I have been getting many mails from readers asking questions about filming or how to become my assistant. In the first part of the series (http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/the-three-idiots-effect/), I had documented the irrational wishes of some of those newbies…

In this article I am providing some direct answers to the queries. If you have any questions, you can post your comments here.

Question of PK via Facebook:

Hello brother… I just watched the trailer of your wildlife doc on youtube… That was awesome… I always have an aim to make some wildlife doc like you did…. But due to i don’t have sophisticated equipment i could not… Still i have hope that one day i will fulfill my aim… Regarding this i want to ask you something… Firstly how you gave the background music??? Did you compose it personally??? And 2ndly when we will able to see the full movie you made??? And 3rdly is that possible to make a wildlife channel like discovery, natgeo in India… The 1st Indian wildlife channel… with the collaboration of all the experienced wildlife film maker like you in which i can also take part in some extent… Personally i want to know the nature very closely so that i want to be a part of it… Which is alone can’t be done…. so can we all together do such kind of new start??? And in last, I have a d3100 and 18 55 lens.. Want to go for a telephoto lens… I am selected tamron 70 300, nikor 55 300…due to my budget is low… Will you help me to choose the correct one??? Hope replay from you soon…

My Answer:

Sophisticated equipment:

I agree that I used lot of high end sound equipment, high end tripod and fluid head etc. However, the camera is a DLSR, though it is Canon’s professional 1 series camera. I used the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and I shot it in Full HD ie. 1080p at 24 fps.

One can use a lower end Canon DSLR as well like a 600D, or 60D or 7D. However, at the moment Nikon is far behind in terms of its video capabilities. The new D800 is fine but with lot of moire etc. Nevertheless, you can use your Nikon if you know its limitations. In life, we will always have some limitation or the other. It is important to circumvent the limitation and achieve your goal.

For example: When I used the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, it doesn’t have auto focusing. So I had to do the focusing manually. One may say what is wrong in that, as all the professional cinema guys focus manually. The answer is those professionals don’t depend on a small LCD screen at the back of the camera to focus. SLRs and then DSLRs were primarily meant for shooting still photography. So you see through the viewfinder. However, video came later and for shooting video, you need to see through the LCD at the back of the camera. That necessitates camera to be placed or held in front of you depending upon your eyesight. When you try holding a camera at a distance from you to look through the viewfinder, then you will quickly realise that handholding becomes out of question. In sharp contrast, a video camera has been designed for a shoulder mount or to be held by hand with the LCD screen swiveling at any angle you want.

So what did I do? I bought an external viewfinder called LCDVF which can be attached to the back of your camera and then you can focus. The details are here:  http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/lcdvf-viewfinder-for-filming/

Tripod:

I first used my still tripod Gitzo GT3530LS carbon fibre tripod and a Wimberly V2 head. Unfortunately, when you attach your Canon 1D Mark IV and the heavy EF 400mm f2.8 L IS lens weight 5.3kgs on it, you will quickly realise that though this is a great combination for still photography, it is not good enough for filming.

If you are shooting in a windy situation and filming, then there would be jitters in your video. In still photography, you can discard one shot, however, when filming the entire sequence gets ruined. With the Full HD footage that you get from most of the DSLRs, it is important that you have a stable support. Also while panning your shot, you need a good fluid head. Else, your panning will have be horrible to say the least.

Sabyasachi using OConnor 1030 HDS Fluid head, Sachtler CF 100 ENG HD2 CF tripod

For example, the fluid head that I use – Oconnor 1030 HDs which is the beginning of the range used by Hollywood guys – costs 7000 USD (http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/oconnor-1030-hds-fluid-head/ ). The tripod costs around 3000 USD (http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/sachtler-cf-100-eng-hd-2-cf-tripod/). A relatively cheap Miller DS-20 Fluid costing about 1100 USD will also work for people, if you don’t have stringent requirements. Ofcourse, you can use the Manfrotto 519 costing around 800 US dollars.

Add to this the price of a tripod.

If you thought, wildlife photography was costly, then wildlife filming is like breaking the bank.

If you want to compete with the best in the world, then obviously you will need to invest in high end equipment.

Sound:
I have invested in equipment to do sound recording. I should warn you that this is entirely a different field altogether and the investments to get good equipment is huge. I have recorded the sound myself.

External Microphones:
The built-in mic of your DSLR is not good enough.
There is no way out but to buy external microphones. They come in all shapes and sizes depending upon your quality requirements and budget. It can vary from couple of hundred dollars (like the a Rode microphone) to a few thousand US dollars like the Schoeps SuperCMIT at 4750 USD. I have settled on a Sennheiser MKH 416. I have bought the all time favourite Sennheiser MKH 416 microphone (http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/sennheiser-mkh-416-microphone-review/). In case you want to record interviews, then you may need to pick up a Lavaliere microphone.

Sabyasachi with Sennheiser microphone, miser, 400mm f2.8 L IS USM lens on Gitzo tripod

Mixer:
You would need an amplifier/mixer to connect your microphone and then the output can be recorded in a sound recorder or plugged straight into the camera. Plan at least about 400 odd USD for that.

Sound recorder:
The cheapest sound recorder with professional XLR inputs can cost you about 300 USD (Tascam DR100). If you want a much better quality like the ones used by Hollywood fellows, then you have to buy Sound Devices or a similar brand costing several thousand dollars. I use the Sound Devices 702 recorder (http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/sound-devices-702t-sound-recorder-review/). You can use lower end recorders as well like the Tascam DR 100 (which I have as well).

Head phones:
It is important to monitor the sound that is being recorded. So you need closed microphones. A popular Sennheiser one can cost you about 90 USD and upwards. However, it will last for a decade or so. Remember, that it is not advisable to use a noise cancelling microphone, as you certainly want to hear any noise that is creeping into your recordings.

Music:
I didn’t compose music. I got it scored by a music composer and it costs money. However, you can see the output. People just pick up some bits of music from the net or buy a few bits and then use it in their videos. Obviously, the output is not likely to match music that is specifically scored for your video.

Full Movie:
I have released the DVD. One can buy it by paying a token amount of Rs. 300/-. For further details please check here: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/a-call-in-the-rainforest-dvd/

Wildlife Channel for India:
Yes it is possible. However, it is not easy to procure content and compete with the likes of Discovery, National Geographic and Animal Planet. I hope some of the existing players are looking at this genre.

The only wildlife programming I remember used to be done by NDTV and aired on Sundays. I guess that is also stopped. Doordarshan used to allow some programming. I am not sure what is the scene these days. However, doordarshan used to have some stringent conditions for Indian programs. Whereas they used to allow a foreign program where the presenter is himself seen in the video, they were not allowing Indian presenter to be seen in the video. Not sure if the situation has changed. Anyway, I am not photogenic and don’t like to come infront of the camera, though I have narrated for my film.

You have seen the film “Three Idiots”. Who hasn’t? Such a wonderful film and it talks about a college student with a passion for photography getting selected as an assistant to a successful wildlife photographer.

You then saw a clip of a film titled “A CALL IN THE RAINFOREST”. You saw a black monkey like creature calling and you are told that it is a Lion-tailed Macaque. You are told that the film is completely shot with a Canon 1D Mark IV. You jump out of your bed. You get some visions of you pushing the button of your Canon 60D/Nikon D3100 and making that movie and success in film festivals… [democratisation of dreams….]

You then start chasing that wildlife filmmaker, so much that he wonders what has hit him…..

Here is one example. The prefix NB is used for the newbie who wants to become an assistant.

NB: I am new in this field. I want some guide. I need friends in this area. U have G8 instruments.

Sabyasachi Patra: This is a journey. The equipment is costly. You can’t buy things in one day.

NB: Yes i know

Sabyasachi Patra: To give you an idea, just my tripod costs 2850 US dollars and the fluid head that sits on top of the tripod is 7000 us dollars. This is costly. Take it step by step. Have you registered in IndiaWilds forums?

NB: No.

Sabyasachi Patra: Register at www.indiawilds.com/forums/register.php

Do that using your Full Name as user id. Membership is free. I guide photographers there and it will help you learn.

NB: I have a dslr camera and I shoot still. I want to be your assistant.

Sabyasachi Patra: Becoming my assistant is not the only way to learn. You join IndiaWilds forums and you will learn sufficiently there. People have learnt photography and won awards within a year of joining IndiaWilds. I have also kept it free.

Only when someone needs more advanced tips, I will organise a paid field trip for imparting specialised instructions. For many enthusiasts, I have spent many hours teaching for free. You can join IndiaWilds forums for free and learn.

NB: Ohh…then i cant. If i got chance to assist u it will be helpful for me…

Sabyasachi Patra: I give tips for free of cost in the forum and lot of people benefit from that.

NB: I need some one whoom i can assist. And by whom i can learn…

Sabyasachi Patra: First you join IndiaWilds Forums which is free of cost and learn there. I critique images of people and guide them there. Others also learn reading those comments. So my time is spent productively in imparting instructions to many people. And that too free of cost. In the forum you would be able to learn not only about Photography but also about various Conservation issues in India. Also understanding animal behavior (Natural History) is a big aspect when you are doing wildlife photography or filming. Learning and understanding these things is very important before you embark on a career in Wildlife Photography or Filming.

NB: U know abt satayajit roy….the flim director…who got ascar and knowing for his composition. You know how much great personality he had?

Sabyasachi Patra: He was one in a million.

NB: And he guided 2-3 students and they are now famous. Satyajit roy teach them free…sponcer them, give them his own instruments for use…And thats why his works are beyond generations.

But I want that you can copy his thinking. See this field not from the angle of money….but love. U gain the best thing.

Helping some one is the gain. Helping some one in which u r expert is the best thing in the world which can’t buy from money

Think about that.

Sabyasachi Patra: Thank you for your lecture. All these years I have been spending money from my pocket in running the IndiaWilds Forums so that youngsters can learn. Twenty years back when I was trying to learn photography, there was no one to teach me. So I learnt myself and decided that I will create a forum where people can learn from me as well as from their peers and I created IndiaWilds forums.

Why will someone take you as an assistant? Taking a person as assistant means added cost. Unless and until someone sees value in taking you as an assistant, they will not take you. My suggestion is that first you join IndiaWilds forums where I help people learn free of cost. Only after learning there, you will get an idea whether you have the talent and whether you really want to get into this field seriously. That will decide the future course of action.

——— [End of Conversation] ———————

NB2: Sir I am calling from Mumbai.

Sabyasachi Patra: Ok. Tell me how can I help you.

NB2: Sir, I got a link to your wonderful site. You click very nice images. I want to learn wildlife photography.

Sabyasachi Patra: I am happy that you like my images. If you have seen my site, then you would have seen the forums. You can join the indiawilds forums. Membership is free. You can learn wildlife photography there as well as learn Natural history aspects and voice your opinion to protect our forests and wildlife.

NB2: Sir is it really free. Can I really learn?

Sabyasachi Patra: Yes. It is free. Myself and other senior members can guide you there.

NB2: OK sir. I will register.

——— [End of Conversation] ———————

A wild tigress carefully stalking its prey, placing its hind paw at exactly the same spot where the fore paw was placed

NB2: Hello sir, I am calling from Mumbai.

Sabyasachi Patra: Yes. Tell me what can I do for you.

NB2: Sir. I had called you last time for photography. You had told me that you will teach me wildlife photography.

Sabyasachi Patra: Oh Yes. I remember. You had called me last time and I had directed you to join IndiaWilds forums.

NB2: Sir I know you had told me. But Sir, I really want to learn wildlife photography. Mujhe sikhaoge na please?

Sabyasachi Patra: Listen I had told you that first you join the forums and then you will learn and you will know whether you really want to buy expensive equipment.

NB2: Sir please. I want to learn. Mujhe apka assistant banado na please!

Sabyasachi Patra: Hey listen! I understand you want to assist me. I only take assistants when I am doing a project. My shooting times are typically short. At the moment, I go for filming with a max one or two other people and others helping mostly on voluntary basis or at times paid for specific requirements. I am juggling my projects with my job. You can learn by doing many activities like research on subject, location, learn about photography and natural history in the forums and then when there is requirement we will take use your services.

NB2: No Sir. Mujhe assistant banado na please. It is my dream…..

——— [End of Conversation] ———————

A wild tiger (Panthera tigris tigris) drinks water in a summer morning in Bandhavgarh National Park. It was subsequently disturbed by tourists and went away after drinking for only 5 minutes. On later occasions I have seen this tigress drink for fifteen minutes.

Another day, Another place…..

Sabyasachi Patra: Good afternoon!

NB3: Sir I am a student currently learning film in XXXX Film School, Chennai.

Sabyasachi Patra: Good to know that you are a filming student. Tell me what you want.

NB3: Sir. My uncle is a cinematographer in Kollywood.

Sabyasachi Patra: Where?

NB3: Kollywood Sir. Chennai.

Sabyasachi Patra: Great to know that your uncle is a cinematographer. You are fortunate.

NB3: But Sir! I only want to be wildlife photographer Sir!

Sabyasachi Patra: Why? What happened? Why only wildlife photography?

NB3: No Sir! I like wildlife photography Sir! I want to be your assistant Sir! Now I don’t have a camera Sir! But I will buy a 7D Sir! Please take me as your assistant Sir!

Sabyasachi Patra: Listen. You are already studying cinematography in a film school. So why do you want to learn from me. You will be having access to equipment, so you can learn from your film school.

NB3: No Sir! That course will be over sir. I want to be your assistant Sir! I only need 15 thousand rupees Sir! And food and other costs Sir!

Sabyasachi Patra: See. I am not taking any assistants. I feel you should take the help of your teachers in the film school to get an internship somewhere. If you are really passionate about wildlife, then you can join indiawilds forums. Over a period of time you will realize whether you are passionate about wildlife and environment. Only if you are passionate, then you can sustain yourself in wildlife photography and filming. Once I see that you are really interested, and when time is ripe you can certainly be a part.

NB3: OK Sir.

——— [End of Conversation] ———————

From the above conversations, few things were clear. First is that People don’t want to take the long road. They want to achieve it in one day. The person doesn’t want to take the long road in terms of uploading his images for critiquing in the IndiaWilds forums (www.indiawilds.com/forums ) and learn free of cost. Two, the person wants an easy path to glory by assisting me. And the third fact is the person is just thinking and talking about himself and his needs. A salesman will always teach you that, you have to excite the other person to buy your product or service. So my message to all such youngsters is please don’t approach a person by saying that you want to become a wildlife photographer or how much you love watching those Animal Planet or National Geographic channels.

If I don’t know the capability of a person and don’t know whether he can help me during my filming trips, then obviously it is difficult to take someone. And on top of that, if you take an assistant there is an added cost. So why will someone take a newbie?

People also think that Wildlife Photography and Filming is the “in thing”. It is glamorous and hence they want to do it.

Wildlife filmmaking and photography is a passion. It is a reason for existence for many. To the outside world it appears glamorous. However, the people who have been successful have persevered for years. They have put in blood, sweat and tears. They have put in enormous sacrifices. Unfortunately, today’s generation looks to get everything on a platter.

If you are an artist then you should be ready to make a sacrifice. What kind of sacrifice can you do for photography? I know of a person who calls me every 30-40 days when he remembers about wildlife photography and on other times he is preoccupied in watching movies, Facebook and other such preoccupations. Wildlife photography is a fad for many.

To all such people, my suggestion is think about what you love. Follow your passion. You can’t achieve success in a day; you have to work for a lifetime.

A perception created by people living around the forests and and lapped up by journalists is that the wildlife populations, especially that of large mammals have increased phenomenally. In places where the intensity of human-animal conflict is high like Coimbatore, Valparai, Sathyamangalam, Anyrangal, Borivali, Guwahati, this perception is widespread and getting stronger with each passing day. There are several reasons for the wildlife to be visible on the outskirts of national park boundaries and other protected areas and that does not mean their numbers have overshot.

Let’s take the case of Elephants. Elephant is the largest mega herbivore in our country that is unfortunately a party to the Human-animal conflict owing to many factors. In India less than 25% of the total elephant habitat is falling within the Protected Area (PA) network that comprises of the Wildlife Sanctuaries and the National Parks. The rest of their habitat lies outside the PA network which is a mosaic of multiple use forests (Government reserved forests), plantations and cultivations that have come up in the place of the natural forests. Elephants have been destined to live outside the forested landscape, simply because of humans steadily encroaching on the forests and converting those to human habitations, cultivated lands etc. This has fragmented their habitat and their survival outside the Protected Areas has become extremely tenuous as exemplified by increased conflict related deaths.

A Charging Elephant

Increasing human wildlife interface

Even the 25% of the elephant habitats falling within PA network is not completely devoid of problems. Within PAs (Protected Areas) we have linear intrusions like roads, canals, dams, railway lines and settlements fragmenting the habitat and reducing the habitat quality. Some of the PAs and Reserved Forests have very high density of cattle that competes with elephants and other wild herbivores over the available plant biomass. Even the better large mammal habitats like Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary in the Nilgiris continue to suffer from annual man made fires that destroys the precious fodder available for the ungulates.

An elephant struggles to find food in an invasives dominated landscape

Quality of habitats has also degraded due to our intrusion resulting in proliferation of invasive toxic plants like lantana camara , Parthenium hysterophorus, Chromolaena sp  and score of other Forest Invasive Species (FIS) that have colonized good wildlife habitats. In many PAs productive riparian forests and vayals (=swamp fallows) that support luxuriant vegetation were taken over for paddy cultivation depriving the food availability for the herbivores. Collection of huge quantities of minor forest produce that includes edible fruits and even the bamboo has depleted the food source for the wild animals. All these factors have directly or indirectly forced wildlife to seek out food outside the human defined National Park boundaries. There is also a hypothesis of population constriction of large mammals in some PAs because of indiscriminate habitat loss in the surrounding areas and wildlife obviously seeks refuge in the areas with minimum human disturbance. This again cannot be claimed as an increase in population.

Comfortably ignoring all these facts, there is a vehement claim that wildlife populations have increased everywhere. The human – wildlife interface has indeed increased significantly as more roads are laid inside the forests and lengthy hard edges are created around the wildlife habitats. Even the once obscure forest roads now have many visitors and the forest boundaries have been filled up with tourist resorts, industries and housing colonies. Wildlife habitats continue to suffer from shrinkage and fragmentation.  These days an elephant or any wildlife for that matter may have to ‘encounter’ human beings several times a day during its daily movement within its range. A decade ago elephant herds might have peacefully crossed the Mettupalayam to Ooty road in the cover of the darkness. This is just not possible today with over 3000 vehicles on an average plying in this road day and night. Elephant herds stay baffled in the road side awaiting a lull in the traffic to cross the road. They stand exposed being watched by hundreds of people most of who think that the elephant numbers have increased just because they saw them! Mere increase in the sighting rate within or outside the habitat does not mean that there is a true increase in the wildlife population.

Declining wildlife populations

Wildlife populations, especially the large cats and even the elephants suffer high mortality rates. The unnatural mortalities resulting from poaching, road kill, electrocution and others continue to haunt wildlife populations threatening their very existence. Further, there is no factual basis for claiming the increase in wildlife populations as we don’t have reliable base line information to compare the numbers over a period of time. Moreover, scientifically accepted manner of enumerating wildlife populations is nonexistent in most of the areas.  

An elephant herd running away from people

A recent article published by a renowned Primatologist Titled “Monkeys common no more” claims that even the common monkeys around us are dwindling in numbers and they occur in low densities in the forests. This is contrary to the popular belief that monkey populations have dramatically increased.  Wild boars were in the news for wrong reasons. Kerala government had recently allowed killing of wild boars that ‘stray’ out of the forests in some districts. This decision is based on the opinion that wild boar numbers have exploded in the state.  Wild boars belong to the family of Suidae and they are the most widely distributed prey species for the tigers. All the three major predatory carnivores in our region, the tiger, the leopard and the dhole (mistakenly known as the Indian Wild dog) predate on the wild boars. Long term scientific study on tigers conducted in the tropical forests of Karnataka by deploying techniques such as scat (faecal matter) analysis has revealed that on an average 9.5% of tiger’s diet constitute wild boars. Experts with years of field experience assert that wild boar population is subject to high seasonal fluctuations. Increase of their numbers in some forests may be a temporary phenomenon. So knee jerk reactions to specific situations and ordering “culling” of wild boars may reduce the prey base of the predatory carnivores and even increase the human – carnivore conflict.

Worried by traffic, a wild asian elephant looks at left and then at right before crossing the road in Nagarhole National Park, India

N.Lakshminarayanan

Wildlife Conservation Society – India Program

Coimbatore

Legalise War on wildlife? Is that the only solution? Do we allow culling of our wild animals? This and much more…
The Homo sapiens are at war with wildlife. Earlier it was a covert operation where by large dams, canals, power projects, roads, cities etc were built after clearing wildlife habitat. There are some organised gangs that poach wildlife for its skin, bones and other body parts. With the population explosion and the increased urbanisation due to need and greed is leaving no space for the wildlife.

Our forests are fragmented, and with our proclivity to concretise every available space, there is no chance for wildlife to take cover. This results in an animal moving from one forest patch to the other increasingly difficult as they can’t conceal themselves. When an animal is spotted, immediately there is pandemonium all around. The poor animal which is on its way loses its sense of direction and tries to flee in whichever direction there is less crowd. The fate of the animal is sealed. People throw stones, fire bullets, beat it up with sticks and soon it is dead. Al Jazeera footage of a tiger being hacked: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7TG4SIy3dg

Culling:

Now a bunch of wannabe conservation media professionals want to take this a bit further. They want to legalise slaughter of wildlife to control the population to a “manageable” number. They want to take the example of elephant culling from a few African countries and want to do the same for our herbivores and carnivores in India. The reason given is that due to “development” (read urbanization) activities being carried out, there is less space for wildlife and so their population need to be controlled. The argument is that herbivores come out of the forest and eat and damage the crops. An article in Tehelka, proclaims that crop depredation by wild animals is the single biggest challenge to livelihood of farmers citing 17,725 cases of crop damage between April 2010 and February 2011. (Tehelka Vol. 9 Issue 07, Dated 18 Feb 2012). While the call for “culling” wildlife is an outrageous idea and doesn’t require a comment, nevertheless, one can check a discussion in IndiaWilds by checking this link: (http://indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=574)

It would be pertinent to quote the Late Billy Arjan Singh “A wildlife management ploy, which is of immense harm to wildlife, is culling. Managers maintain this is essential in certain cases to maintain the biomass population in relation to the habitat available, and in preventing population pressures from degrading the habitat. In other words, the human has arrogated to himself the task of adjusting the wildlife population to the forage available in a given area. In these days of habitat reclamation for human use, this places an unwarranted onus on the human species, which, as we have already seen, is singularly unqualified to deal with population control“.

“Wild animals are eminently adaptable, and if certain ungulates overgraze the forage they have been used to, they will opt for other forms of life maintenance. Browsers may become grazers, and other sources may be discovered. The hardground swampdeer of Madhya Pradesh are genetically the same as the marsh inhabitants of Kaziranga. The sambhar, supposed to be solitary inhabitants of dense forest, now gregariously feed on water plants in Ranthambore, like the barasingha. Wild elephants propagate trees from the seed pods they ingest. When they cannot strip bark from trees, they switch to a diet of grass. Yet in Africa it is maintained that they have destroyed and are destroying their habitat, and should be culled for their own good. This reprehensible idea is implemented by the slaughter of entire herds of Zimbabwe, and is a crime against laws of the universe as ordained by nature. These insensate massacres are a greater offence than that of a country like Japan, which may illegally smuggle ivory, but those artisans have never seen an elephant“. (For other key messages of Billy Arjan Singh one can check here: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/indiawilds-newsletter-vol-2-issue-i/)

Infact, recent research suggests that culling has a huge negative impact on the wildlife. The errant behavior of adolescent elephants in killing rhinos, tearing down huge trees etc in Africa was found to be due to the trauma they suffered when adult elephants from their herd were shot dead. In the US it has been reported that when adult cougars were killed, their place is taken by young ones. Whereas the adults had lived in close proximity of humans and have rarely been observed, the young ones have been attacking humans. Perhaps, the young ones need a calming influence and guidance of the adults in their growth stage as we certainly do.

Rodents pose bigger Challenges than wild herbivores:

In a world where big always appears to be better, we always try to do a quick fix solution like killing the bigger animals like deers, sambars, wild boars, Nilgais etc rather than looking at the root cause of the problems. It is often overlooked that small rodents cause the maximum damage to food grains. Rodents eat about 10 per cent of agricultural production. (Advani, Ranjan, “Rodent Damage to Various Annual and Perennial Crops of India and Its Management” (1987). Great Plains Wildlife Damage Control Workshop Proceedings. Paper 47) According to Grant Singleton, Rodent Expert of International Rice Research Institute “In Asia, rodents cause, on average annual preharvest losses of 5-10% in rice crops. A loss of 6% is substantial as this is enough rice to feed 225 million people for a year.” (Rice Today October-December 2009). However, people are nearly oblivious to such huge damage caused by rodents and only when there was an outbreak of plague in Surat in 1994 people started talking about rodents.

Rodents also create havoc and have been the cause of famine and armed uprisings. A massive famine struck Mizoram in 1958 and it is said that several thousand lives were lost. This followed the bamboo flowering which happens every 48 years. After flowering the bamboo dies and the rodents feast on the seeds and give birth and increase their numbers exponentially. After the seeds are devoured, the increased number of rodents devastate the crops. This famine had serious implications with the birth of Mizo National Famine Front leading to insurgency which finally got resolved with the birth of Mizoram as a State of India.

In 2006 bamboo (melocanna baccifera species) started flowering in Mizoram and in 2007 the Agriculture department of Mizoram had stated that atleast 6,683 hectares of jhum (shifting) cultivation land in seven districts were impacted by rat infestations.

Owls predate on rats and need their habitat ie. old growth and dead trees to be preserved

The rodents have rapid rate of reproduction, the overall damage caused by rodents is phenomenal. Rats attain sexual maturity by 5th week and their gestation period is around 21-23 days. Since rats come on heat ie. Post partum estrus after 10 hrs, they can become pregnant during that time. In times of abundant supply of food like bamboo flowering, one pair of rats can technically multiply to 759122 in twelve months’ time. In normal conditions, assuming only 6 litters per year and a smaller number per litter, a pair of rats can multiply to 31250 in a year. (Source: IndiaWilds Model)

When rodents can cause such huge impact including changing the socio-political scenario and causing armed conflicts thereby inflicting so much of pain and misery on people, is it not time for us to focus our energy more on them? That will cause less of wastage of agricultural products and will then hopefully result in less area going under cultivation.

Rat snakes jostling with each other for dominance on the outskirts of a village

Biological Control of Rodents:

One of the major reasons for the explosion of rodent populations in the towns and cities is the lack of predators. Except for the domestic cat, the other predators need to have a suitable habitat for them.

Birds like Owls are mercilessly hunted due to superstition and black magic. Though a barn owl is considered as the vehicle of Maa Laxmi, the Goddesses of wealth, owls are hardly seen due to habitat loss and hunting. In most of the places, old dead trees are cut off, depriving owls and a number of others species of their habitat.

Similarly increased concretisation and lack of trees is leading to less of predatory birds. One can still find an occasional Shikra or a Black-shouldered kite. However, finding Kestrels, Merlins, tawny eagles etc due to loss of grass lands and wetlands is becoming increasingly difficult.

Apart from the poisonous snakes like Cobra, Viper, Krait, the non-poisonous snakes like rat snakes are very effective in containing the rodent population.Snakes are the major predators of rodents. So one can find more snakes in the villages and towns than in the forest. The traditional house construction used to favour the snakes going about their business of catching rodents in the attic. With the modern concrete constructions, it has become difficult for the snakes to penetrate the houses. In case a snake gets into, it has become difficult for them to get out without getting killed.

Unfortunately, due to lack of knowledge in identifying snakes, all the snakes are killed by people. 

Pythons too regulate the rodent population effectively (Whitaker and Bhaskar 1978).

Pythons too regulate the rat population effectively

Unfortunately, people have waged a war on snakes due to their fear arising out of ignorance. So much is the ignorance that despite thousands of years of co-existence our villagers hardly know a thing or two about snakes. It is only natural that a lot of people have morbid fear of snakes.

In the book ‘Snakes of India – The field Guide’ by Romulus Whitaker & Ashok Captain, Chapter Snakebite and anti-venom:

“Snakebites are rare where people know about snake habits and learn how to avoid encounters. Snakes usually flee when humans approach, but are sometimes cornered or tread upon and that’s when they may bite in self-defense. Fortunately most snakebites are by non-venomous snakes and the great majority (85-90%) of venomous bites are not life-threatening as the snake generally injects only a small amount of venom or no venom at all (a “dry” bite). However, a bite from any venomous snake must be treated as serious.”

To make matters worse, of late there is an increasing breed of snake catchers/handlers who are ever ready to catch a snake for photographing. However, they too retain the deep rooted fear and hatred of snakes. One of them even argued with me that snakes should be killed mercilessly. Hindu mythology is replete with stories of snakes. Vasuki had served as a rope in the churning of the ocean. Sesha naga holds the earth on his head. Bhima is supposed to have been rescued by a Naga….. Alas, we have moved far away from our Gods and Goddesses and we are taking a very narrow view of our world.

Apart from snakes, animals like Jackal, fox, mongoose etc also predate on rats. Unfortunately our grasslands are vanishing and along with it are the jackals, fox etc.

Fortunately, mongoose can still survive in the parks and gardens, though they are hunted for their hair.

 In the India of this new millennium, where the loudest voice is often mistaken as the wisest voice, we need to teach people as well as to the TRP/eyeball chasing journalists that there are greater issues in life that needs to be tackled rather than taking a narrow view and spending energy in championing the cause of “culling” herbivores and carnivores.

Other Conservation Articles and News:

An Article based on Road Kills study in Chinar and Aliyar in Anamalais by Wildlife Biologist R. Arumugam:
http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/road-kills-in-chinnar-road-and-aliyar/

(If anyone wants to contribute articles on wildlife and conservation, please mail to administrator@indiawilds.com)

Coimbatore Mayor Terrorises NGOs for stopping tree felling:

http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9552

Unregulated Tourism ravaging Western Ghats:

http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9539

Tiger presence confirmed in Mizoram

http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9503

Forest Fires:
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9303

Tug of war for lions between Gujarat and MP
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9406

Kawal Sanctuary notified as Tiger Reserve
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9404

Empowering Women: Punjab recruits 42 women as forest guards:
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9469

Kerala Govt. to take over Cherunelli Estate
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9443

IndiaWilds Meet:
Please check the following thread for more details on the ‘IndiaWilds Meet’
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9447

Those who are interested can email for details to administrator@indiawilds.com

Wildlife Photography:
Images shared by our members between March 10th 2012 and April 9th 2012 depicting either interesting behaviour, habitat, rare species or that are simply beautiful.

Humpback Dolphin leap by Abhishek Jamalabad
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9276

Blyth’s Reed Warbler by Deepak Ramani
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9243

Bee-eater by Mrudul Godbole
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9205

Montagu’s Harrier by Dipankar Mazumdar
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9119

Elephant Scapes of Nilgiris by Mohan Raj
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9351

Leaping Frog and the Ant by Bibhav Behera
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9176

Mango stem borer by Prasanth Sreenivasan
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9184

Weaver ants by Kaling Dai
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9141

I look forward to your inputs and your support in preserving the last tracts of wilderness and wildlife left in this beautiful country. For other interesting articles and photographs please check: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/

All the newsletters can be found online at:
http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/category/newsletter/

In case, anyone of you has forgotten his/her user id and password can email the admin at the following email id administrator@indiawilds.com

Others may register at www.indiawilds.com/forums/register.php using your Full Name as user id.

Regards,

Sabyasachi Patra
www.indiawilds.com
Profile: http://www.indiawilds.com/profile.htm
Contact: http://www.indiawilds.com/contact%20us.htm
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/IndiaWilds/132629240481
Diary: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/
Equipment reviews: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/category/equipment/
Forums: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/index.php
Channel: http://www.youtube.com/indiawilds

Highway that goes through forest bisects the habitat and pose severe problem for wildlife that crosses the road. Very often wild animals get killed by speeding vehicles. So a study was undertaken to look at the problem posed by state highways that go thorough Anamalai Tiger Reserve to suggest mitigation measures to reduce the number of road kills along these roads. The roads selected for the study were road stretch between 9 / 6 – Chinnar road and Aliyar – Attakatti check posts. The main objectives of this study were:

1. to look at the road kills along 9 / 6 and Chinnar check post road and along Aliyar and Attakatti Check post road
2. to look at the vehicle traffic during week days and week ends
3. to look at the vehicle speed in day and night time as well in steep roads and in road stretch that goes through flat terrain
4. and to suggest mitigation measures to reduce road kills

Methods

Two major highways that goes through Anamalai Tiger Reserve namely 9 / 6 Check post -   Chinnar and Aliyar – Attakatti check post were selected to look at road kills of wild animals. The selected roads were walked during morning and all the animals that were found dead were noted with Global Positioning System (GPS) locations. Vehicles using theses roads during week days and week ends and during day and night time were recorded. Vehicles using these roads would be classified into heavy vehicle such as truck and bus and medium sizzled vehicle like Mazda’s and mini trucks, light motor vehicles such as car and jeeps and autos and two wheelers. Vehicle speed were recorded with the help of speed guns. Vehicle speed were recorded during day and night time and also in different terrains such as steep slopes and flat terrains.

Results

This work was started from December 2010 and it continued until April 2011. Both roads were walked twice during the month of December 2010 and the length of the roads walked were 20.2 in Aliyar – Attakatti road and 24 kilometers 9 / 6 Check post and Chinnar Check post road. 20 (twenty) kills were found along 9 / 6 check post and Chinnar road and 75 (seventy five) kills were found along the Aliyar – Attakatti Check post road. The kills includes amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. Invertebrates such as insects and crabs were also found along both roads. Several shield tail snakes were found dead during the first trip just after rains and it less number of shield tails were found dead during the second trip. Sheild tail snakes were found dead only in Aliyar – Attakatti check post road. The study roads were digitized using MapInfo Professional Version 10. The roads were digitized from 1: 50, 000 scale Survey of India Toposheets. Fifty meter contours were generated using Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission data (SRTM). Road kill locations were superimposed on the roads to look at whether there is any particular stretch has got more hills and also look at the number of kill along steep roads and roads running through flat terrain. More kills were found gentle undulating terrain and in road stretches in flat terrain. Twelve kill were noticed between Punganodai and 9 / 6 check post and fourteen kill were found between Aliyar and Attakatti check post road between contour canal junction and Aliyar check post. More number of kills were noticed between contour canal during first visit between contour canal junction and Attakatti check post this because of large number shield tails movement after rain in this stretch after rain.

Animal kills found in 9 / 6 and Chinnar Check post

Animal kills found in Aliyar and Attakatti check post

Proportion of different kills found along Aliyar – Attakatti Check posts

 Proportion of different kills found along 9 / 6 and Chinnar Check posts

Vehicle speed in flat terrain Aliyar – Attakatti Road and 9/6 Check post and Chinnar Road during the month of January 2011

Number of Vehicles using the study roads during week days in Aliyar Attakatti Rd

Number of Vehicles using the study roads during week days in Aliyar Attakatti Rd

Bush Hawk 320D

I have been photographing handheld from the back of an elephant for a long time. I faced many situations where the tiger was sleeping in shade and the light was low resulting in a low shutter speed. With a moving elephant, the challenge increases. At times I have told the mahout to restrain the elephant from moving resulting in the mahout beating up the poor elephant. The elephant becomes restless due to the weight on its back and also because despite the huge size of an elephant, the tiger’s presence is unnerving. Proper handholding techniques can help you a lot. However, there are situations when a support inform of shoulder pod is a must. I have tried many local made contraptions. I have perfected a technique using monopod with ball head and can get sharp images on a swaying boat or elephant. However, I finally decided to search for a suitable shoulder pod which will not break down at vital moment. About 5 years back, I finally found the Bush Hawk when I saw Frans Lanting’s comment and got it from US.

This is nicely designed shoulder pod and it appears as if one is holding a rifle. In the place of a trigger is a button which is connected to the camera by a remote. So you just need to gently press the trigger to actuate the shutter button. The eye piece is adjusted so that it rests on your eye, like our normal photographing position. One can easily hold this in the right hand with the “butt” of the bush hawk placed on your shoulder, the way you would do while firing. (If any one of you fired with a gun/airgun then you would be able to visualize better).

I have successfully used my shorter lenses like the 300mm f4 with a 1.4x TC attached, 70-200 f2.8 with EF 2xII TC attached etc.
I have also tried my heavy EF400mm f2.8 L IS USM lens with 2XII Tc attached with my 1D series body. With this attachment, it actually becomes difficult to hold for a long time due to the long length. Anyway, this lens is not to be handheld, though I have successfully have got many sharp images handholding it. Once in Nagarhole, when langurs were giving alarm calls due to a leopard, one langur looked at me and started giving alarm calls. The leopard kind of got spooked due to it.

The other challenge I found was while trekking, it became difficult to carry the bush hawk holding it ahead like a gun. Unless one is a soldier and has been trained to move ahead in the bush with the gun ready to fire, for us mere photographers it was a challenge. I don’t want my lens to get scratched by any vegetation.

In insurgent infested areas and in sensitive places, it is better not to be carrying this. Else, you are inviting trouble from the security forces.

Of late this doesn’t get used much, as I have too many equipment to carry and I am more involved in filming than in photography. However, this is also good for handheld filming. You can hold it in one hand and do the focusing with the other hand. My EF 70-200 f2.8 L IS USM with a converter works well for filming with this bush hawk shoulder pod as well.

Overall, this is a good design.

After struggling in a couple of shoots, I bought the LCDVF viewfinder. I had corresponded with Zacuto to get their new viewfinder, but that was not in stock when my friend from US was coming to India. So I ordered the LCDVF from UK.

The LCDVF is a fairly simple device. You need to attach a metal mounting frame to the back of the LCD. This metal frame has got glue preapplied and you need to apply some pressure for a couple of hours to get the frame properly attached. Due to its magnetic action the LCDVF gets attached to this frame. When I opened the box, I found that there were two mounting frames. There was a protective neoprene pouch. Once it fell off from my safari vehicle and then later I found it. I just had to wash it and it was as good as new.

They have also provided a lanyard. I hang it from my neck and keep it on the top pocket of my Domke vest. The red ring gives it the Canon L series like exclusive look. the eye cup is smooth and fine.

Apart from the help in focusing, the LCDVF also helps in handholding. I use a LCDVF in my Canon EOS 1D Mark IV for filming. It helps in giving me an extra point of contact and steadies the footage while handholding. Ofcourse, the footage is much better when I use the new generation IS of the 70-200 f2.8 L IS II USM lens.

I have used the LCDVF in the heat, dust, rain and storm in India. Recently, I was filming in Sundarbans, the worlds largest mangrove delta and was filming in a storm. The weather sealing of the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV and my EF 70-200 f2.8 L IS II USM lens gave me no problems. So was the LCDVF.

Cons:

It doesn’t have a dioptre adjustment. I wear spectacles.

Despite the LCDVF, I still have a challenge as it shows the pixels on the screen. Focusing still is not that easy when I am filming a wide angle scene. I guess I need a high quality EVF.

With the new cameras having bigger screens, now my LCDVF cannot be used when I upgrade. Not sure what to do with it. I guess it will have to go to a dustbin.

When I am using my tripod I feel having an EVF will be better. At times when my I am using a tripod and recording is on, and I feel I need to attach the LCDVF, I do it slowly, but due to the magnetic pull it attaches with a kind of snap and there is a vibration. The footage momentarily becomes unusable and that needs to be edited.

I was not very keen on sticking a frame to my Mark IV. However, I went ahead and did it. The challenge that I face now is while shooting still shots. my face is in touch with the LCD and due to my oily skin the LCD is smudged. Cleaning now becomes a small issue due to the frame, however, it is more of an irritation than a major problem.

Overall, this has helped me a lot. This has helped me in handholding my barebones Mark IV with a lens and has helped me in getting some good footage for my film “A Call in the Rainforest”. The preview can be found here: 

The LCDVF can be found in their site: http://www.kinotehnik.com/products/lcdvf/overview

This lens is good for filming handheld. A short unedited sample filmed with Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, 70-200 F2.8 L IS II USM plus 2XII TC in Bandipur Tiger Reserve, India is uploaded here to get an idea about this lens.

Canon introduced the EF 70-200 f2.8 L IS II USM lens in January 2010. This lens is also a L series lens, which indicates quality.

First Impressions while Unpacking:
The first thing I noticed is the box was huge and when I saw the insde foam inserts I felt good that Canon is taking good care of packing. Infact, I have taken out the O Ring made out of thermo coal and have kept it in my lens bag.
When I pulled out the lens from the pack, I found that the new lens hood ET-87 has a lock. You need to press the lock to release the lens hood. Certainly a good design as the lens hood doesn’t come out. When you are clicking or filming wildlife there are many moments of lens hoods, lens caps etc falling when you are on an elephant back. The same thing applies for treks as well.

Construction:
This lens weighs 1490 gms. It has a dia of 89 mm and length of 199mm. Filter thread remains the same at 77mm. So this lens is 20gms heavier than the 70-200 f2.8 L IS USM lens that it replaced.

The maximum aperture of the lens is f2.8 and the minimum Aperture is F32.

The lens focus and zoom barrel is textured and apart from ease of use it gives a very good impression about the quality. The buttons are thoughtfully designed. For example the Image Stabilser ON/OFF button shape, size and texture is different than the other three buttons (stabilser mode, AF and focal length limiter) so that one can feel and switch on/off the Image Stabiliser.

The minimum focusing distance is 1.2 meters vis-à-vis 1.4 meters of the previous version and has a maximum magnification of 0.21x (vs 0.17x of the previous 70-200 f2.8 L IS USM lens).

This lens has a better environmental sealing. There is a rubber seal on the outside if the EF mount to protect it from dust and moisture.

This lens has got 23 elements divided into 19 groups. It has 5 UD (Ultra Dispersion) elements and 1 Fluorite element.

I would like to remind our readers that the previous version had a similar 23 elements but those were divided into 18 groups. And the new lens has one more UD element than the previous. The previous version didn’t have a fluorite element.

This lens retains the 8 blade circular aperture that we had loved in the previous version.

Image Stabilisation:
The image stabilization is rated at 4 stops. This actually feels better in low light.

Auto Focusing Speed:
As was expected, this lens focuses internally and hence there is no protruding element. This lens has a ring type ultrasonic motor for silent focusing. It focuses fast and works well in low light. This lens has a full time manual focus override allows for slight fine-tuning of focus even when you are using AF.

MTF Charts: Source Canon

For people who are technically inclined, I am adding the MTF charts here. One can see that the quality is great.

Impressions in the Field:
My impressions of this lens after testing it for more than a year is that this lens is fabulous. This lens works well with Canon EF 1.4x as well as the 2x TCs.

Infact, most of the times the 2xII TC remains mated with this lens. The reason being, I shift my camera with 2xII TC between the 70-200 f2.8 L IS II USM lens and the 400mm f2.8 L IS USM lens as both these two lenses work well with the TX II TCs and also because by doing that, I don’t expose my camera sensor to dust.

The first trip with this lens would have been the last. I was trekking to the Bandhavgarh Fort. I had the Mark IV plus the 70-200 f2.8 L IS II USM lens attached with a 2xII converter in between. This combination was slung from my shoulder. I was using an optitek strap and it was about 4 yrs old. Suddenly the strap gave way and the camera fell with the lens pointed downwards. Due to my reflex action, I could catch hold of the strap and miraculously the point where I caught the strap was just right as the lens remained dangling an inch above the ground. I stood still for a minute, gathered my wits and pulled up the camera and lens. God is Great! A great learning. Never allow a camera or lens to hang from your neck without you holding some part of the strap.

The contrast and colour rendition is nice. This lens appears to be controlling the flare better. So shooting against the light is much better.

With the previous version of this lens ie. 70-200 f2.8 L IS USM, clicking with a 2x TC attached at 400 mm focal length at f5.6 aperture, the sharpness was not to my liking. However, I have no problems in shooting at f5.6 using a 2x TC at 400mm with the EF70-200 f2.8 L IS II USM lens.

This image was clicked with Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, at f7.1, 1/800, ISO 400, ISO 400, full frame image.

This Jungle cat image was clicked with Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, Canon EF 70-200 2.8 L IS II USM at f5.6, ISO 1000, 1/500, EC: +1/3, Full frame image.

Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, Canon EF 70-200 f2.8 L IS II USM with EX 2xII TC at 370mm, ISO 320, f6.3, 1/1600. I was in a boat in Ranganathittu, near mysore and saw this pelican flying in. I half turned and fired.

This wild tiger was clicked in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, India using Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, Canon EF 70-200 f2.8 L IS II USM plus EF 2xII TC at f5.6, ISO 200, 1/250, full frame image, handheld. I love the sharpness from this lens.

This nocturnal Palm Civet is difficult to sight in the day time. Clicked with Canon EOS 1D Mark IV, Canon EF 70-200 f2.8 L IS II USM at 200mm f2.8, 1/125, ISO 1600, Full frame image at BR Hills Sanctuary. I used 200mm for a wide composition to show the habitat.

The review of the previous Canon EF 70-200 f2.8 L IS USM lens can be found here: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/canon-ef-70-200-f2-8-l-is-usm/

Conclusion:

This is a fantastic lens. This lens is very sharp, good for handholding, nice construction and works well with Teleconverters. Apart from still photography, I am using this more for my filming requirements. It gives me the ability to change perspectives easily and helps in wide establishing shots as well as in zooming in to get the details. This has given a big boost to my filming. I have extensively used the EF 100-400 f4.5-5.6 L IS USM lens for filming. However, today I prefer this lens over the 100-400.

This lens is costly. However, if you don’t want to compromise on quality then this is the lens.

Highly Recommended.

In this issue of IndiaWilds Newsletter Vol. 4 Issue III, we examine the Interlinking of rivers which has been recently given the go ahead by Supreme Court.

India is at cross roads!

There is an acute shortage of leadership and that reflects in the Governance. The legislature is thoroughly discredited. To fill in the vacuum, rises the Judiciary. Honest in its intent and with the power of conviction that it needs to act, the Judiciary has passed many strictures and orders that have made the Government work. However, is the Supreme Court infallible? Alas! Even Gods commit mistakes!

Recently, a three judge bench of the Hon’ble Supreme Court has given a go ahead for the river linking project. The impact is going to be irreversible.

The basic premise of river linking scheme is that water which is “wasted” in one river can be channelized to another river in another part of the country and hence it will help in agriculture. This is a grandiose plan which seems no brainer on the surface. So many persons of repute – like our former President Shri Abdul Kalam – whose claim to fame is not their knowledge of environmental issues, jumped to support the river interlinking idea.

What is not understood is that river interlinking is not like transferring money from one account to another account electronically without any apparent problem. However, this doesn’t take into consideration that water is only “surplus” in some areas because, dams have been built and the downstream suffers due to lack of water. So the underground acquifiers are not filled. When heavy rains lash upstream and there is more water, the sluice gates of the dams are opened and then water rushes away. That doesn’t lead to percolation and charging of the water table. Also many rivers are dying because there is rampant sand mining by the mafia. When there is no sand, there cannot be percolation and it leads to the death of a river. Can any State Government control this issue, especially in the southern states that are always at loggerheads with each other for water?

The river linking scheme will sound a death knell for the people near the coastal areas because decreased flow in the river due to interlinking will result in increasing salinity. This will impact cultivation and there will be a forced migration of people. Migration of people is always associated with distress. It is important to take this into account before taking any such step.

The other question that has not been considered is the cropping pattern. Why cash crops requiring high amount of water is cultivated in drought prone areas and demand is raised for creating canals and bringing water from other areas? Unless cropping patterns and methods are tuned to suit the climatic conditions, water will always be in demand. The Government ought to focus its energy on the demand side by suggesting cropping patterns based on scientific analysis of soil, rainfall patterns and climate so that there is no unnecessary increase in demand of water.

Simple traditional solutions like creating bunds and check dams for water management is often forgotten. Rainwater harvesting is not promoted. At a time when our ground water level is depleting at an alarming level, this will alleviate the water problems to a big extent. Unfortunately, these small practical solutions are not eye-catching in a politicians speech and it seems “BIG is Beautiful” bug has caught up with everybody. In such a scenario, how can the Hon’ble Supreme court judges be immune to it?

The fact that the Hon’ble Supreme Court in October 2011 had said that their only consideration in evaluating the river linking project is cost and it had asked a special report from the Government. I am not sure what was reported back to the three judge bench of the Supreme court regarding cost, however, this clearly indicates that the deleterious environmental impact of such a scheme has not been taken into consideration neither has the Hon’ble Supreme Court insisted on end-to-end studies to find out whether there is really a surplus of water in any river and whether there are any other ways of achieving our needs.

Unfortunately, no study has been done to completely examine the water availability in each river basin from the origin to the downstream area.

Our rivers have their own unique ecosystem with various organisms big and small depending and living in it. Some of these flora, fauna, fishes and other organisms are endemic or unique to that riverine ecosystem. With the change of river, the ecology of the entire landscape will change. Many species will be lost forever. Has anyone given any thought to it? Unfortunately in a country where EIAs (Environment Impact Assessment) are done in such a shoddy manner that presence of even large species like elephants and tigers are not mentioned, it is anybody’s guess whether anyone is concerned about the health of our riverine ecosystem. For further details on the massive threats of invasives please check here: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/indiawilds-newsletter-vol-3-issue-x/

The interlinking of rivers will also result in about 1 lakhs hectares of forests being gobbled up. In an era when we are already experiencing the impact of climate change, can we afford to lose our forests which help in carbon sequesteration and act as our lungs?

The interlinking of rivers will also result in human displacement of huge proportions to the tune of 15 lakh people. I am sure this number would have increased manifold by now. We have seen huge protests due to R&R (Relocation and rehabilitation) with people succumbing to police bullets. The authorities are still grappling with relocation of villagers from the core areas of National Parks and tiger reserves, despite the promise of ten lakh rupees per family. This number at 50,000 families is small change when compared to the number of people who are going to be displaced by the interlinking of rivers. Still the Government hasn’t been able to provide budgetary allocations for shifting of all the villages. Year after year we have seen that the Government has failed to curtail its fiscal deficit and budgetary allocations for good projects have suffered. In such a situation, I am surprised that a three member bench of the Hon’ble Supreme Court has given this go ahead.

We demand that all the information pertaining to whether any environmental impact assessments have been done in all the 30 pending river interlinking cases to be made public. When this hair brained idea is going to create havoc with our lives, it is imperative that the billion plus population of this country be aware and be allowed to decide whether they want this or not.

Other Conservation Issues:
Leopard Suffocated to death by Goons
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8911

Sandalwood trees: need for action
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8874

Panna Hand reared tigress gives birth: success story?
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9195

Sariska Tigers: Miscarriage due to stress
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9142

Wetland Near Cochin Port Trust in danger:
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8957

General Discussions
Similarity between humans and Gorillas
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9045

Natural History
Country Note book: Shri M Krishnan’s writings
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8852

Equipment Discussions
I am inundated with personal emails asking for equipment buying suggestions. To reduce my effort and for others to also benefit from your queries please post your questions and opinions in the Equipment discussions by clicking in this link:
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=24

Wildlife Photography
Brown-headed Gull by Sadanand Koppalkar
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9018

A sunset in his eyes by Arijit Banerjee
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8882

Big Fat Munching Machine by Abhishek Jamalabad
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8992

Chamelion by Sarma Vemuri
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8887

Fat Tail by Joshi Bhavya
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8813

The River Flows by Kaustuv Chatterjee
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8972

Early Morning Winter Light by Kaustuv Chatterjee
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8793

Leopard at Kabini by Sarma Vemuri
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8934

Asiatic Water Buffalo by Dipankar Mazumdar
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=8881

Gaur Calf a portrait by Deepak Ramani
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9044

I look forward to your inputs and your support in preserving the last tracts of wilderness and wildlife left in this beautiful country. For other interesting articles and photographs please check: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/

All the newsletters can be found online at: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/category/newsletter/

In case, anyone of you has forgotten his/her user id and password can email the admin at the following email id administrator@indiawilds.com

Others may register at www.indiawilds.com/forums/register.php using your Full Name as user id.

Regards,
Sabyasachi Patra
www.indiawilds.com
Profile: http://www.indiawilds.com/profile.htm
Contact: http://www.indiawilds.com/contact%20us.htm
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/IndiaWilds/132629240481
Diary: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/
Equipment reviews: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/category/equipment/
Forums: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/index.php

I got the following feedback from Dafne Romero, Artistic Director of HGFF after the film was screened in Haida Gwaii Film Festival, Canada:

[QUOTE]

Dear Sabyasachi,

Your film was very well received it was one of the top favorite of 36
films we screened. Your film was a very inspirational topic for
environmental issues in our small Archipelago the population of our
island is less than 4,000 habitants and the 45 percent of the soth is
being protected by the UNESCO. We do have sitka white tale deer
overpopulated that is eating cedar trees and indigenous plants of
Haida Gwaii, we also have a oil pipe line Embridge proposed project
that is a high treat for our west coast waters in case of a oil spill.
Your film had a great sample of solutions to issues which brings new
avenues to think and address ours

Best Regards,

Dafne Romero
Artistic Director
HGFF
www.haidagwaiifilmfestival.ca

[UNQUOTE]

The film “A Call in the Rainforest” is now available on DVD for a nominal charge. For further details please check here: http://www.indiawilds.com/diary/a-call-in-the-rainforest-dvd/