Dholes vs Gaur

[Bhargava Srivari]

Dholes vs Gaur

This sighting marked a very interesting beginning to our trip to TATR in June. We had already seen a few tigers on our first safari and were very relaxed heading back towards the gate. However, with lots of time to spare, we decided to spend some time scanning the water holes by the road and Praveen Siddannavar did a great job of spotting the Dholes; as for me, I had seen just the Gaur but it was Praveen sir who noticed the dogs and asked to stop. What unfolded was of utmost interest; the huge bull gaur was at the water hole to drink and the dholes too had arrived for the same purpose. Neither party was willing to give up the water hole- the dholes were 6 in number and even though they tried to unnerve the bull by circling him, he did not budge. He left the place only after drinking his fill and it was only after his departure that the dholes got to occupy the water hole! Will post a few more pictures of the event soon.

Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF 300 f/2.8 L IS II USM | f/4, ISO 400, 1/320sec, EC 0, evaluative metering | Tadoba, Maharashtra | June 2012.