 ft) of Tilla Charouni
Coordinates33°45′39″N 73°02′07″E / 33.7608°N 73.0353°E / 33.7608; 73.0353
GeologyEarly Eocene Limestone formations
Climate type
Humid subtropical climate
Conservation
Protected71%

The Margalla Hills is a hill range within the Margalla Hills National Park in the northwestern Punjab region in Pakistan, forming the northern edge of the Islamabad Capital Territory, just south of Haripur district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. They are part of the Himalayan foothills on the Himalayan biodiversity hotspot and form a subtropical moist broadleaf forest ecoregion. The Margalla range has an area of 12,605 hectares. The biodiversity in these hills is significantly higher than the drier areas to the south and the colder areas up north, primarily due to its high rainfall and subtropical heat.[citation needed]

Climate

This region falls in the humid subtropical climate zone. The average annual rainfall in the Islamabad area is 1,457 millimetres (57.4 in). Much of the high rainfall is delivered here from the moisture laden air of the Bay of Bengal hitting the lower Himalayas.

Paleontology and archeology

According to the research carried out by scientists and archaeologists of the project "Post-Earthquake Explorations of Human Remains in Margalla Hills", the formation of the Margalla Hills dates to the Miocene epoch. The dominant limestone of the Margalla is mixed with sandstone and occasional minor beds of shale. The archaeologists of the project have also found two human footprints over one million years old here, preserved in sands.

Panoramic view of Margalla hills

The Shah Allah Ditta Caves are also part of its ancient history. This cave is about 2500 years old and is believed that Alexander The Great as well as several other emperors used this route to either pass by or pass into this area. The cave also have Buddhist-era murals dating to at least 2400 before present. The cave has seven alcoves of different sizes for lamps which are still conserved today. Furthermore, one of the paintings found within the cave is of the Hindu god Shiva.

Flora

Dense vegetation of the forest

There are around 250 to 300 species of plants on the Margalla Hills. As many as two-thirds of them are used by the people for their medicinal effects to treat or cure various diseases.

There are several species of native trees in hills, some of the trees in the moist lower slopes include species like the Bombax ceiba, Ficus benghalensis, Ficus racemosa, Ficus religiosa, Ficus auriculata, Bauhinia variegata, Butea monosperma, Syzygium cumini, Erythrina suberosa, Melia azedarach, Toona ciliata, Flacourtia indica, Lannea coromandelica, Mallotus philippensis, Albizia lebbeck, Phyllanthus emblica, Dalbergia sissoo, Senegalia catechu, Senegalia modesta, Vachellia nilotica and various others. The cooler upper slopes are inhabited by Pinus roxburghii, Quercus leucotrichophora, Pyrus pashia, Olea ferruginea, Aesculus indica, Dodonaea viscosa and Corylus jacquemontii, which transition into the Himalayan subtropical pine forests.

There is high diversity of the other plants as well including Adhatoda vasica, Rhododendron arboreum, Incarvillea emodi, Indigofera heterantha, Hypericum oblongifolium, Tulipa clusiana, Clematis gouriana, Helicteres isora, Woodfordia fruticosa, Viburnum cotinifolium, Chrysojasminum humile, Commelina benghalensis, Phyla nodiflora, Nelumbo nucifera, Gloriosa superba, Sauromatum venosum, Malva sylvestris, Hedera nepalensis, fern species like Adiantum incisum and Pteris vittata, as well as the bamboo species Dendrocalamus strictus.

Fauna

There have been 430+ bird species recorded in and around Margalla hills, some of them include the blue-throated barbet, coppersmith barbet, great barbet, plum-headed parakeet, rose-ringed parakeet, slaty-headed parakeet, Indian pitta, Indian paradise flycatcher, spotted forktail, Indian pied myna, rusty-cheeked scimitar babbler, rufous-bellied niltava, verditer flycatcher, blue-throated blue flycatcher, crimson sunbird, Mrs. Gould's sunbird, purple sunbird, kalij pheasant, Asian koel, orange-headed thrush, rufous treepie, Indian pond heron, scarlet minivet, wire-tailed swallow, Himalayan bulbul, Indian white-eye, brahminy starling, white-capped redstart, Oriental magpie-robin, red-vented bulbul and others.

There are around 30 or more mammal species here, some of the herbivores include the rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta), Northern red muntjac (Muntiacus vaginalis), Kashmir flying squirrel (Eoglaucomys fimbriatus), Indian crested porcupine (Hystrix indica), and grey goral (Naemorhedus goral), predators include the Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca), Indian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes), golden jackal (Canis aureus), yellow-throated marten (Matres flavigula), masked palm civet (Paguma larvata), small Indian civet (Viverricula indica), jungle cat (Felis chaus) and leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis).

There are many butterfly species in and around these hills like the papilio protenor, papilio polyctor, vagrans egista, graphium sarpedon, hypolimnas bolina, pseudergolis wedah, athyma perius, symbrenthia lilaea, arhopala rama, catopsilia pomona, charaxes agrarius as well as the Tajuria cippus.

Bird watching

The Margallas are an excellent place for bird watchers. The area is home to a large number of birds, including robins, sparrows, kites, crows, larks, paradise flycatchers, black partridge, shrikes, pheasants, spotted doves, Egyptian vultures, falcons, hawks, eagles, Himalayan griffon vulture, laggar falcon, peregrine falcon, kestrel, Indian sparrow hawk, white cheeked bulbul, yellow vented bulbul, cheer pheasant, khalij pheasant, golden oriole, collared dove, wheatears and buntings.

The cheer pheasant, indigenous to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, was being reared in Margalla Hills as a part of conservation campaign by the World Pheasant Association and Capital Development Authority.

Environmental conservation

The ecology of Margallas faces threats from quarrying by stone-crushing plants, deforestation, illegal encroachments, and buildings, and poachers. Crush plants situated around the hills near Taxila are busy eroding the hills for extracting building material. Deforestation is resulting from fires and illegal felling of trees.

Forested road next to the hills.

Margalla Hills Society

The Margalla Hills Society was established in 1989.

World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Pakistan

The WWF-Pakistan's 'Green School Programme', in collaboration with the Capital Development Authority (CDA), carries out 'Eco-Adventure Activities' on the Margalla hills to raise awareness in the school children regarding the conservation of natural environment and about the importance of being environmentally responsible.

Tilla Charouni, highest peak with 1,604 metres (5,262 ft)

Events

Daman-e-Koh lookout park in the Margalla Hills, Islamabad

Places in Margalla Hills

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Punjabi, Urdu: مارگلہ پہاڑیاں

References

  1. ↑ https://www.thenews.com.pk/tns/detail/668362-can-margalla-be-saved-from-commercial Archived 17 April 2026 at the Wayback Machine predators#:~:text=The%20Rawal%20Lake%20and%20Shakarparian,army%2C%20all%20departments%20remained%20tightlipped.&text=Share%20this%20article:
  2. ↑ "Another fire breaks out on Margalla Hills". Dawn. 27 May 2021. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  3. ↑ Vegetation classification of the Margalla foothills, Islamabad under the influence of edaphic factors and anthropogenic activities using modern ecological tools- Majid Iqbal, Shujaul Mulk Khan, Zeeshan Ahmad, Murtaza Hussain. Archived 12 November 2025 at the Wayback Machine - Retrieved 11 April 2026
  4. 1 2 "Full article: Vegetation classification of the Margalla foothills, Islamabad under the influence of edaphic factors and anthropogenic activities using modern ecological tools". ResearchGate.
  5. ↑ "Mean FOR THE PERIOD 1961 - 2009". Archived from the original (TXT) on 13 June 2010.
  6. ↑ "An Analytical Study of Variations in the Monsoon Patterns over Pakistan. 20-1-2014, Retrieved 3-4-2026" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 November 2025. Retrieved 3 April 2026.
  7. ↑ "1m-years-old footprints found at Margalla Hills". Dawn. 28 July 2007. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  8. ↑ "64 per cent plants on Margalla Hills used for treatment of diseases - thenews.com.pk". The News International. 17 December 2012. Archived from the original on 17 December 2012. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  9. ↑ "D7BL1MHP Ecological Baseline Margalla Hills National Park | PDF | Grazing | Habitat".
  10. 1 2 "Margallah Hills National Park: Ecological Baseline: Draft Report". www.scribd.com. Archived from the original on 20 February 2026. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
  11. ↑ Indigenous uses of economically important flora of Margallah Hills National Park, Islamabad, Pakistan- Asma Jabeen, Mir Khan, dr mushtaq Ahmad, Muhammad Zafar Archived 30 January 2021 at the Wayback Machine March 2009. Retrieved 12 March 2026
  12. ↑ Franklin, Smith and. "Prospects of Bamboo cultivation in N.W.F.P." researcherslinks.com. Archived from the original on 18 March 2025. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  13. ↑ Bird checklist - Islamabad, Pakistan Archived 16 April 2026 at the Wayback Machine. ebird.org. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
  14. ↑ "Margalla Hills National Park bird checklist - Avibase - Bird Checklists of the World". avibase.bsc-eoc.org. Archived from the original on 9 August 2025. Retrieved 22 November 2025.
  15. ↑ "Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona: Scientific journals". Archived from the original on 2 December 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2025.
  16. ↑ "Ecological Baseline of Margalla Hills". www.scribd.com. Archived from the original on 20 February 2026. Retrieved 7 January 2026.
  17. ↑ "Seasonal indices in prey species of the leopard cat in Margalla Hills... | Download Scientific Diagram".
  18. ↑ "Observations". Archived from the original on 7 October 2025. Retrieved 4 October 2025.
  19. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 May 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  20. ↑ "Margalla Hills National Park". Wildlife of Pakistan. Archived from the original on 10 December 2017. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  21. ↑ "Cheer pheasant reintroduced successfully into the wild". The Express Tribune. 6 November 2021. Archived from the original on 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  22. ↑ Anwar, Shahzad (28 December 2014). "Environmental hazard: Stone-crushing plants nibbling away Margallas". The Express Tribune. Archived from the original on 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  23. ↑ Anjum, Shakeel (11 September 2018). "Encroachers causing deforestation on Margalla Hills". The News International. Archived from the original on 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  24. ↑ Iqbal, Nasir (10 November 2021). "IHC orders survey of damage caused to Margalla Hills National Park". Dawn. Archived from the original on 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  25. ↑ "Experts call for halt to poaching of pangolin". The Express Tribune. 30 January 2022. Archived from the original on 2 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  26. ↑ "Stone crushers pose threat to Margallas: World Earth Day observed". Dawn. 23 April 2009. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  27. ↑ "CDA fails to control Margalla Hills fire". Daily Times. 3 December 2013. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  28. ↑ "Roedad Khan - Margalla Hills Society". Roedad.com. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  29. ↑ Khan, Aurangzaib (25 February 2015). "Herald Exclusive: The whole Roedad". Dawn. Archived from the original on 2 October 2023. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  30. ↑ Salam, Afia (7 October 2013). "A tunnel without vision". Dawn. Archived from the original on 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  31. ↑ "PM's intervention sought to halt work on Margalla Road". Dawn. 20 December 2021. Archived from the original on 23 February 2022. Retrieved 23 February 2022.
  32. ↑ "Eco-adventure activity launched on Margalla Hills - thenews.com.pk". The News International. 26 December 2012. Archived from the original on 26 December 2012. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  33. ↑ Crilly, Rob (28 July 2010). "Passenger plane crashes outside Islamabad". The Daily Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 29 July 2010. Retrieved 28 July 2010.
  34. ↑ "Margalla Hills receive snowfall after 6 years". 2 December 2013. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  35. ↑ "Margalla Hills turn snowy after a decade". Dawn. 11 February 2016. Archived from the original on 17 January 2022. Retrieved 22 September 2022.