Nilgiri Tahr, Valparai, Tamil Nadu

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The Nilgiri tahr (Nilgiritragus hylocrius) is an endemic mountain ungulate species found in the shola habitats of the Southern Western Ghats. Hunting and habitat loss have restricted them to a few fragmented pockets. Though they occur in the Palani hills, Srivilliputtur, and the Meghamalai and Agasthiyar ranges, only two well-protected, large populations are well known, one from the Nilgiris and the other from the Anamalais including the higher ranges of Kerala.  

Nilgiri tahrs are rare and can be … Read More

Nilgiri Pipit, Anamudi Shola National Park, Kerala

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Nilgiri Pipit (Anthus nilghiriensis) is a species endemic to the high-altitude grasslands of the Western Ghats and threatened by habitat loss. They feed largely on seeds and insects. They nest in the grass and their clutch size consists of 2-3 brown speckled eggs. Recently, while walking in a patch of grasslands being revived at Anamudi Shola in Kerala, we saw the bird, a sign that the rewilding is bearing fruit!

In 2019, a forest fire destroyed the invasive … Read More

Nilgiri Striped Squirrel, Palani Hills

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The Nilgiri Striped Squirrel (Funambulus sublineatus) is endemic to the Southern Western Ghats. Members of this genus (family) are found in India and Sri Lanka and can be identified by their dorsal stripes. They are diurnal and are often seen foraging either on the ground or on trees during the day. Habitat loss and deforestation remain their top threats.

This individual was found in Palani Hills foraging at dusk near a small waterfall, visited by tourists. However, like most popular … Read More

The Forest Cane Turtle, Anamalai Hills, Tamilnadu

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Originally appeared in Pollachi Papyrus.

During one of my recent bird surveys in the Anamalai Hills, I had the privilege of sighting the rare (Cochin) Forest Cane Turtle. Forest Cane turtle is one of the rare reptiles of our fragile rainforests in the Western Ghats chain of mountains. It is a forest-dwelling species and found mostly in the dense forests, and, unlike many other turtle species, they avoid perennial water bodies like streams and ponds. The distribution of the … Read More

Save the Great Indian Bustard (GIB) from Extinction!

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Powerlines in GIB habitat should go underground. 

The critically endangered Great Indian Bustard has disappeared from over 90% of its former range due to habitat loss, hunting, disturbance and lack of protection in many ‘lekking’ and nesting sites (see 2013 CI campaign). Now, overhead power transmission lines that crisscross its habitat are sounding the death knell of this low-flying, ground-dwelling species (see attached map). According to a study by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), as many as … Read More

Great Indian Bustards near Desert National Park, Rajasthan

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On a trip to the Desert National Park in Nov 2014, I was fortunate to see 17 bustards in a fallow field just outside the park. The image captures seven of that flock.

The critically endangered Great Indian Bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps) is amongst the heaviest of flying birds. Less than a hundred remain in the wild, with the most (~70) being in Rajasthan, in and around the Desert National Park.

Currently (March 17 to 25, 2017), the Rajasthan forest department … Read More

Naga Wren-Babbler, Nagaland

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Here is an image of the Naga Wren-Babbler or Long-tailed Wren-Babbler (Spelaeornis chocolatinus) which I photographed in Nagaland in Jan 2014.

This species is Near Threatened and dwells in montane broadleaf forest with thick undergrowth of Nagaland and North Manipur, in NE India. A very active species, usually foraging close to the ground, but not as exclusively ground-dwelling like the Pnoepyga Wren-Babblers.

Originally described as “Pnoepyga chocolatina” by Godwin-Austen and Walden in Ibis p.252, 1875, from Kedimai, Manipur, … Read More

Gliding Frogs of India

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Gliding frogs of the genus Rhacophorus are a unique and spectacular group in the arboreal frog family Rhacophoridae. These tree dwelling frogs are one of diverse and the oldest group, globally. They began to radiate about 50-60 million years ago (between Paleocene to Oligocene) and are distributed largely in South and S. E. Asia, and Africa. The rapid diversification occurred just about the time in which modern day angiosperm plants diversified (Roelants et al. 2007).

In India, there are … Read More

GIB Campaign update — Rajasthan launches ‘Project Great Indian Bustard’

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With less than 200 left, will this magnificent bird be the first mega species to go extinct in India since the cheetah? Or can it be pulled back from the brink of extinction, like the California condor in America?

We are not crying wolf. A survey of recent literature — and discussions with experts — reveals that there may be less than 200 Great Indian Bustards (Ardeotis nigriceps) left in India. What’s worse, this tiny number is fragmented … Read More

Malabar White-headed Starling, Dandeli

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Above is an image of a Western Ghats endemic, Malabar White-headed Starling (Sturnia blythii), taken by Vaibhav Kamatkar at Dandeli, Karnataka. “Most people who go to visit wildlife sanctuaries are educated,” he remarks, “so why can we not desist from throwing away plastic trash, which could have such a bad effect on the environment?” … Read More

Brown Palm Civet, Pampadum Shola

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On Dec 15th, 2012, we (Neelakandan Madavana and Navneeth Kishor) visited Pampadum Shola National Park, in Idukki district of Kerala. It was around 6pm and we were returning to camp after a trek. We noticed a movement in a tree trunk, not far from us and on closer observation, noticed this Brown Palm Civet climbing up to rest on a branch. These civets can easily go unnoticed to photographer’s eyes, and indeed, they were thought to be locally extinct in … Read More