The Wildlife India

For the past few months, Assam has been buzzing with positive news stories of environment and wildlife conservation activities. Three months ago, two new national parks came into existence while burning of rhino horns has grabbed international headlines. Assam has set the agenda for the conservation of some of the most endangered species including the greater one -horn rhino and golden langur, one of the world’s most endangered primates endemic to northeast India and Bhutan.    Unique, Unmatched Transboundary  Biodiversity Famous for golden langur, Raimona national park , became sixth national park of Assam on June 5 this year followed by Eastern Assam’s Dehing Patkai national park  and elephant reserve  on June 9 2021. The five national parks that existed prior to the 422 sq km Raimona are Kaziranga, Manas- both world heritage sites-, Nameri, Orang and Dibru-Saikhowa. Assam now stands third in the list of the states in India with the most national parks after 1...

  Amidst chanting of rhymes and vedic rituals, the “world’s largest stockpile” of rhino horns was burnt to ashes in Assam. The ceremony was held in a  stadium of Bokakhat, the headquarters of the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve , a world heritge site, on the occasion of  the World Rhino Day on  September 22. It was aimed at dispelling myths leading to an illegal horn trade and the poaching of the majestic animal.  But the question raised by the environmentalists is , “ Will it check the rhino poaching”? " A World Record" A large number of people witnessed the “ world record”  made at the Bokakhat  stadium when 2,479 horns stored in 12 district treasuries since 1979 were burnt in six large iron furnaces  especially designed for the purpose. These were lit remotely through drones . The weight of the horns destroyed was 1,305.25 kg. Before the  horns were consigned to flames, experts had verified the horns using "scientific methods" at...

The World Rhino day (WRD) – September 22- is going to witness an unprecedented happening in Assam.  The state government has decided to set ablaze nearly 2,500 confiscated rhinoceros’ horns on this day to spread a message against the illegal multi-million dollar  trade of the horns. The pachyderm, listed as vulnerable on the IUCN red list , is  killed for its horns. Preparations are underway at Bokakhat in Assam's Golaghat district, near Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve (KNPTR), to destroy 2,479 pieces of rhino horn housed in state treasuries. This will be done publicly. These horns confiscated from poachers have been piling for years in the government treasuries . Home to these beautiful animals, Kaziranga is a world heritage site. It is a major wildlife tourism attraction.    Myths of Aphrodisiac and Illegal Trade of Horns Long ago, North-East India’s active conservation group Nature’s Beckon had claimed that the state forest department used to sell ...

Almost a  year after the Karnataka high court stayed the project that had further threatened the already endangered lion tailed macaque (LTM) ((Macaca silenus), endemic to the Sharavathi river valley nestled in the Western Ghats; the sword of Damocles continues to hang over the primates. The Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (KPCL) had launched a geothermal survey  with heavy machines to ascertain if the 2000 MW underground pump storage hydro-electric project was feasible. Besides LTM, the Sharavathi river valley is also home to a diverse array of species and sustains very rich biodiversity. Though the  court stay continues, the south Indian state has not yet withdrawn the project. For the time being, the power project may not have been in the priority list of the government after the change in the political guard, it continues to stare at LTM menacingly. Sharavathi Valley, a Jewel in the Western Ghats The project was proposed within the core area of 902 sq km in the Sh...

Leopards found in the famous granite hills of Jawai are in deep trouble. Encroachers at the Jawai Leopard Conservation Reserve (JLCR) in Rajasthan have reportedly crossed almost all the limits threatening the very existence of the spotted cat, about 60 to 65 in numbers. There is a history of 150 years of coexistence of the elusive cat with humans in the region but overdose of wildlife tourism is all set to disturb the environmental equilibrium. Drones fly over the big cats and gypsies are driven right in front of the caves of the leopards as the tourists take selfies, a report prepared by a sub divisional officer ( SDO) in July 2020 revealed.  The SDO also annexed pictures of   drones flying over leopards and a number of gypsies parked in front of  the animal caves. Wildlife experts fear that increased human activity may push leopards away from the reserve or the human interference may lead to man-animal conflict. Water Body with Spectacular Surroundings Jawai is a ...

  Wildlife tourists visiting Panna tiger reserve are a heartbroken lot.  The two most watched tigers of a buffer zone in the park bid goodbye to the reserve . One of them is collared and is moving towards east while the location of his brother, still un-collared, is not known. For the past few months ,  the two tigers  gave a number of photo opportunities to the wildlife photographers in the Akola zone of the buffer. Tourism activities are continuing in the buffer zones of the tiger reserves in Madhya Pradesh. Buzz in the Buffer  This is a fascinating story of two male tigers, P234-31 and P234-32 , popularly known as   Hira and Panna  among the tourists . For the past two months, especially since the park was closed for the three months of monsoon, they became superstars of the tourists. Born in November 2019 to Tigress P234 in her third litter, the two males are now over 20 months old. They were born in the Akola buffer area of Panna tiger reser...

Shouldering the responsibility of the four orphaned cubs after the death of his mate on May 15 in Panna tiger reserve , the male tiger seems to have been courting two tigresses ringing alarm bells for the young ones. Initially the tiger apparently refused the company of tigresses . After the death of their mother – the tigress P213-32 - the male tiger 243 has not harmed the four cubs. They have now turned 10 -months old. So far the tiger has protected the cubs from co- predators.  On  July 29, the World Tiger Day, we bring an amazing story of the tiger family from Panna where the park management is learning new lessons on the behavior of the top predator every day.   United they Stand, Kill and Survive On May 15 2021, the tigress 213-32 died of “unknown illness”. The tigress was survived by the four cubs which were about 7 months old and their life was at risk.  But  the tiger P243 .considered as their father  ,always remained around them . The tiger n...

  If you think tiger is the only animal in India which is poached to fetch millions. You are mistaken. As the big cat received all the attention, the wildlife poachers shifted their focus to other animals. Huge demand for Red-crowned roofed turtles in China and  the far east nations has  led to a situation when  only about 500 of them  remained in  the river Chambal .  Besides, pangolin scales are also in demand. Recent conviction of wildlife smugglers by a court in Sagar further emphasized the importance of conservation of other species. Turtle with Courtship Coloration There was a time when the habitat of this beautiful multi-colored turtle would stretch to a great length in central Nepal, northeastern India, Bangladesh and probably Burma where they flourished in deep flowing fresh water rivers .But   their numbers declined drastically after rampant poaching for their meat and shells from countries like China. But the major attraction also ...

More than two and half years after a  bullet was fired from a .458 Winchester Magnum rifle by a professional hunter  shooting down  T1 of Avni, the man eater tigress in Yavatmal district of  Maharashtra , controversies continued to surround the shoot out. The case is also being heard in the Supreme Court and  government inquiries are also ordered to probe it. But the core issue of  fragmented  forests of the country and the poor connectivity of tiger corridors has taken a back seat. T1 - and her two cubs - were among the large number of tigers living outside the reserve forests when she became a man eater. The ferocious tigress was drifting around jungles and farmland near the town of Pandharkawada  town where a professional hunter shot her dead on November 2 ,2018. Tigress on the Prowl Avni, perhaps had migrated to Ralegaon area and Pandharkawada from Tipeshwer wildlife sanctuary 50-60km west of Loni village in Yavatmal district. Her first kill ...

Nobody is talking about this issue. What would be the fate of the much awaited Lion project in Kuno Palpur national park where preparations are in full swing to welcome cheetahs, the fastest animal on  the earth.  The MP government is tightlipped over the issue and  so are the IFS ( Indian Forest Service) community of the state . Eight cheetahs  from Namibia and South Africa are expected to be airlifted to Kuno , nestled  in Sheopur district about 390 kms  away from Bhopal ,in November this year. Five male cheetahs and three females will be donated by Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) of South Africa. Work on to Welcome Cheetah There is a lot of excitement and enthusiasm in the state eversince the Supreme Court approved the project in January 2020.A three-member committee comprising former director Wildlife of India Ranjit Singh, DG of Wildlife Institute of India (WII) Dhananjay Mohan and DIG, Wildlife, Union ministry of Environment and Forests to guide the ...

  She is 105 year old and retired 17 -year ago. Vatsala is the oldest surviving elephant on the earth.  Her name should have entered the Guinness Book of World Records. The female elephant has been in news after reports of deteriorating health conditions in Panna tiger reserve (PTR) , Vatsala’s home.  The director of PTR Uttam Kumar Sharma confirms she is about 105 years old.  thewildlifeindia would want  the state forest department to approach  the Guinness Books to  help Vatsala create a world record . For the last several days she had stopped eating and was unwell, said PTR veterinarian Dr Sanjeev Gupta. “But now she is improving as she has resumed food intake”, he said. From Kerala to PTR, it was a Long Journey The female elephant was shifted to the PTR in 1993 from the Bori reserve forest located in Hoshangabad district. In fact, she was brought to Bori from Kerala's Nilambur forest in 1971.In 2007, when Shahbaz Ahmed was director of the PTR he h...

Your favourite - thewildlifeindia.com is now among the top ten blogs on the Web. And it is the only Indian blog which could find a place in the prestigious list released by Feedspot, a content reader for reading all favourite websites in one place.  Feed post released the latest ranking of the top 60 Wildlife RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feeds on June 22 where thewildlifeindia ranked at 9th spot. The Hall of Fame In the last 12 months of period,  thewildifeindia  continues to  be patronized  by its readers  as  it improved its ratings twice in the period.  In January this year, the blog was placed at 14th place  in the Feedspot  ratings in the list of top 60 wildlife Blogs and Websites.  Six months later in June this year, the ratings further improved and thewildifeindia was included in the top ten blogs on the web. Following is the list. https://blog.feedspot.com/wildlife_rss_feeds/ 1.Global Wildlife Conservation, United States...

Almost 8 months after inclusion in the list of UNESCO’s World Network of Biosphere Reserves , Bundelkhand’s unique ecology and heritage are all set to be ravaged. A river linking project with a proposed cutting of almost 20 lakh trees has already endangered the home of the tigers of Panna. Another 2.5 lakh trees are going to be felled to give way to a diamond project which is all set to devastate further a tiger corridor. And the way things are heading, digging for diamonds may begin soon. This is an important tiger corridor used by the big cats dispersing from Panna tiger reserve to other jungles. The peregrination of Panna’s legendry T3 male and P211 among others through the woods of Buxwah has already been recorded in the past. Tigers Frequent Through Buxwah Forests Much has already been written about the about the controversial river linking project which experts feel is going to be a bane and not a boon for the drought prone Bundelkhand.  This is going to submerge the best of ...