The day was cold and bright when we began our ascent towards Tungnath. However, by midday, there was a drastic change. Rain clouds had gathered, it grew dark and while I was captivated by a White-capped Restart and it's wontings, it started pouring.
Smart thing to do was enjoy the weather and fill out stomachs with hot liquidy Maggie and pakodas.
Time lulled by, and the rains finally stopped. There was scant sunshine. We started heading down. Many monals away, I spotted this guy, a calm, composed and glimmering fella. The light by now was scant, and so were his movements.
We both acknowledged eachothers presence and he seemed to be relaxed. I took my time capturing his beauty using my handy Sony RX10Miv and spent some more just admiring him. Soon, it was time to leave for there were miles to go (literally... No vehicle awaited us at the base of the sanctuary) before I sleep.
Every human being is born
curious. It is this trait that has got us thriving and evolving to become the
dominant species in the world. Curiosity in itself is innocent. I too am
curious, curious to observe and explore the original treasures of the world.
Curiosity has four aspects, namely ‘How’, ‘Why’, ‘Where’ & ‘What’. ‘Where’
& ‘What’ make greater sense to me, serving a higher purpose. Of the many
adventures that have come my way, the one ‘Where’ & ‘What’ I will take you
along is the Bondla Wildlife Sanctuary in Goa for its avifauna.
Wintery mornings in Bondla WLS
are just magical. The silvery mist takes over the forest; the road is just
about visible, tempting and beckoning. As you pass through the archway of the
sanctuary, there is a notable transformation; the air is thicker, temperature
has dropped, the noise has ceased, you may have even grown wings, you surely
have gotten a ticket to a different world! You will want to tread carefully, so
as not to disturb its residents.
As the mist clears, the forest
transforms once again. The Giant Wood Spider webs glisten in the morning sun,
the sun rays dance about, playing hide-and-seek with the rustling leaves and
tall trees. The foliage is dense and mysterious, the canopy magical, but the
real tales lie in the understory amongst the lianas and vines. The forest floor
is laid with leaves golden, upon which you dare tread, for they will trumpet
your presence to the inmates of the land, in loud crunch squeals.
Greater Racket-tailed Drongo
But, if you
tread carefully, just pause momentarily and bow to listen, the whole jungle is
yours to see.
The morning songs will come strong, resonant through far and
near, and the first song that you hear may very well be of the Greater Racket-tailed
Drongo. A rhapsodic melody from a hidden perch, the tail visible as it sways to each note, like a conductor’s baton to every score. Behold the majestic bird, carefree in his forest; well, this is just the beginning as his band of boys will follow.
Velvet-fronted Nuthatch
Orange Minivet,
Bronzed Drongo, Brown-cheeked Fulvetta, Velvet-fronted Nuthatche,
Black- rumped Flameback and many more species follow. What we have encountered
is a hunting party, a mixed flock of birds, each benefitting from the others’
company, flittering and hopping, going about their business, foraging for
munchies from tree to tree, making merry of a beautiful morning. Well, they
will disappear as abruptly as they came, and then again, you will be left
behind with impressions dear, to continue along the road much taken, for the
untold tales lie in the lost trails.
Great Indian Hornbill (Female)
If you are lucky, you will be graced by
the presence of many beauties, such as the Malabar Trogons, Black-hooded
Orioles, Hair-crested Drongos, Indian Blackbird, Green-Pigeons, Great Hornbills
and others.
The terrain at Bondla WLS is
unusually hilly, nesting amidst the Western Ghats, each bend taking a different
tone, the wavering light transforming the place with every passing minute. The
shadows can be wary, and if you are not curious enough, you will pass many a
beauties camouflaged in pure sight, unnoticed. At times, you seem to be
ascending towards heavenly green, while at others, descending towards a fiery
yellow. The passage of time notwithstanding, the show will go on forever.
Crested Serpent Eagle
Although I am not an expert at
deciphering forests, from what I have learnt, Bondla forest is of the mixed
type, primarily moist deciduous and partly evergreen. Understanding forests is
a beautiful science and there are key identifier species that can help us
decode.
The road is paved, open to all
vehicles, entry fee reasonable, at times the traffic can be a bother but that
is a necessity for self-sustenance and preservation of the habitat. Within the
sanctuary is a zoo, the only one in Goa, serving as a bridge that can shape
young minds, sensitizing them about our co-inhabitants, their importance and
preservation.
In the end, all journeys must
culminate, to seed another.
PS: This article was published in "The newsletter of Ecological Society, Pune" January 2021 edition, called Ecology@Work.
I am so angry and frustrated even. The only way that I can express it is through words and that I will do.
The big news in birding in Maharashtra is the arrival of a few Amur Falcons (Falco amurensis) in Lonavla Lake which is in the private hands of Tata Power. They are passage migrants (They breed in the plains of Siberia and China but during winters, when the cold is harsh, they migrate to Southern Africa, primarily stopping over in North-east India while passing through. A few vagrants get reported in many parts of India as is the case in point here.)
Well, this in itself is a wonderful news, that a few Amur Falcons decided to take this route and rest near us. As you are aware of the kind of fate (Large scale hunting of the beautiful birds) they have had in the past and their story of survival and revival due to woke individuals and their efforts at conservation, it is disheartening and disillusioning to see how birders and photographers have acted on this wonderful opportunity to seek and photograph them.
So, if the birds allow you to come close enough as they go about their business, I am sure your big lenses give you sufficient reach and you can maintain a respectable distance. But this is just part of my concern. The primary concern is that you bring big vehicles and small alike, into the lake area (which has transformed into a wonderful grassland during the dry season). It is this wonderful habitat that is spawning and supporting life, creating food for visiting birds. So much so that besides, the Amur Falcons, there are hundreds of Wagtails and Plovers, a few Bar-headed Geese (they fly over the mighty Himalayas to visit India during winters), Storks, Terns, Herons and Cormorants besides other waders and many other raptors.
You drive around nasty, ruining the habitat, disturbing the life around and causing ruckus. All this to get that perfect shot, that close-up of the nostrils, finding the male, getting that feeding shot, that kill shot and whatnot. Well, I too have been there, I got my captures, equally good ones, but I chose not to bring my vehicle into the lake.
I urge you to be good in your behaviour and respect the habitat and to all those wonderful instagrammers and page hosts who have been blowing the bugle, praising the lot, kindly promote best practices as well.
Anyways, the resultant outcome of this vehicular chaos and the jamboree is that Tata Power has stepped in, throwing out everyone, even if only for a few minutes, as they cannot patrol all the time, and may soon block the entrances and put a stop altogether. So, unless we correct ourselves, we may win today but will lose access to this wonderful habitat altogether in years to come. So today you might get that winning shot but tomorrow, when another vagrant comes along, no one will be there to welcome it, and it may go unreported altogether.
Hope at least a few will hear, read, share my thoughts and take corrective action.
Every weekend or so when my better half is willing to be my outdoor companion, we set off.
As the subject line states, I am off with a purpose.I live for the outings and dream of living in a small thatched hut amongst the backdrop of the Mountains and Hills, with a fresh water Stream flowing close by, the gushing sound that will be my lullaby every night, the star lit sky my story teller.
Every morning would start with a cup of herbs, made with stream water, freshly picked from the vast offering of nature, brewed under a fire, lit by dry wood picked from the Woods.
Exercise routine will involve a trek up the mountain, a splendid view to look upon, the never changing landscape, guard to which I stand.
The daily challenges will not be absurd business forecasts, nor will they involve MIS's but would be simple to comprehend...search for food. Is it time for paddy, out shall I plant wheat, will the pumpkin ripen in time or shall there be gourd for dinner.
The gentle breeze, the strong winds, I shall have them for company, always, and as I dream on, I shall bluff myself that this day is not far...the way I bluff at an interview, stating that one day I will be a CEO.
It was the 5th of Feb 2010 and I was to see off my better half to the station; she was to leave for Hyderabad post noon to attend her sister’s wedding. As I needed to be mobile, I planned to ride my bike to the rail station alongside the auto.
I started a few seconds after the auto left and thus raced to catch up. But even after a good 3 miles, I could not spot the auto, and lot of things went through my mind as to whether I had missed them or was it that there was another route to the station.
Whatever the reason, I could not spot them and this worried me to no end, thus I raced with a heightened anxiety. I over sped many vehicles on this small road leading to the Lakshmisagar chowk, and was about to cross a speeding biker when a grey spotted tom cat crossed the biker’s path. This guy slowed down, enough to cross his shoulders, so as to prevent any mishappening from occurring; this is when I stepped on the brake and let the biker stay ahead.
Was it that the same superstition played on my mind or was it just that I realised that I was speeding and needed to slow down; whatever thoughts occurred that day, did manage to save the day for me. A few seconds later, a large black car appeared out of a side lane and the biker ahead of me was hit.
His bike skidded a few meters before coming to a halt. This was terrible and incomprehensible. Thankfully this guy was not hurt much and before there could be a conflict, I intercepted, making both the parties involved realise that the day was saved and that it could have been worse.
And guess what, all that racing was just a futile act and an outcome of irrational thinking. My wife arrived a few minutes after I reached the station, citing reason that they had to turn back as she realised that she was not carrying her cell phone.
So when such a thing as this occurs in your life, don’t bother about the superstition, but do stop & check yourself, as to, are you speeding or is there something that could have been done better and surely like me, you’ll all be much wiser.
This winter morning seemed to be a blessing in disguise. Having lost several such weekday mornings this chilli winter to slumber, today I woke up with the sun rise.
I left Mariam sleeping (for which I had to pay, but that later) and went cycling.
We have a two type cycling plans, one for the weekdays and the other for the weekends. The weekday ones haven’t happened for quite sometime, while the weekend cycling is very much alive, where we cruise out of town.
Our weekday circuit takes us through a big village and then onto a road parallel to the Kuankhai river on one side and a canal on the other. Along the canals’ other bank are several small villages that stretch for the next 5 kilometres before hitting the highway perpendicularly. The outer half of the village is called the stinker, for these guys have something for the roads which they beautify with their nature call routines all along.
It was a chilli morning with the temperatures having come down to record levels, my hands and knuckles cold to the core, felt quite brittle. This was not going to stop me; the sleep is a bigger hurdle than any that I’ve faced in my life.
As I passed through the first village, there was not much of activity noticeable except for the local kiranawala and a laundry shop that catered to our colony.
Today somehow I felt not in touch with nature, as if the distance had increased over the days of my no-show. I however took to the Kuankhai river road still occupied with this thought although wanting to do a fast warm-up lap. My only companions were the stealthy babblers who are almost everywhere amongst the foliage and vegetation but only if you can catch their surreptitious movements. They are also called the ‘seven sisters’ since they are always found in the mentioned numbers. They are single coloured pretty birds who can scare you by their deadly looks. Never look into their eyes or they may bite you, had they any teeth. As I whizzed past the flora, there was not much that I could get a glimpse of better than the drongos who are black, in fact they describe the word black very well, blacker than the black, a beautiful glazy black, you cannot miss them. They are found on high wires, electric poles, tree tops; you can surely identify them by their forked tail. You can try and get close to these birds for they are urban bred and do not shy away that easily. Mostly perched on electric wires, they help clean up your streets. Observe them catch a fly or any small little flying insect with an expertise surely written into their genes.
As I turned to head back, I noticed billu in a flock, billu as in open billed stork, biggest Arial species visible in Bhubaneswar skies, about to make a landing on the other side of the river. They resemble the flying pterosaurs from Jurassic park in the way they make a landing and in many other ways such as their appearance. Surely someone in Hollywood has been inspired by their flight pattern; let me try describing to you their descent. The flock makes long circles around an identified patch of their possible landing and then slowly shifts their circular jig in the direction of their initial flight, in the same time gradually making their descent. They take their time and I mean it, landing in succession with lot of grace and harmony.
Proceeding ahead I made an abrupt stop by a neem tree by the road on the riverside upon hearing for the first time in two years the full call of one of the most shy and strikingly beautiful birds, the golden oriole. As the name says it all, the oriole is completely golden with one species having a touch of black, making it the winner of the most beautiful bird prize; their call is something like ‘pee-loo-loo’. She is most visible in winter and the trees of her choice are huge and dense trees like siris, peepal and banyan. All winter I have been spotting her with as much excitement as watching a new born baby; and have heard her regular call of ‘twue’, but today I was lucky to hear her sing.
I descended towards a patch of land on the river to first observe the winter ducks visible at a distance at the opposite riverbank. They were a first in this area. Not much was visible, even difficult to identify their colour and type; for glancing towards eastern side with the sun rising, was causing me to squint and all who have ever clicked a photo will tell you this ki it is not possible to get a good picture of the subject with his back to the sun, and the same is valid for the naked eye especially at distances.
I headed back to seek out my favourite golden oriole. I stood still, facing the canal side observing for movements on the trees by the road. There was a siris tree which surely would have initially lured the bird, and if I lingered long enough, I would surely get to see more than I asked for.
All of a sudden Nature unfolded unto me. It was like a world once invisible, was gradually revealing unto me its treasures. The surroundings quite peaceful and serene, I could now sense a lot of life here. With a little more concentration, I could now notice faint signs of flutter everywhere.
I spotted a woodpecker, a flameback carving a hole in a broken and dead portion of a tree trunk, a first ever in these lands. Then on the dried canal were perched two female koels about who nobody ever speaks, they are grey with polka dots all over and are very beautiful up close, but sadly only their male counterpart is much spoken of; or then you would have heard about the koel story just like the one in the movie ‘3 idiots’.
Then of course I spotted her, not just her but a pair and they were strikingly beautiful. It was a pair of black-hooded golden oriole. They were so strikingly beautiful, clearly visible with the sun at my behind, accentuating their varied colours. As I stood still, they carried on with their chores while I enjoyed God’s magical creations. This sisis tree was full of life with drongos, koels, babblers and bulbuls, with swallows flying high up and all this and more awaits the seeker, by an untrodden road.
And then I spotted a barbet which flew to a bush up-close. I was about to get to my bike when I sighted her on bare of-branch. What a rare sight, its colours visible in full, varied greens, a brown-headed barbet it was. These ones we can spot only on high dense trees, but this was my lucky day, I got to see her in lateral view and then it flew.
I headed back riding with verve, stopped again by another ‘twue’ and was lucky to get a passing glimpse of a flying Eurasian Golden Oriole. These ones have a little black on their wings and come with a regular pink beak and are obviously golden. Well this was one power packed morning.
As I passed by the village enroute to my colony, villagers were to be found in clusters by the tea wala, others in preparation for the hard day ahead, some others were half-naked with soap foam all over, taking a bath by a hand-pump on this chilli chilli morning while many others just idling away. Leaving with these last glimpses I cycled on, and whoa, by the gate of our colony, an Indian Roller, also known as ‘blue jay’ or ‘neel-kant’, greeted me. The morning could not have been better, neither could I have wished for more nor would I have wanted it any other way.
This weekend happened to be one of those days where dreams take the shape of reality. Mariam and I woke up by around 5:10 am, pretty early for a Sunday. For all who may have missed out on my wedding, Mariam is my spouse / friend / partner in crime & my better half who takes all my inflictions in good spirit.
Although the sun was visible in the eastern sky, Sunday morning turned out to be chilly just as per our expectation. Nature had dished out the perfect morning to go about our plan. We however had not made any preparations other than psychological, for this day. This led to a slight delay as the major task at hand was filling the tires with sufficient air that would last the journey and make our ride comfortable.
One would wonder what makes this journey so wonderful, but before that I’ll tell you a bit about Pipili. Pipili happens to be a small town 17 kilometres from Bhubaneswar & 22 from ours, made world famous because of the unique handicraft that its folks have mastered. Whenever you happen to ride past Pipili, your eyes will be left mesmerised by the bright multicoloured decoratives hanging from almost all shops that is so unique in colour & form that one has to stop and admire the beautiful handiwork. These that I talk of are articles that can be hung from ceilings, framed on walls, with varieties that extend to lampshades, tablecloth, letter holders, hand fans and even umbrellas.
Now that makes a wonderful weekend destination. One may wonder that if this place is so romantic, why this guy engages us by talking of hand pumps and cycle tires. Well that’s the point, our plan was to cycle to Pipili covering over 44 kilometres both ways.
Our gear included a winter jacket for Mariam, a track jacket for myself, two litres of water distributed in three bottles, some stuff to eat midway (in the likes of some cold chicken, potato fenugreek curry, some thekua – a dry Bihari preparation, and select dry fruits), an extra pair of socks for both of us, hankies, sunscreen lotion, good old Vicks, my camera with extra batteries and a haversack to hold some of these articles. Mariam’s bike has got a front basket, so that is where some of the handy stuff goes while mine has got gears (which I soon realised are not good for such marathon type outings).
By the time we started it was past 7 am and after just a few minutes on the road, I realised that carrying the haversack was a mistake. A lot more effort was required to paddle and the thing in itself was a bother. Well finally it ended up not on my shoulders, nor Mariam’s who was readily offering hers but on the back of my cycle which punished the bag in many ways (part of it got ripped by rubbing against the tire).
Our agreed highway rule was simple, that Mariam would lead and I would follow close, and unless required we will not break the momentum. I was of the inkling that frequent cut in my speed would be required to maintain a desired distance between the two of us; it was not to be so, Mariam was super energised and I really needed to push in order to keep pace. Initially we stopped for bio breaks & some purchase of the favourite energiser, half a dozen bananas.
The road was alright; except that it offered us no space and that it was a single lane each way with no dividers although this was the route to the Golden Beach City, Puri. Mariam led the track without any hassles being familiar with the route from our biking expedition to Puri sometime back. She however was irritated by the passing bikers who often offered a greeting seeing a female cyclist all geared up. We could have actually put boards on our bikes for more attention.
Our first actual halt came within an hour’s ride after passing Dhauli (remember the great battle of Panipat, a Buddhist memorial stands there today, but since I have not visited the place, I cannot provide you with more information), we took a dirt road leading to a village, stopping midway among the fields to have our well deserved Tiffin. Now we were not the only keen hungry ones, for a passing cow caught the whiff and stopped, giving me a side glance which I reciprocated and lo, it was by my side nosing at the food in my hand. I was aware that if I provided this guy (literal) with some of the chapatti, it would get even more determined.
Ready to share our breakfast, I offered her a piece of the chapatti, first by making her smell it and then throwing the piece at a distance, but this was no dog, she did not budge from her place. Rather I had to get up and offer her another piece and lead her to the earlier piece of chapatti. Getting our chance to have a few bites, we dug into our share of the much desired food. Some guy nudged at my shoulder, any guesses, oh! Mr. Guy not any more. She now was even more determined, chapatti being to her liking. She was now threatening to topple over our cycles, offering us no choice but to flee the place but not before having offered her some more of the chapatti and to the poor little partner who was too shy unlike this guy.
Cycling further up the road, we stopped just before the village and consumed our chicken & leftover chapatti. We clicked a few photos and by the time we took to the road, it was nearly an hour’s halt. Our eyes all set on Pipili, we completed the distance in record time. There was not much to do here other than shop and we were well prepared. We spent around 2000 bucks on colourful items feeding my hunger for shopping while poor Mariam could only stand by and suggest that we reduce our load. However it was all done in half hour and I promised Mariam that come whatever I’ll not be spending anymore on Applique work and I even promised her a chai. That was enough to keep her cool for the rest of the time, and even encourage her on agreeing to buy the umbrella.
The next task was to carry the load back home, what pain. Now since the purchases weighed more than the haversack, I decided to tie the pipili stuff onto my bike, the umbrella neatly tied onto the main front rod of the bike frame, sling the camera on my shoulders, put all water cans in Mariam’s basket and the almost empty haversack at the back of her bike. Now that the sun was high, we had to shed our jackets.
We found a nice spot to park the bikes, had special tea with black pepper, turned back to take a memorable picture of us four (two bikes + two bikers), halted for an hour’s time by the lake that we had earlier noticed, filled up our water cans and then by 1 pm we were on our return journey.
Now we had a different problem, our muscles hurt, and the road was a struggle what with the increased baggage and slightly inclined road. Funny, that whichever way we went, the road seemed to be inclined. Mariam on the lead, with slight signs of wariness, we headed on. The journey was less eventful and we needed a bio break but decided against it due to lack of appropriate place and then with time, it was not even required.
We occasionally stopped, mostly since I braked to take a picture and was out of Mariam’s sight, thus making her stop. We shared our thoughts while cycling which seemed to be very few and quite similar. We were mostly absorbed and engrossed by God’s creation upon which the road was laid, the either side of the road in green, golden and blue seemed to stretch endlessly forever. Such beauty was rarely admired for the passersby usually were racing with time.
The city of Bhubaneswar was now visible at a distance, and with that our time with God was running out fast. The worldly thoughts seemed to be rushing back and then our stomachs too growled. I said to Mariam that it would be wise if we eat and return to our nest since surely neither of us would be in any mood or mind to prepare a meal. We found an Oriya dhaba that served thali and also had a place to park our prized possessions.
On our way home which was another 6 to 7 kilometres, I promised Mariam a good cup of hot coffee for having accompanied me all through without a word of complaint. Once back around 4 pm, we took our cycles up the two floors and rushed in to empty our bladders. We changed and then that was it. Our second marathon for the day had begun. I finally managed to wake up Mariam at around 11:30 pm so that we could shift to our bedroom, and also did make that coffee in milk. I’ll say it once more, I finally managed to wake up Mariam at 7 am the next day; don’t take me otherwise after all I too needed an encouragement to wake up. Below are some cherishable moments captured in time.
