Leopards are masters of stealth and that’s what helps them hunt and survive in the thick forests of southern India. They are known to hide and ambush than chase and hunt. These are some pictures of leopards from different trips, which show the brilliant stealth capabilities of the leopard.
This Leopard came running across the jeep track and hid between the tree stumps beautifully and then ran inside the bushes and watched us for a while.
The same leopard above which went into the bushes and watched us.
A leopard in the paddy fields near Daroji, hiding but still wants to watch.
Leopard in Kabini watching us from inside the thicket.
Evolution is what has kept many species from disappearing from the planet. Some have evolved in the right way quickly and have managed to share this world with their predators and other threats.
Here is a brilliant example of evolution. What you see is a caterpillar of the butterfly Blue Mormon, its very difficult for caterpillars to survive to become butterflies, given their susceptibility to predators. But this caterpillar in particular has developed different strategies to survive.
The eyes you see are false eyes and helps the caterpillar look like a snake. The face in totality looks similar to a snake, you would think this is enough to keep the predators at bay. But wait until you watch the video below.
This is how the caterpillar behaves when it senses threat, it pops out a ‘Y’ shaped organ that resembles a snake’s tongue. Called Osmeterium looks like a snake’s tongue to prevent a predator attack. That’s not all, this organ emits smelly compounds believed to be pheromones which are highly pungent in nature even to humans.
The monsoons are back and so are the lush fresh greens, the ticks are gone and the leeches are here.
The frogs start out calling for their mates, Alice night frog (Nyctibatrachus cf. aliciae) waits for its mate
Millions of butterflies start migrating from the wet, cold ghats to the warmer plains and thousands end up getting killed on the road.
A road passing through a forest almosts fragments the forest into two, causing road kills and also fragmenting the habitat. Each day hundreds of animals, thousands of insects and amphibians get killed on the road all over India. You can read up further on the study done on insect roadkills here and amphibian roadkills here
The call of the Malabar Whistling Trush, is one of the most melodious pieces of music I’ve ever heard in nature. I’ve always wanted to photograph this bird for a long time. Photographing them can be quite challenging given that they make their homes in the deep forests of western ghats and that they are shy. Valparai is one of the best places to photograph them, as they are all around the town.
Click the play button to hear the call of the Whistling Trush
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Its been a lucky season. I’ve been fortunate in seeing and photographing young ones of a few key species found in India. The Joy of seeing a new generation of these animals in times which are hard for their survival has been an overwhelmingly emotional experience.
After a really long wait, I finally managed to be there at the right place at the right time to photograph the Baby King Cobras which had just hatched in a nest close to Agumbe.
I also made a short trip to Nagarhole where 2 leopard cubs abandoned in a sugarcane field close to the Nagarhole forest by the mother and have been rescued by the forest department.
The one question that came across my mind each time I saw them was “What’s their future?”
Not many times in life does one come across opportunities like this. Wildlife is full of surprises, and one rewarded and when least expected. Having spent almost 2 weeks in the summer in Kabini and having had no luck with photographing any cats though sighted a few, I didn’t expect I’d get to shoot much in the monsoons. But I was in for a pleasant surprise. I was to see two leopards!
Jungle lodges and resorts is conducting a naturalist training programme with Chief naturalist Karthik heading it.
Here are the details
Date : 9-11 May 2008
Venue : JLR’s Bannerghatta Nature Camp, Bannerghatta National Park
Fee : Rs. 4250/- (incl. board, lodge, training, workshop material and kit)
Registrations : Will be on first come first serve basis as there are limited seats available. A passport size photograph is necessary for registration.
Last Date : On or before May 02, 2008
You can contact karthik for further details and to enroll.
Karthik’s email id -> palmfly [at] gmail [dot] com
This Leopard came running across the jeep track and hid between the tree stumps beautifully and then ran inside the bushes and watched us for a while.
The same leopard above which went into the bushes and watched us.
A leopard in the paddy fields near Daroji, hiding but still wants to watch.
Leopard in Kabini watching us from inside the thicket.
