Monday, January 04, 2010
Spotting the Stripes at Bhandavgharh
Wonderful trip to Bhandavgharh tiger reserve, MP, culminated last Sunday. After 4 thoroughly enjoyable safaris in cold , I think I have considerably added to my knowledge of the ways of the wild.
Modus operandi of Tiger Spotting
One should have a sharp ear for the sounds of the jungle. Of particular importance to the quest are the calls of the spotted deer (chital) and the langur. The deer lets out a high pitched shriek to alert its brethren- "Deer and doe, there's a nearby foe." The langur is the tiger's nemesis as it spoils many a carefully laid out ambush by getting wind of the Tiger's grand plans from its high perch and shrieking out in a loud and clear warning to one and all. However, if the Tiger is much too enraged, the langur pays for its insolence . The Tiger lets out an almighty roar causing the langur to lose its grip on the tree in fright, thus becoming the tiger's appetizer before the main course comes. If one is lucky, one can hear the growl of the Tiger, which of course is a dead giveaway to the exact location of our Tiger. Patience is key, of course, any of these sounds will be heard only sporadically in the day. And an able mount, in our case a Maruti Gypsy 4X4. On which were seated along with the 5 of us a driver and a guide both of who possessed the aforementioned qualities of sharp and trained hearing and patience in great abundance.
Modus operandi of Tiger Spotting
One should have a sharp ear for the sounds of the jungle. Of particular importance to the quest are the calls of the spotted deer (chital) and the langur. The deer lets out a high pitched shriek to alert its brethren- "Deer and doe, there's a nearby foe." The langur is the tiger's nemesis as it spoils many a carefully laid out ambush by getting wind of the Tiger's grand plans from its high perch and shrieking out in a loud and clear warning to one and all. However, if the Tiger is much too enraged, the langur pays for its insolence . The Tiger lets out an almighty roar causing the langur to lose its grip on the tree in fright, thus becoming the tiger's appetizer before the main course comes. If one is lucky, one can hear the growl of the Tiger, which of course is a dead giveaway to the exact location of our Tiger. Patience is key, of course, any of these sounds will be heard only sporadically in the day. And an able mount, in our case a Maruti Gypsy 4X4. On which were seated along with the 5 of us a driver and a guide both of who possessed the aforementioned qualities of sharp and trained hearing and patience in great abundance.
Moment of Glory
We reach a trisection, where another jeep lies waiting as the driver claims to have heard a growl some time back. However, he zooms off having run out of patience, blowing up a puff of dust on the safari road behind him. As we sit there waiting, we hear the shrill call of a chital. And our able driver races off in that direction..stopping say a kilometre further. 5 minutes later, another chital call, this time say 400m behind us, and able driver zooms back in reverse gear. And then, an uneasy and sharp silence. It was as if we have entered another forest altogether. Silence shattered intermittently by piercing calls of a langur, and the crashing sound of branches as it leaps from tree to tree. The confident smile and nod of our able guide indicating our quarry was near. However, we feel sure enough ourselves- we feel we are veteran tiger spotters ourselves- for the jungle made it of so clear.
And there he is! A majestic 3 m long male. Bokha, one of the three males whose territory the safari area falls into (others being B2 and New Male). Breaks through the bushes and ambles across nonchalantly, crossing the safari path. (Not so nonchalantly, we later learnt. He's a bit nervous when it sees jeeps around and keeps its distance, while B2 prefers to show 'em who's boss by making it a point to brush past watching jeeps as he crosses the road) . Throws us a hard stare- the insolent humans who dare disturb the peace, and then ambles on. Adieu, Rex! Emperor Supreme! We salute thee!
Alas, we were extremely ill equipped for the encounter. 3 tacky camera phones shooting away at the most regal of sights- the Royal Bengal Tiger in the wild. Travesty! Sacrilege! However, the moments were wonderful, divine. We had resigned ourselves to not spotting any stripes after 3 safaris, save for the fleeting glance of the hindquarters of a fleeing young male we had caught once. As one of my companions in the safari said of our first spotting- tucking in its tail between its hind legs and running away from us- that's not how we should see the king! However, the 3.5 safaris without the tiger spotting were thoroughly enjoyable in themselves, and we were settling down with content that evening, but this was a brilliant bonanza.
What else did we see? The other most evocative sight was a Jackal couple traipsing side by side down the safari path from the distance in our direction, crossing 6 pairs of wondering eyes and a stationary jeep. Sambars, Spotted deer and Wild Boar were the other Fauna we could see. Amature aviologist that I am, I was delighted to spot quite a few grey Hornbills. The able guide pointed out a Lesser Adjutant Stork to us once.
And now as the afternoon siesta beckons, I sign off saying it was an extremely satisfying trip. And left me hungry for much more. Watch out jungles of India! Here comes an intrepid explorer!
We reach a trisection, where another jeep lies waiting as the driver claims to have heard a growl some time back. However, he zooms off having run out of patience, blowing up a puff of dust on the safari road behind him. As we sit there waiting, we hear the shrill call of a chital. And our able driver races off in that direction..stopping say a kilometre further. 5 minutes later, another chital call, this time say 400m behind us, and able driver zooms back in reverse gear. And then, an uneasy and sharp silence. It was as if we have entered another forest altogether. Silence shattered intermittently by piercing calls of a langur, and the crashing sound of branches as it leaps from tree to tree. The confident smile and nod of our able guide indicating our quarry was near. However, we feel sure enough ourselves- we feel we are veteran tiger spotters ourselves- for the jungle made it of so clear.
And there he is! A majestic 3 m long male. Bokha, one of the three males whose territory the safari area falls into (others being B2 and New Male). Breaks through the bushes and ambles across nonchalantly, crossing the safari path. (Not so nonchalantly, we later learnt. He's a bit nervous when it sees jeeps around and keeps its distance, while B2 prefers to show 'em who's boss by making it a point to brush past watching jeeps as he crosses the road) . Throws us a hard stare- the insolent humans who dare disturb the peace, and then ambles on. Adieu, Rex! Emperor Supreme! We salute thee!
Alas, we were extremely ill equipped for the encounter. 3 tacky camera phones shooting away at the most regal of sights- the Royal Bengal Tiger in the wild. Travesty! Sacrilege! However, the moments were wonderful, divine. We had resigned ourselves to not spotting any stripes after 3 safaris, save for the fleeting glance of the hindquarters of a fleeing young male we had caught once. As one of my companions in the safari said of our first spotting- tucking in its tail between its hind legs and running away from us- that's not how we should see the king! However, the 3.5 safaris without the tiger spotting were thoroughly enjoyable in themselves, and we were settling down with content that evening, but this was a brilliant bonanza.
What else did we see? The other most evocative sight was a Jackal couple traipsing side by side down the safari path from the distance in our direction, crossing 6 pairs of wondering eyes and a stationary jeep. Sambars, Spotted deer and Wild Boar were the other Fauna we could see. Amature aviologist that I am, I was delighted to spot quite a few grey Hornbills. The able guide pointed out a Lesser Adjutant Stork to us once.
And now as the afternoon siesta beckons, I sign off saying it was an extremely satisfying trip. And left me hungry for much more. Watch out jungles of India! Here comes an intrepid explorer!
Labels: Travellog
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