This is the kind of fun, camaraderie and excitement we experience on most trips with Nature India. And this one was no less.
When I decided to join the trip to Panna Tiger
Reserve which included a two hour visit to Khajuraho, it was obvious that I
wouldn’t be able to do justice to such exquisite monuments in such a short span
of time. So, I took off two days prior and spent two full days at the
monuments. My soul couldn’t have been more at peace!
As the great
Scottish naturalist John Muir once said, “Keep close to Nature's heart... and
break clear away, once in a while, climb a mountain or spend a week in the
woods. Wash your spirit clean.”
I was listening….
I will limit this blog to Panna and share the
enchanting Khajuraho experience in another blog.
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I was already in Khajuraho when Farhanah,
Sangeeta, Rama and Ashutosh arrived at Jhansi and were received by Mandar.
Shivam and Kalpesh, like me, had arrived two days prior and chosen to spend
time in Jhansi. A delicious breakfast of Aloo
Parathas and Dahi awaited us at hotel
Nirvana. After devouring one wholesome paratha,
Sangeeta innocently asked Farhanah if she would share half a paratha with her. Farhanah’s spontaneous and cheeky
reply was, “Why half?! I’ll have the full one!” The fun had just begun.
We were soon on our way to the magnificent Raneh
Waterfalls fed by the river Karnavati (anglicised as Ken). Formed by a series
of volcanic eruptions a million years ago, the gorge is about 5 kms in length
and about a 100-150 ft deep. This rock formation is a rare case where one gets
to see so many varieties of igneous rocks all at one site. I was mesmerised by
the vivid colour combinations of the rocks which only added to their beauty – the
pink coloured granite, the black basalt, the red jasper, off-white quartz and
the yellow dolomite. While admiring its splendour even in this dry time of the
year, I wondered how stunning it must be during the monsoons!
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| Golden Jackal |
With our bellies full, we were off on our first
safari into the jungle. The open jeeps would provide obstruction-less views of
the pristine forest and its inhabitants. We had two jeeps amongst eight of us, which
would take their individual routes once inside the forest.
Panna National Park and Tiger Reserve is tucked
away inside the Vindhyan mountain range in Madhya Pradesh which runs in the
east-west direction and is traditionally considered to divide India between the
north and south. The Vindhyas also provide a link to eastern and western populations
of wild animals. This is also the point where the forest belt, which begins
from Kanyakumari in the south, is broken, and the great Gangetic Plains begin. Panna
is a dry deciduous forest. While natural Teak forests abound in the northern
part of the park, the south is given to mixed varieties like Kardhai, Mahua,
Palash, Ber, Kaththa
etc. and shrubs like Lantana, Ixora, wild Basil, etc. The mystical “ghost tree”
Sterculia Urens is in abundance on the rocky patches of the forest. Striking in
appearance, it inspired awe and wonder in me. It’s pale bark contrasting with
its vibrant red and orange leaves was stark splendour. The ghost tree’s gum is
said to have medicinal properties and is used as a laxative and tablet binder. Interestingly,
natural Teak forests are not found anywhere in India north of this forest
unlike the ghost tree which is found all over the country.
The park has one safari zone which can be
accessed from two gates, Madla and Hinauta. We entered the forest from the
Madla gate. The air had a magical freshness about it. Driving along the dry
paths of the forest, our vehicle kicked up clouds of dust. It was time to pull
up our face covers. A group of langurs jumped blithely from tree to tree. On
seeing our jeep, some mothers cradled their babies protectively. Others ran to
the security of the thickets. Sporadic calls of Plum-headed Parakeets could be
heard in the distance.
The forests of Panna are interspersed with
riverine forests, thorny woodlands and open grasslands with tall grasses like
Needle grass, Kangaroo grass etc. Plum headed parakeets were busy foraging on
the grains and seeds in the tall, thick grasses. The plaintive call of the
Stork-billed Kingfisher resounded in the distance. A little ahead we came to
the first of the many scenic parts of the forest that we were to see during the
next two days. A pristine riverine forest. The reflections of the tall slender trees
standing majestically on small natural islands in the still and clear water
seemed meditative. The serene image will remain etched in my memory forever.
Further ahead on a rocky open patch a couple of Red-wattled Lapwings stood
silent but alert. A lone Grey Wagtail walked amongst them oblivious of our
presence.
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| Red Wattled Lapwing |
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| Crested Serpent Eagle |
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| Indian Roller |
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| Spotted Dove |
The presence of a tiger in the vicinity is often
announced by Langurs from tree tops using a barking sound. This is further
relayed by high-pitched, short and intense sounds made by other animals like Spotted
deer and Sambar deer. Even peacocks join the chorus. However, these alarms are not necessarily for
the tiger. They could also be for other smaller predators like wild dogs or hyenas
or even a leopard. But what is interesting to note is that it is the Sambar
deer’s alarm call which is a sure-shot indication that it is indeed a tiger on
the prowl. The smaller predators do not pose any threat to the enormous sambar
deer so it sends out an alarm only when it senses a tiger in the area!
We waited for a few minutes at the spot with hope
in our hearts. This time the tigress was to elude us. She must have sensed our
presence and taken a different route.
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| Bay-backed Shrike |
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Back at the Camp, we were greeted with a glass of
luke warm water and some jaggery. Jaggery is considered to be a remedy for
respiratory disorders and throat problems. It relieves irritation in the throat
and eases the accompanying throat pain. So, after a ride in the dry and dusty
forests, this wonderful gesture from the resort staff was truly heart-warming.
Dinner wasn’t without its usual fun and
camaraderie. Continuing with her refrain of ‘half’, Farhanah was now asking
Rama to share half a bowl of curd! But curd was the last thing Rama would share
with anyone! Her husband Ashutosh could vouch for that! She could have her curd and eat it too!!!!
After dinner, as per the usual practice in all
Nature India camps, we had a quick re-cap of the day’s sightings after which we
called it a day.
I woke up to the sublime tune of “ik omkar” my alarm ringtone at 4.30 the
next morning. We were to leave the resort by 5.30 to be on time to enter the
reserve at the designated time of 6 am. So off we were in our open jeeps
excited like school children and looking forward to some great sightings. There
was a nip in the air. We were well prepared for the cold with all our woollens.
At the gate, as we waited our turn, Sangeeta pointed at some Plain Tiger and
Blue Tiger butterflies that fluttered around gracefully. Shivam, who was not
familiar with butterfly names sprang to his feet on hearing the word tiger! It
was one of the many fun moments that we all shared, pulling each other’s legs
and having a hearty laugh!
The Karnavati River flows through the Panna Tiger
Reserve for about 55km. This perennial river is considered to be the lifeline
of the forest and is one of the least polluted rivers of India. The terrain of Panna has “table-top”
topography which is broadly divided into two plateaus, upper Talgaon plateau,
middle Hinnauta plateau, and the Ken valley. There are series of undulating
hills and plateaus rising on the other side of the river as far as the eye can
see! A tiger country, the reserve is also home to a large variety of fauna,
including leopard, wild dog, sloth bear, spotted and sambar deer, chinkara, nilgai,
wild boar, langur, mongoose, palm civet, etc. There are more than 200 birds,
including seven of the nine species of vultures found in India. Muggers and
gharials are found in the Karnavati River.
Panna is by far one of the most picturesque
forests of central India.
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| White-eyed Buzzard |
And this memory will also remain special because P243
is a special tiger. He holds the distinction of being one of the rare tigers of
India when he was found to have been taking care of his four cubs after the sad
demise of their mother. In the wild it is usually the tigress who looks after
the cubs till they are about 15-24 months old. A tigress usually chooses a cave
or thick bushes to deliver her cubs. The new born cubs are completely blind and
helpless. Until they can start seeing, they remain in the security of the den.
The tigress is devoted to their needs and will protect them fiercely from
predators or intruders. She will help them suckle on her and spend a lot of
time keeping them warm by licking them. After they are old enough to eat, she
will hunt for them, feed them and as they grow older will begin teaching them
hunting and survival skills before they separate to establish their own
territories at about two years of age. So, when the mother of his cubs
succumbed to some injuries when they were just 8 months old, P243 did something
extraordinary. He began providing them with food. Two days after
the death of the tigress, the forest search team had located the cubs with the
help of camera traps. All the cubs looked healthy, active and seemed neither
hungry nor stressed. This was strange. They wondered where the cubs were
getting their food from. They probed further. After keeping an eye on their
movements, they found out that it was their father, P243, who was providing
them with food! He would make a kill and leave the prey in their territory.
They observed many such incidents during the course of the next few
months. P243 was never seen again with
any other tigress. It is reported that he also visited the cremation site of his
tigress and the mother of his cubs within an hour of her cremation. The next
day, he was found sitting for long hours at the place where she had died. Incredible
indeed!
Our craving to see the tiger having been
satiated, it was now time to satiate the hunger in our bellies! We proceeded to
nearby Dhundwa Seha gorge popularly called Vulture Point which was also our
breakfast point. Delicious cheese sandwiches, boiled eggs and a hot cuppa chai
were devoured in no time.
Panna is home to seven of the nine vulture
species found in India. This gorge provides excellent habitat for vultures to
nest and also roost. There were about 7-8 Long-billed Vultures nesting on the
rocky edges of the gorge. The sight of the enormous scavengers spreading out
their wings to take in the morning sun was awe-inspiring. A lone Shaheen Falcon
shared the spot with the vultures. Once numbering a few million, the numbers of
vultures in India saw a catastrophic fall between 1990 and 2007. Experts had
zeroed in on diclofenac, a veterinary drug used for pain management in
livestock, as the main cause of the near wipe-out of vultures alongwith other
causes like habitat loss. In view of this threat to vultures that brought them
close to extinction, diclofenac was banned for veterinary use in India. Despite
this ban, cattle carcasses in India continue to be found containing potentially
lethal concentrations of diclofenac. Even today vultures continue to face
the threat of extinction and fall under the ‘Critically Endangered’ category in
the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
The sun was now high above and the temperature was slowly rising. It was time to shed some layers of our warm clothes. A Crested Serpent Eagle sitting on a bare branch created a stir amongst us as does every raptor. It made a pretty picture. Kalpesh and I were soon aiming and shooting. Mandar now calls us ‘sharp shooters’! In a span of 45 minutes we saw yet another Crested Serpent Eagle.
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| Yellow-footed Green Pigeon |
A wonderful thing about going on nature trips with Nature India is that all participants are treated as family. We eat together, have conversations, poke fun at each other…. There is a lot of camaraderie amongst participants. Also, the post lunch and dinner discussions are very informative as Adesh and Mandar share amazing facts, stories and their experiences.
The rays of the afternoon sun filtered through the canopy of the jungle. As we drove along the dusty path some spotted deer grazing in the tall grasses, couldn’t care less about our presence. We soon came to the meditative spot near the water body with reflections of the tall slender trees. As I stood up to take some pictures on my cell phone, Mandar noticed a baby Marsh crocodile sitting still on a fallen log. Panna is home to two of the three crocodile species found in India. ‘Mugger’ or Marsh crocodiles and Gharials. While the Marsh crocodile is classified as ‘vulnerable’, the Gharial is ‘critically endangered’ on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and the Saltwater Crocodile found in the eastern part of India, is of least concern on the Red List.
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| Grey Bushchat female |
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?
Panna Tiger Reserve has an amazing story of tiger revival. In 2009, there were no tigers left in Panna Tiger Reserve. They were all victims of poaching. What happened in the next 10 years was really heart-warming at a time when the world's tiger population was under a serious threat. The administration introduced the Tiger Reintroduction Project. Amongst other things, they studied the socio-cultural demographics of the Panna region. Pardhi tribes, known to consider hunting as a parameter of valour and prowess, inhabit the outskirts of Panna National Park. Before the imposition of a strict vigilance in Panna to check tiger poaching, the Pardhis often engaged in hunting the tiger and it is said that they also engaged in the illegal trade of its body parts. But, the main reason behind the extinction of tigers in Panna was not only the Pardhis. There were others engaged in the mindless poaching. These poachers were trained to hunt discreetly at night, evading the forest guards. The poachers brutally hunted down every last tiger in Panna, until no tiger lived in the National Park.
When the Tiger Reintroduction
Programme was tabled, it involved a two-pronged approach. While the forest
department, under IFS officer R Sreenivasa Murthy’s supervision, focussed on
repopulating the tiger reserve, the non-profit organisation, Last Wilderness
Foundation, was roped in to relocate the local Pardhi tribes and make them give
up hunting. Amidst a series of failures and obstacles, their efforts have
resulted in 54 tigers including adult males, females and cubs calling the Panna
their home. Amongst the obstacles was one interesting incident of a tiger named
T3, who kept returning to his ‘home’ in Pench. T3 was relocated from Pench to
Panna as part of the rehabilitation program. But he infamously strayed off
after ten days and was found moving in the direction of Pench. It needed an
entire army of 70 forest guards with four elephants to track him down. They
even collected several litres of female tiger urine from zoos and spread it
around the forests with the hope that T3 would be lured by the presence of a
tigress. Interestingly, officials believe that perhaps, the tiger wanted to go
‘home’ to Pench, his original habitat. The incident was one of the rare
instances in zoological history where a tiger displayed signs of ‘homing
instinct’.
I had a smile on my face and gratitude in my heart. For “Deep inside the
forest I stroll, to hear the wisdom of my soul.”
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| Golden Oriole female |
A White-eyed Buzzard, some Yellow Footed Green Pigeons and a female Golden
Oriole gave us glimpses of their beauteous selves. As we approached the Vulture
Point, Kalpesh thought out aloud, “now all we need is one king vulture
sighting”. Lo and behold! Our guide pointed out to a Red Headed ‘King’ Vulture perched
high up on a distant tree! The great writer Paulo Coelho had so rightly said,
“when you really want something, the entire universe conspires in helping you
achieve it”! Although the stately bird was too far and against the sun for a
good picture, the universe had heard our prayer! We took a few record shots and
proceeded to Vulture Point for breakfast. Ohh to relish delicious aloo
parathas with pickle and piping hot tea deep in the jungle amidst nature’s
music! Gratifying to say the least! It was now selfie time for Shivam! And
Kalpesh was his partner in crime! The marvellous backdrop of Dhundhwa Seha
provided them a lovely photo-op.
It was time to head back to the gate. A Hoopoe pecking at seeds fallen on
the ground took to his wings on seeing us. A herd of spotted deer lazed in the
shade of the ber trees, chewing on
grass and leaves. Most of them handsome male deer, with fresh antlers made a
pretty picture. We discovered Farhanah’s talent when she made a lovely water
colour sketch of the deer amidst the grasses.
Nivedita Kothare
23rd November 2022
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| The 'other' creatures! : Dr.Kalpesh Gaitonde, Ashutosh Bishnoi, Rama Bishnoi, Sangeeta Jain, Farhanah Akikwala, myself, Shivam Priyadarshi, Mandar Khadilkar |
Complete list of birds seen by me:
- Indian Peafowl
- Painted Francolin (in flight)
- Grey Francolin
- Little Grebe (calling)
- Rock Pigeon
- Oriental Turtle Dove
- Spotted Dove
- Eurasian Collared Dove
- Yellow-footed Green Pigeon
- Sirkeer Malkoha
- Little Swifts
- Crested Treeswift
- White-breasted Waterhen
- Red-wattled Lapwing
- Asian Openbill
- Asian Woolly-necked Stork
- Lesser Adjutant Stork
- Little Cormorant
- Grey Heron
- Little Egret
- Cattle Egret
- Intermediate Egret
- Indian Pond Heron
- Black-crowned Night Heron
- Oriental Honey Buzzard
- Red-headed Vulture
- Indian Vulture
- Crested Serpent Eagle
- Bonelli’s Eagle
- White-eyed Buzzard
- Shikra
- Jungle Owlet (calling)
- Eurasian Hoopoe
- Indian Grey Hornbill
- Strok-billed Kingfisher (calling)
- White-throated Kingfisher
- Indian Roller
- Coppersmith Barbet
- Black-rumped Flameback
- Rose-ringed Parakeet
- Plum-headed Parakeet
- Large Cuckooshrike
- Indian Golden Oriole (female)
- White-browed Fantail
- Black Drongo
- White-bellied Drongo
- Bay-backed Shrike
- Long-tailed Shrike
- Rufous Treepie
- Large-billed Crow
- Great Tit
- Common Tailorbird
- Grey-breasted Prinia
- Ashy Prinia
- Zitting Cisticola
- Blyth’s Reed Warbler (calling)
- Grey-throated Martin (50+)
- Red-vented Bulbul
- Yellow-eyed Babbler
- Jungle Babbler
- Common Myna
- Pied Myna
- Indian Robin
- Oriental Magpie Robin
- Tickell’s Blue Flycatcher
- Bluethroat (female)
- Red-breasted Flycatcher
- Siberian Stonechat
- Grey Bushchat (female)
- Baya Weaver
- Red Avadavat
- House Sparrow
- Yellow-throated Sparrow
- Grey Wagtail
- White-browed Wagtail
- White Wagtail
- Tree Pipit
Animals seen by me:
- Royal Bengal Tiger – 2 Individuals – P243 and Kanhaiya (the one-eyed one!)
- Wild Boar
- Spotted Deer
- Sambar Deer
- Chinkara
- Nilgai
- Mongoose
- Golden Jackal
