As I forage for intellectual fodder during the Annual Meeting of the Indian Psychiatric Society, on many occasions a sojourn outside the conference often provides much more stimulation!
Last year during the Pune meet, I was at Kumbhargaon in a village home stay savoring the winter migrants. This year at Hyderabad in the amiable company of Asif, an ardent birder (whose family owns the oldest bookshop in Hyderabad!), I ventured out with Ajay to have a glimpse of some avian friends. We set out at the break of the dawn, drove for a while outside the city and then onto demanding dirt tracks to the hinterlands of Gandipet lake (also known as Osman Sagar) which was created by damning the river Musi in 1920s. The lake was quite dry and we gingerly walked across the lake bed which was quite mushy at many a place. After a considerable walk, we could discern a flock of Flamingos at a distance in a pool of water. It was a wonderful sight to have a glimpse of these dainty birds in the early morning sun. We stood at a distance, quietly watching them as they went about their daily activities. Even though they were at quite a distance, I took out my camera slowly so as to not unsettle them, to register their presence, digitally. There were a few adventurous folks who had ventured onto the opposite bank to have a closer ‘catch’ of these elegant birds. Whenever I was focusing attention on the birds, these bipeds were always in frame, quite close to the birds (too close perhaps?) to have a ‘good shot’. Sometimes one wonders whether the beauty of bird watching is undermined by intrusive digital photography! We just stood there for several hours savoring the richness of nature in front of us. River terns, sandpipers, larks, bar headed geese and others kept us company as we slowly retraced our paths back… Glimpses At: https://www.flickr.com/gp/24876955@N02/nHm741/
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After a wonderful sojourn at Kaziranga (I’ll be posting in detail about this later!), I was quite keen to have a glimpse of the only ape in India, the Hoolock Gibbon. We started early in the morning, around 5 from the Wild Grass and after a two hour drive landed at Hoolongopar Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary. It is the only protected habitat in India to be named after a primate species and the first protected area in the country where the Hoolock Gibbon is the target species for conservation. The Western Hoolock Gibbon which I was keen to see is classified as endangered on the IUCN Redlist and is one of the 25 most threatened species worldwide.
After the customary procedures in the forest office, a guide with a gun was assigned to us and we started walking along the forest path. Hoolock Gibbons are canopy dwellers and can be very difficult to spot as they are quite high up among the dense tree tops. Suddenly there was a peculiar call, loud howl of sorts, reverberating in the forest. I believe there was time when people calculated the time of the day according to the howls and hooting of the Gibbons. With the morning calls, the farmers knew it was time to go to their fields. In the afternoon when the female gibbon would make a great call which was followed by the male, people knew it was time for lunch! After a long walk, the forest guard signalled us to venture off the path into the thick forests. With a skyward glance we moved quietly in the forest. When we came to a clearing he signaled at some activity up on the canopy. And there they were…a family of Gibbons. They were effortlessly swinging from one branch to another with remarkable speed and grace. Their lightning quick movements are a sight to be cherished. Their arms were much longer and tail was conspicuously absent. It was difficult, if not impossible to photograph them as they were high up on the canopy and hence backlit against the sky. We stood with eyes cast upwards, watching these agile creatures leaping through the air. It was an ethereal experience. The once contiguous forest is now fragmented by tea gardens and a railway line also passes through the forest. The forest guard told us that across the railway line, there is another group of Hoolock Gibbons, but they are unable to venture across due to lack of canopy cover over the railway track. I was wondering about the consequences of this divide, whether it will lead to inbreeding among the Gibbon population and the long term consequences of it. It was wonderful to watch the only ape in the subcontinent, with the sunlight streaming through the leaves…truly a mystical moment…inspiring the muse in me… As the sun rose in the sky The Gibbons moved with the sun High among the canopy The big one leading at the front Slow ones at the rear Leaping through the trees I watched and watched Till they were out of sight A part of me wanted to follow… Poetry is motion As graceful As the Gibbon Glimpses Of The Gibbons At: https://www.flickr.com/gp/24876955@N02/V1WSSo/ |
Dr Raguram
Someone who keeps exploring beyond the boundaries of everyday life to savor and share those unforgettable moments.... Archives
May 2024
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