Gujarat has only 11.04% of its geographical area declared as forest, which is much below the national average. Forest and tree cover is in the extent of 11.74 % (7.48 % forest cover and 4.26% tree cover outside forest-TOF) of its geographical area. The unique features of the state are the climatic and geomorphologic conditions viz the largest coastline in the country, the saline deserts of Rann , grasslands, wetlands. These factors have bestowed the state with the diversity of flora and fauna. The majestic Asiatic lion and wild ass have their last resorts of the world in Gujarat. The Forests & Environment Department forms the policy for the conservation of the forest, protection of the Wildlife and the Environment in the State of Gujarat. There are 4 National parks, 23 sanctuaries, 1 conservation reserve.
The hills, which are higher in elevation, receive more rainfall than the low lying plains. The forests of Gujarat are therefore mainly found in the hills of Saurashtra and the other hilly parts of the state. The hills of Kutch are the exception, as these hills receive little rainfall. A little less than 20 lakh hectares of land is under forest cover. The southern part of Gujarat is rich in deciduous vegetation, such as teak. Kutch has thorny forests, constituting trees such as Acacia Arabica, Acacia Leucophloea, ZizyphusMauratiana, and CapparisOphylla.
Flora in Gujarat include a wide variety of vegetation. A wide range of climatic condition facilitates the prevalence of many types of flora. In Gujarat, we find more than 400 species of flora. The flora in Gujarat include one of the largest dry deciduous forests in the western region of India, including trees like:
teak
Boswelliaserrata
Anogeissuslatifolia
Diospyros, etc.
Owing to the arid climate, the flora and fauna of Gujarat also possess a wide range of xerophytic vegetation. This kind of vegetation include:
Acacia arabica
Acacia leucophloea
Capparisophylla
Zizyphusmauratiana, etc.
As per the districts, The Dangs has the largest area under forest cover. Gujarat has four national parks and 21 sanctuaries. It is the only home of Asiatic lions and outside Africa, is the only present natural habitat of lions. Gir Forest National Park in the southwest part of the state covers part of the lions’ habitat. Apart from lions, leopards are also found in state. They are spread across the large plains of Saurashtra and the mountains of South Gujarat. Other National parks include Vansda National Park, Blackbuck National Park, Velavadar and Narara Marine National Park, Gulf of Kutchh, Jamnagar. Wildlife sanctuaries include: Wild Ass Wildlife Sanctuary, NalSarovar Bird Sanctuary, Porbandar Bird Sanctuary, Kutch Desert Wildlife Sanctuary, Kutch Bustard Sanctuary, Narayan Sarovar Sanctuary, Jessore Sloth Bear Sanctuary, Anjal, Balaram-Ambaji, Barda, Jambughoda Wildlife Sanctuary, Khavda, Paniya, Purna, Rampura, Ratanmahal, and Surpaneshwar.
Gujarat has some of the major mountain ranges of India, including Aravalli, Sahyadri (Western Ghats), Vindhya and Saputara. Apart from this Gir hills, Barda, Jessore, Chotila, etc. are situated in different parts of Gujarat
Major National parks and wildlife sanctuaries of Gujarat are listed below:
National parks of Gujarat
| S.NO | Name of National Park | Area km2 | District |
| 1 | Gir Forest National Park | 259 | Somnath |
| 2 | Marine National Park, Gulf of Kutch | 163 | DevBhoomiDwarka |
| 3 | Vansda National Park | 24 | Navsari |
| 4 | Blackbuck National Park, Velavadar | 34 | Bhavnagar |
Wildlife sanctuaries of Gujarat
| S.No. | Name of Sanctuary | Area km2 | District |
| 1 | Kutch Desert Wildlife Sanctuary | 7506 | Kutch |
| 2 | Wild Ass Sanctuary | 4954 | Kutch |
| 3 | Gir Wildlife Sanctuary & National Parks | 1153.4 | Junagadh |
| 4 | Shoolpaneshwar Wildlife Sanctuary | 607.7 | Narmada |
| 5 | BalaramAmbaji Wildlife Sanctuary | 542 | Banaskantha |
| 6 | Narayan Sarovar Sanctuary | 444 | Kutch |
| 7 | Marine Sanctuary | 295 | DevBhoomiDwarka |
| 8 | Barda Wildlife Sanctuary | 192 | Porbandar& Jamnagar |
| 9 | Jessore Sloth Bear Sanctuary | 181 | Banaskantha |
| 10 | Purna Wildlife Sanctuary | 161 | Dangs |
| 11 | Jambuhoda Wildlife Sanctuary | 130 | Panchmahal |
| 12 | NalSarovar Bird Sanctuary | 121 | Ahmedabad, Surendranagar |
| 13 | Ratanmahal Sloth Bear Sanctuary | 56 | Dahod |
| 14 | Pania Wildlife Sanctuary | 40 | Amreli |
| 15 | Rampara Wildlife Sanctuary | 15 | Rajkot |
| 16 | Thol Wildlife Sanctuary | 7 | Mehsana |
| 17 | Hingolgadh Nature Education Sanctuary | 6.5 | Rajkot |
| 18 | Khijadiya Bird Sanctuary | 6 | Jamnagar |
| 19 | Gaga Wildlife Sanctuary | 3.3 | Jamnagar |
| 20 | Kutch Bustard Sanctuary | 2 | Kutch |
| 21 | Porbandar Bird Sanctuary | 0.09 | Porbandar |
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