I had the privilege of being part of the Tiger Estimation activity (It is not called Tiger Census anymore) at Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary from 21st to 25th of Jan (Had to skip 26th and 27th for work related reasons).
Bhadra is around 500 sq kms of moist deciduous forest. I was assigned to the Lakkavalli range which is about 70kms by road from Muthodi where all the volunteers, around 40 of us, had reported.
The first day was about the what, why and the how of the activity. The actual estimation was spread across six days. The first three days involved tiger and other carnivore sampling and the next three involved sampling of the ungulates.
The big cats (tigers, leopards etc) being soft bellied animals prefer to move in areas with less undergrowth. Hence walkways are ideal locations to search for them.
Unlike the past, this time there was no attempt at actually counting the number of tigers. Instead, we just look for signs of the big cat. The signs include visual sighting, pug marks, scat, kills, rake marks (where the tiger has scratched a tree – a typical cat behavior) and any audible signs like growls etc.
All this data is collated across multiple sanctuaries and fed back to WII (Wildlife Institute of India) where numbers are crunched and some fancy statistical formulas are used and finally an estimate is arrived at. The whole process is supposed to take a couple of years.
Also, unlike previous times, tiger numbers are estimated on a landscape basis as opposed to individual sanctuaries/national parks. So Nagarahole, Bandipur, Madhumalai and Wynad form one landscape, Bhadra and Kudremukh form the next, Sharavathi, Dandeli, Anshi and Goa form the third. This way the meta populations are estimated which is more accurate than saying 30 tigers in Nagarahole, 50 in Bandipur etc.
This time, in addition to looking out for signs, there is an attempt at DNA fingerprinting the tiger population. For this, we had to look out for scat and collect any fresh scat that we came across.
So the first three days, I and two personal from the forest department, walked on jeep tracks on a five kilometer stretch looking for signs. The first day, we did find a bunch of pug marks and some scat, mostly old, so we did not collect any.
The next two days were better in the scat department. There was one instance where we came across almost fresh scat which seemed to be a few hours old. I cannot remember when I was as happy looking at shit. We collected a whole bunch of tiger crap stored safely in polythene bags and more importantly away from our lunch boxes.
On day four, we went out on ungulate tracking. This involved a four kilometer trek (two going in and two coming back) on a line transect into dense forest. Along with looking out for Chital, Sambars, Barking deer and other herbivores, we also took some measurements of vegetation diversity (for this, every 400 meters, we mark out a 20m circle and then write down the top 5 species of trees and shrubs.). Then, we look out for, well, deer crap on a 20m straight line. Depending on the number of pellets that we find (yes, we had to crawl on the ground looking for pellets and counting them), we rate ‘A’, ‘B’ or ‘C’ (over 250 being C).
The basic idea behind ungulate tracking is to estimate the carrying capacity of the forest. An adult tiger requires around 50-60 deer sized animals per year. This means that there needs to be at least 500-600 deer to sustain one tiger (remember, not every hunt will be successful). So by estimating the prey density, one can judge the health of the ecosystem for tiger sustainability and how many can it hold.
Enough of the estimate part, more interesting are the stories told by the forest personal who accompanied me.
Tales of elephant attacks and how some people were killed is not really comforting when you are walking through dense forest. But the story I liked most was the one on how this forest was saved from human onslaught.
Apparently, the forest range that I was in was a completely different sight around 10 yrs ago. There used to be rampant wood felling and poaching. The guard said that you could walk kilometers into the forest and not see one deer. There would be around 50 to 100 cartloads of wood being chopped everyday. The forest guards were abused and threatened by the timber mafia and most of them had simply given up on protecting the forest.
And then one day an incident happened which turned the tables. On that night, a forest watcher and a few other guards stumbled on a few people chopping wood and pursued them to a village close by. The watcher then fired a bullet in the air but that caused the villagers to come out believing that someone was shot. In the melee that ensued, the miscreants got more of their people to the location and a fight broke out. The forest guards were beaten up mercilessly and barely managed to get out alive.
The forest department decided that enough was enough. With the help of the local police department, over the next few months they tracked down every one of the accused and made sure that they realized what pain was. Following that, they began clamping down on all activities inside the forest. Cases were slapped for the most minor of offenses and people were locked up. This was when the department wrested control back from the mafia and there has been no looking back since. Now, people are afraid to even pee in the forest. And over the last ten years, the forests in this range have recovered remarkably. Goes to show that, nature can fix itself if we just let it be.
Well, that is my experience over the past five days. The only downside for me is all the tick bites that now adorn my body. These blasted creatures the size of pin head can be such a pain. There are red spots all over and they itch like crazy.
So over the next couple of months, if you call and I don’t pick up the phone, it’s probably because I am too busy scratching myself...
Showing posts with label Wildlife And Conservation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Wildlife And Conservation. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Monday, July 20, 2009
Anti Poaching Campaign (Contd)
This is a quick update post. As last time, the past weekend too (18th, 19th), we covered a bunch of villages. This time we saw a banana plantation field that was completely ravaged by elephants. The villager to whom the field belonged was understandably agitated and asked if we could do something about elephant raids. It is difficult to talk about conservation when livelihoods are at stake.
Elephant prevention trenches (EPT), electric fencing and other techniques have been used but none of them seem to deter these big creatures for long and they always seem to find a way out. The villagers have seen some pretty amazing things that these elephants do to bypass the system. They fill up the trenches and cross over. Of course, the villagers too go half way in filling up the trenches, since they want to get their cattle across into the forest for grazing (they deny it though, but we can make out a human hand when we see the filled EPTs).
Among other things that the elephants do to bypass the electric fence, they sometimes get a log of wood, place it on the wire, flatten it and then walk across. Other times, the villagers say, that the elephants take a few steps back and then simply rush into the fence and cut across. Very intelligent creatures, these !!.
A week ago, I read an interview of an elephant expert in Africa where he mentions similar techniques used by African elephants. It is simply astounding how smart these creatures are.
Elephant Whisperer
Elephants and crop raiding is a different problem which hopefully we will work on later.
But the best part of last week's trip was that the forest department had found two abandoned leopard cubs a month ago when they were a week old. The range forest officer is taking care of them now. I got to spend some time with these cute little bundles. The tragedy however is that these cubs would probably spend the rest of their life in a zoo.
To sum up, the weekend was a memorable one. Though I am still waiting to see cubs in the wild with their mom. Hopefully one day...
Elephant prevention trenches (EPT), electric fencing and other techniques have been used but none of them seem to deter these big creatures for long and they always seem to find a way out. The villagers have seen some pretty amazing things that these elephants do to bypass the system. They fill up the trenches and cross over. Of course, the villagers too go half way in filling up the trenches, since they want to get their cattle across into the forest for grazing (they deny it though, but we can make out a human hand when we see the filled EPTs).
Among other things that the elephants do to bypass the electric fence, they sometimes get a log of wood, place it on the wire, flatten it and then walk across. Other times, the villagers say, that the elephants take a few steps back and then simply rush into the fence and cut across. Very intelligent creatures, these !!.
A week ago, I read an interview of an elephant expert in Africa where he mentions similar techniques used by African elephants. It is simply astounding how smart these creatures are.
Elephant Whisperer
Elephants and crop raiding is a different problem which hopefully we will work on later.
But the best part of last week's trip was that the forest department had found two abandoned leopard cubs a month ago when they were a week old. The range forest officer is taking care of them now. I got to spend some time with these cute little bundles. The tragedy however is that these cubs would probably spend the rest of their life in a zoo.
To sum up, the weekend was a memorable one. Though I am still waiting to see cubs in the wild with their mom. Hopefully one day...
Monday, June 29, 2009
Towards Conservation
Few months ago, while surfing the net, I came across the web site of Wildlife Conservation Society of India and had sent across a mail to them inquiring about any opportunities for voluntary work.
After several weeks, I got a response asking me to participate in a meeting aimed at exploring the activities that needed volunteers. One of the activities that were identified was towards sensitizing villagers against poaching.
The last Saturday (27th June), about four of us led by two very committed volunteers headed to Nagarahole forest range with a bunch of posters. The idea was to cover the villages bordering the national park and stick these posters in places where the message would reach as many people as possible.
At Hunsur (a place about 50 kms from Nagarahole) we met up with a person who has been with WCS(I) for a long time and has worked for several years in this area. He suggested the villages that we could start our campaign from and also cautioned us about the sensitivity of the issue.
He told us that the at some places the villagers may be hostile to any kind of anti-poaching message and also asked us to stay away from getting into discussions or arguments with the villagers. He also asked us skip a few villages on this trip since apparently there was a raid on the house of a villager on charges of poaching and he felt that in that village and the surroundings, there would be an antipathy towards the forest department and any conservation campaigns. So we decided to just stay away from those.
Since this was the first time for many of us in the group, we had decided to just cover a few villages. We started off at around 10.00am but nailing posters was not as easy as we thought it would be. We had to identify the right places; typically we chose schools, public utility buildings (like the local village panchayat office, the government medical center etc).
In most of the places, the villagers were pretty receptive and were curious to know about what we were doing. There were some who would complain about how elephants destroyed their crops and how meager, a compensation they get for it. But like we were advised, we did not get into any discussions and merely kept iterating that our campaign was about anti poaching and requested their support to end this menace.
We could complete about six villages before it was time to get back to Bangalore. We hope to continue with this effort in the coming months and cover many more villages that border the park. We also hope to screen documentaries at schools and thus spread awareness among both the children and adults on the damage caused due to poaching.
All in all, it was a learning experience for me. Having been city bred all my life, it was a welcome change to be able to get away from the city and spend time in helping out where I could in the area of conservation, however minuscule it may be.
Looking forward to doing my bit...
[Update 8-Jul-09: Over the weekend (4th, 5th), we covered 20 more villages. I am happy say that the effort is bearing fruit. Here is a message from one of the volunteers who is in touch with WCS..
Our ongoing activity is already paying back,
There have been three encounters in the areas where we have conducted these camps.
The informers have given us credible tip off about poachers which then passed on to FD has resulted in these encounter where three poachers have been injured.
In two cases the injured poachers have been arrested, and in one the injured poacher has fled.
Good news to all conservationists
]
After several weeks, I got a response asking me to participate in a meeting aimed at exploring the activities that needed volunteers. One of the activities that were identified was towards sensitizing villagers against poaching.
The last Saturday (27th June), about four of us led by two very committed volunteers headed to Nagarahole forest range with a bunch of posters. The idea was to cover the villages bordering the national park and stick these posters in places where the message would reach as many people as possible.
At Hunsur (a place about 50 kms from Nagarahole) we met up with a person who has been with WCS(I) for a long time and has worked for several years in this area. He suggested the villages that we could start our campaign from and also cautioned us about the sensitivity of the issue.
He told us that the at some places the villagers may be hostile to any kind of anti-poaching message and also asked us to stay away from getting into discussions or arguments with the villagers. He also asked us skip a few villages on this trip since apparently there was a raid on the house of a villager on charges of poaching and he felt that in that village and the surroundings, there would be an antipathy towards the forest department and any conservation campaigns. So we decided to just stay away from those.
Since this was the first time for many of us in the group, we had decided to just cover a few villages. We started off at around 10.00am but nailing posters was not as easy as we thought it would be. We had to identify the right places; typically we chose schools, public utility buildings (like the local village panchayat office, the government medical center etc).
In most of the places, the villagers were pretty receptive and were curious to know about what we were doing. There were some who would complain about how elephants destroyed their crops and how meager, a compensation they get for it. But like we were advised, we did not get into any discussions and merely kept iterating that our campaign was about anti poaching and requested their support to end this menace.
We could complete about six villages before it was time to get back to Bangalore. We hope to continue with this effort in the coming months and cover many more villages that border the park. We also hope to screen documentaries at schools and thus spread awareness among both the children and adults on the damage caused due to poaching.
All in all, it was a learning experience for me. Having been city bred all my life, it was a welcome change to be able to get away from the city and spend time in helping out where I could in the area of conservation, however minuscule it may be.
Looking forward to doing my bit...
[Update 8-Jul-09: Over the weekend (4th, 5th), we covered 20 more villages. I am happy say that the effort is bearing fruit. Here is a message from one of the volunteers who is in touch with WCS..
Our ongoing activity is already paying back,
There have been three encounters in the areas where we have conducted these camps.
The informers have given us credible tip off about poachers which then passed on to FD has resulted in these encounter where three poachers have been injured.
In two cases the injured poachers have been arrested, and in one the injured poacher has fled.
Good news to all conservationists
]
Monday, February 23, 2009
Counting Bucks
So how many black bucks are there in Jayamangali nature reserve ?.
Ok, the question is not as profound as “Are we alone in the Universe” but it still is a pretty important question considering that black bucks are an endangered species. Once found abundantly all across India, now they are limited to only some parts, thanks to habitat destruction (and trigger-happy movie stars). The Wildlife Aware Nature Club (WANC), whose members call themselves WANCers, decided to find this out in concert with the forest department and had called for volunteers for a black buck census.
On reading about this, the first thought that crossed my mind was “Whoa !!, they should have chosen a better acronym”. I guess it is still better than other names they could have ended up with like, I don’t know, say “Fauna Upkeep and Conservation Club” and then the members would be called…never mind.
But puns aside, these folks are a really dedicated bunch of wildlife enthusiasts. They have worked for many years and it is due to their persistence and perseverance that this particular area has been designated as a conservation reserve by the government. Since I have always wanted take part in a wildlife census, I volunteered and the good people said yes.
There were quite a few volunteers from Bangalore and I hooked up with a couple of participants who had a SUV. It was just as well, since there was no way my small car could have even survived some of the road stretches. We reached there on Saturday evening. There were around eighty volunteers in all. The evening was spent learning the ropes of how a census was to be conducted.
Here is how I thought it would be, first you spot the black bucks, then you run to the deer, chase it if necessary and finally mark it with a number: one, two and so on. You remember the largest number you marked and then add it up with the rest of the group’s at the end of the day. I had been working on the running part of it in the gym anyway.
Thankfully, I was wrong. Here is how a wildlife census is done (there are other ways as well, this is the one we followed). The reserve is divided up along lines, not necessarily straight but in such a way that these lines are far from each other and cover as much area as possible. Each line is called a ‘transect’. The volunteers are then put into groups. In this case, the groups consisted of four volunteers with a forest guard. Each group begins walking from the start of the transect looking for black bucks on either side.
We were given a data sheet given having a bunch of columns which we had to fill up when bucks were sighted. The details include the time of spotting, number of bucks, how many males, females and fawns and whether they are moving to the left or the right of the transect and the approximate distance from you. The time and the movement info are used to identify possible double counting by adjacent transects thereby reducing error.
Our transect began at a village outside the conserve and ended at the base camp. Since our track consisted walking through shrubs and grasslands, we did not have a guard with us as it is pretty hard to get lost there. It was a small trek of about 4 kms. We started at around 7.30am and we were done by 9.30am. We spotted around 17 black bucks which included a herd of 8. The best part was we also spotted two Indian foxes. These are very shy creatures and pretty hard to find. Infact of the 21 groups that were in the census, we were the only ones to spot foxes.
During the census, you have to stay put to your transect so that you get as accurate a data as possible. So once we had finished the count and submitted our results, it was easier to explore since you don’t have to stick to the path. I and few others went around and spotting even more black bucks and a whole bunch of birds. This place has plenty of raptors (eagles, harriers, kestrels and so on), it is a treat to birdwatchers. After having walked around for a few more hours, we returned to the base at noon.
It was time for lunch and some customary thanksgiving speeches. We all got certificates to acknowledge our participation. It was 7 in the evening when I finally returned back to Bangalore. It would take a few days for the final results to come in before we know what the estimated number of black bucks is. When they do, I shall update this post with the result.
It was a great experience, I loved it and I plan to go back there again one of these weekends, just to get a better look at the bucks.
Because, you see, when it comes to black bucks, it is just too hard to pass the buck…
[Update: I just received the results of the census. Here are the numbers
Black Male 73
Brown Male 56
Adult Female 280
Fawn 45
Unidentified 4
Total 454
There has been a decline in numbers since the last census in 2002]
Ok, the question is not as profound as “Are we alone in the Universe” but it still is a pretty important question considering that black bucks are an endangered species. Once found abundantly all across India, now they are limited to only some parts, thanks to habitat destruction (and trigger-happy movie stars). The Wildlife Aware Nature Club (WANC), whose members call themselves WANCers, decided to find this out in concert with the forest department and had called for volunteers for a black buck census.
On reading about this, the first thought that crossed my mind was “Whoa !!, they should have chosen a better acronym”. I guess it is still better than other names they could have ended up with like, I don’t know, say “Fauna Upkeep and Conservation Club” and then the members would be called…never mind.
But puns aside, these folks are a really dedicated bunch of wildlife enthusiasts. They have worked for many years and it is due to their persistence and perseverance that this particular area has been designated as a conservation reserve by the government. Since I have always wanted take part in a wildlife census, I volunteered and the good people said yes.
There were quite a few volunteers from Bangalore and I hooked up with a couple of participants who had a SUV. It was just as well, since there was no way my small car could have even survived some of the road stretches. We reached there on Saturday evening. There were around eighty volunteers in all. The evening was spent learning the ropes of how a census was to be conducted.
Here is how I thought it would be, first you spot the black bucks, then you run to the deer, chase it if necessary and finally mark it with a number: one, two and so on. You remember the largest number you marked and then add it up with the rest of the group’s at the end of the day. I had been working on the running part of it in the gym anyway.
Thankfully, I was wrong. Here is how a wildlife census is done (there are other ways as well, this is the one we followed). The reserve is divided up along lines, not necessarily straight but in such a way that these lines are far from each other and cover as much area as possible. Each line is called a ‘transect’. The volunteers are then put into groups. In this case, the groups consisted of four volunteers with a forest guard. Each group begins walking from the start of the transect looking for black bucks on either side.
We were given a data sheet given having a bunch of columns which we had to fill up when bucks were sighted. The details include the time of spotting, number of bucks, how many males, females and fawns and whether they are moving to the left or the right of the transect and the approximate distance from you. The time and the movement info are used to identify possible double counting by adjacent transects thereby reducing error.
Our transect began at a village outside the conserve and ended at the base camp. Since our track consisted walking through shrubs and grasslands, we did not have a guard with us as it is pretty hard to get lost there. It was a small trek of about 4 kms. We started at around 7.30am and we were done by 9.30am. We spotted around 17 black bucks which included a herd of 8. The best part was we also spotted two Indian foxes. These are very shy creatures and pretty hard to find. Infact of the 21 groups that were in the census, we were the only ones to spot foxes.
During the census, you have to stay put to your transect so that you get as accurate a data as possible. So once we had finished the count and submitted our results, it was easier to explore since you don’t have to stick to the path. I and few others went around and spotting even more black bucks and a whole bunch of birds. This place has plenty of raptors (eagles, harriers, kestrels and so on), it is a treat to birdwatchers. After having walked around for a few more hours, we returned to the base at noon.
It was time for lunch and some customary thanksgiving speeches. We all got certificates to acknowledge our participation. It was 7 in the evening when I finally returned back to Bangalore. It would take a few days for the final results to come in before we know what the estimated number of black bucks is. When they do, I shall update this post with the result.
It was a great experience, I loved it and I plan to go back there again one of these weekends, just to get a better look at the bucks.
Because, you see, when it comes to black bucks, it is just too hard to pass the buck…
[Update: I just received the results of the census. Here are the numbers
Black Male 73
Brown Male 56
Adult Female 280
Fawn 45
Unidentified 4
Total 454
There has been a decline in numbers since the last census in 2002]
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