Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary is in the Madurantakam taluk of the Chengalpattu district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Established in 1936, it is the oldest wildlife sanctuary in India. It has been designated as a protected site since 2022. More than 40,000 birds have been recorded in the sanctuary during the migratory season every year.
The Vedanthangal fresh water lake attracted water birds and the area was protected by the local people, who benefited from the manure-rich water from the lake. The guano of the birds increased the agriculture yield of the surrounding fields.
The area was later used as hunting grounds for sport hunting of birds by the rich in the early 17th century. Vedanthangal literally means the 'hamlet of the hunter' in Tamil language. Towards the end of the 18th century, locals complained to the District Collector of Chingleput district about the British soldiers shooting the birds and obtained a cowle (a written acceptance) from the collector to protect the birds. Due to its ecological importance, the British Government initiated further steps to develop it into a bird sanctuary in 1798. Several accounts of the area being a breeding place for birds were published in the 19th century.
In the mid 19th century, the collector of Chingleput ordered it to be established as a protected area. It was officially declared as a wildlife sanctuary in 1936 and was the first such protected area to be established within the Indian boundaries. The surrounding wetland was declared as reserve area as per the Madras Forest Act, 1882 on 4 June 1962. Subsequently, the surrounding 5 km (3.1 mi) zone were declared as part of the sanctuary as per the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 in 1996 and the final notification was issued on 8 July 1998.