Wildlife enthusiast Joel took time out from wandering around India to work with Mahseer Conservancy for 1 month in March 2010. He conducted a pioneering research study looking at the decline of the Golden Mahseer on the Ramganga River in Almora. Braving the sand mining mafia, boys with explosives and illness he collected alarming data showing that the Golden Mahseer populations are being decimated. Indiscriminate fishing methods such as dynamiting, poisoning and electrocution are in widespread use and are having a devastating effect on the river ecosystem. Other human impacts such as sand mining, water extraction and pollution are all contributing to the destruction and shrinkage of the Golden Mahseer’s habitat and spawning grounds. Joel’s study highlighted that the threat to the local wildlife was extreme and action needed to be taken immediately. His report will be the foundation of several Golden Mahseer conservation initiatives in the area which will look to enforce the ban on dynamite, create numerous ‘mahseer sanctuaries’ and start angling based eco-tourism.

Joel’s time at Mahseer Conservancy was an invaluable and hugely enjoyable experience. It will also provide a practical perspective for when he goes home to the UK to do a Masters in Conservation and Biodiversity at the University of Exeter. Some highlights of his month stay were being left breathless when seeing a tiger for the first time, developing a passion for the magnificent Golden Mahseer and working with such enthusiastic and dedicated conservationists at Mahseer Conservancy. Joel hopes to return to India as soon as possible to follow up his initial report on the Golden Mahseer.

Joel’s aims for the future are to start growing his own vegetables, learn to play the flute and become a full time eco-warrior with a specialized lycra superhero costume.

A sporting event under the banner of “Sports for Conservation” is being organized by Society for Mahseer Conservancy from the 22^nd to 26^th January, 2010 in the lovely Baluli village, on the banks of the lifeline of Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR)–the river Ramganga. Sport is a very effective tool in the cause of wildlife conservation, particularly for the youth since it promises thrilling action while sermons and speeches take a backseat!

The first day of the event is dedicated to the girls, with games like kho-kho, kabbadi and rope pulling testing their mettle. A cricket tournament is planned for boys in the next three days. The last day has been earmarked for the prize distribution ceremony where the winning teams for each game will be awarded.

The sporting event will also boast a photography exhibition on the Indian vultures; the Ramganga river and its biodiversity; and the ill-effects of unsustainable tourism in the CTR area.

You are warmly urged support this event in person; either as a gung-ho participant or as a vociferous audience to encourage the various teams.

Please find above the fact sheet enumerating details for participation, logistic arrangements and available mechanisms for supporting this innovative initiative.

We look forward to seeing you at Baluli!

Feel free to call or write for clarifications.

Cricket players of 2006 tournament

Goonch is a predaceous fish and lies in wait for its food in the swiftest water of the rapids, where it maintains position by adhering to rocks by means of its smooth chest and fins.

Goonch lie at the extremes of white water and are partial to the depths of the largest pools if there is a current slicing through them. Though very strong, they are sullen to a degree and sluggish in their movements especially on being hooked.

They sometimes take spoons and plug but are best on live bait (eel) spun very slowly. Once hooked, they go straight for the bottom. It is then the pull…devil…pull baker act which ensues, sometimes ending in favor of the fish.

To wear him out once snagged, tie your line to a fair-sized bamboo. Cut the line and allow the bamboo to float in the water. The bamboo bobbing in the current will keep a continuous strain on the goonch and hopefully by the end of the day it will be played out. If not, look for the bamboo next day.

Mostly, the goonch runs to about 250 lbs, though the largest that has been caught on a rod line was 164 lbs near Marchula and we believe the American angler who snagged it in January 2001, had to use both hands to land the big guy.

At the Corbett Tiger Reserve, the Jhirna Jhali pool, also referred to as the crocodile pool, is the best place to observe (only!) goonch. The pool is virtually packed with this fish! This rare giant has also been caught in the Marchula area, Jainal and Govind Rou of Vanghat beat. Undoubtedly, goonch is one of the most threatened big fish of the Ramganga.

The mahseer shows more sport for its size then a salmon and therefore considered the best sportfish in the world….this is what snobs (??) of the Raj era had to say. Mahseer have overjoyed generations of anglers and time after time lived up to being called the “Mighty Mahseer”.

A Legend: One of the fascinating narrations of Jim Corbett in his book “Man-eater of Kumaon” is about his fishing for mahseer in a river that flowed for some 60 km through a beautiful valley teeming with wildlife. The chapter titled ‘Fish of my dreams’ narrates how the air then was filled with the fragrance of flower and the spring songs of a multitude of birds. Corbett exclaimed that angling for mahseer in a sub-montane river in that atmosphere was a sport fit for the kings!

While Corbett felt that the 50 lb mahseer he had caught could be forgotten, what would remain etched in his mind was the sublime surroundings in which he had caught the fish. His description of the river and surroundings seem to bring to life the Ramganga valley of the Corbett Tiger Reserve which is till one of the few strong holds of mahseer in India.

A Brief: The mahseer is a freshwater fish that can attain a huge size. A 70-80 kg catch has not been uncommon in this area which boasts fish which can grow to weights exceeding 100 kg.

Most mahseer take the bait quite avidly which perhaps has helped cultivate an erroneous impression of it being carnivorous and rapacious by nature. Studies have proven that mahseer are omnivorous and take almost anything—weeds, snails, crabs and live fish. The etymology of ‘mahseer’ throws up interesting clues. The word could mean a fish with ‘Lion’s gameness’, ‘large-scaled fish’, ‘large-headed fish’ or ‘fish par excellence’!

Distribution: Mahseer inhabit most river and reservoirs of India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Burma and Sri Lanka. Mahseer experts have recognized six to eight different species in India but no detailed information on the present status and distribution of each of these species is available. Different species of mahseer inhabit different habitats ranging from tropical water where the temperature in summer goes up to 35°C to sub-Himalayan waters where the winter water temperature drops close to 0°C. Mahseer can be found in streams a few metres above sea level and also in fast moving waters at altitudes of 2,000 m or more.

Ramganga: The mahseer species found in the Corbett Tiger Reserve is the golden variety (Tor putitora), graces the Ramganga river and weights up to 25 kgs. The biggest caught, weighed and photographed on the Vanghat beat was a 68 pounder in April 2004 by Mark Fielden from UK. Another Mahseer almost caught by Vish Satappam and George Fanthom, presumed to be over 70 lbs, literally dragged the rod away (which was later retrieved) and escaped.

Endangered mahseer: Accurate data on the catches of mahseer from different parts of the country is woefully lacking, however compression of figures from a few isolated surveys as well as observations of anglers and biologists indicate that there is a serious decline in the mahseer numbers in the country.

The decline is due to a combination of factors —unchecked and indiscriminate fishing, dynamiting and poisoning of rivers which destroys even the brood fish and juveniles, pollution and siltation of river bodies and construction of dams which has impeded the migration of mahseer, a factor crucial for its spawning. Unfortunately for mahseer, when compared to other commercial fish, it is more prone to depletion and extinction.

Spawning: A prime habitat requirement of the mahseer is clean water, which is fast becoming a scarcity. Favored mahseer spawning grounds are calm, well-oxygenated waters with a bed of sand or gravel. Journey to such grounds is fraught with risk and dangers. The fecundity of mahseer as compared to the commercially exploited species is very low. For example the Deccan or Khudree mahseer (Tor Khudree) has 6,000 eggs/kg body weight of rohu (Labeo Rohita) and 1,33,000 eggs/kg body weight of catla (Catla Catla).

The eggs of mahseer are demersal or capable of sinking to the river bed and therefore, mud instead of sand or gravel on the river bed can cause them to simply perish. The hatching period for Khudree mahseer is 60-80 hours while that of Golden or Himalayan mahseer is 80-96 hours as compared to the meagre18 hours for catla and rohu. Further, the semi-quiescent stage soon after hatching is three days for catla and rohu, while it is six days for Khudree mahseer. We can safely infer then that the mahseer is more vulnerable to all forms of decimation. If it is to survive throughout its range, there is an urgent need to plan and implement strict conservations measures.

Sumantha caught a Mahseer

Mahseer Haven: Ramganga river, where Corbett fished for his dinner, has over this century undergone a major change due to the construction of a dam at Kalagarh in the late 60’s and early 70’s. Consequently, the water in the reservoir encompasses an area of 60 sq km in summers and 80 sq km in the winter months. With the monsoons of July-August, areas around the 16 km of the river from Kalagarh to Dhikala stands inundated. Fortunately, the 32 km stretch of river a little upstream of Vanghat, (from where it enters the Corbett Tiger Reserve) right up to Dhikala, remains what it was a hundred year ago—a spectator to the abundant wildlife on both the banks. Mandal and Plain rivers, the upstream tributaries of the Ramganga, are vital spawning grounds for the Mahseer of the Tiger Reserve. Spawning usually occurs in the month of August.

It’s a great pleasure to see people getting acknowledged for their hard work and achievements and we would like to wish Mr Bhartari all he best for future success in his endeavours.

From Carpet Sahib, A life of Jim Corbett, by Martin Booth.

The reason for this project emerged after an obvious result from the firewood survey: the villagers will not reduce their wood collection unless some alternatives are provided to them. Unfortunately, the government is almost absent in such help. Our actions may be at small scale, but at least they are actions. The women are the protagonists of this project since they are the ones going inside the forests, the ones risking their lives and the ones who work the harder.

WELFARE has a strong will to empower villagers –strongly dependant on forest products – and to reduce their pressure on the forest. This would serve several purposes:

- by raising their income, the villagers will hopefully progressively modify their habits and buy wood alternative. The best alternative would be LPG but solar cookers should also be brought to their minds.

- by reducing their wood consumption, the villagers would obviously reduce their venues inside the forest, reducing their impact on the forest.

- by reducing the impact of the villagers on the forest, the man-animal conflicts should decrease too.

Different sub-projects are hosted under the name WELFARE:

- the Lantana furniture project: in association with ATREE, four villages (Kyari, Sunderkhal, Ringora and Chhoti Haldwani) have been selected to be trained how to make furniture out of Lantana. This project comprises the removing of Lantana camara, the making of the furniture, the selling and marketing of the furniture and the afforestation of the area where Lantana has been removed.

- NEEMA: this project is happening in Ringora village where a girl, Neema, is making the only artefacts available in and around Corbett, making them priceless. She is making a set of dolls and hand bags out of a local hemp, the “saan”. We are supporting her by managing the whole selling and marketing of her products and to give an identity to Ringora’s village. She is the ambassador of the brand and will confidently bring other girls from Ringora in this project, increasing the range of products made.

The idea of those projects is to combine the conservation of wildlife species such as tiger and of the environment and to improve villagers’ lives. The regeneration of the undergrowth and the forests in general is vital for the preservation of many animals’ habitat. We should never forget that the forests of Corbett are not ours, they belong to the animals. Imagine if someone came to your house to take every day pieces of your walls. In a near future, you would be left with nothing!

On the other hand, the improvement of villagers’ lives would cover a several facilities such as better health care, better education and self employment.

Please refer to the other blogs dedicated to each project to know more about them.

Comon Tiger Corbett

Corbett is popularly called the land of roar, trumpet and song – means it is known for tigers, elephants and birds. This is right as it has the highest density of wild tigers in the world with one of the best male female ratio of the Asian elephant (1:3) and an amazing diversity of avifauna with 625+ species of bird. It is rarely understood as a good area for butterflies. Corbett region is a paradise for butterflies and for those who love butterflies. People usually visit Corbett to watch ‘wildlife’ and from most of them understand ‘wildlife’ means tiger, leopard, elephant, and other large animals. However, wildlife means each and everything which has life on this planet, be it a snake, a plant, a tiger or the largest animal of our planet ‘whale’ etc. and this also cover small insects like butterflies.

Grass Jewel Corbett

Though no serious study has been done on butterflies in Corbett and exact number of butterfly species cannot be declared, But approximately more than 100 species of butterflies are found here. Common tiger, common nawab, baronet, common map, dark blue tiger, glassy tiger, blue tiger, common sailor, common leopard, common gem, chocolate soldier, common jezebell, commander, common castor, common cerulean, common gull, common wanderer, Dart, psyche, spot swordtail, yellow pansy. Great eggfly, bamboo tree brown, clubbeak, common blue bottle and common emigrant are some common species that can be seen in Corbett region. Areas like Jhirna, Bijrani, Dhikal and Lohacaur which are the main tourism zones of Corbett are good but as tourists are not allowed to walk one can only observe them from the vehicle. The main road National Highway number 121 between Aamdana to Dhangari gate, Tera village and Sitabani is a nice place to look for these winged insects closely.

Micro-fauna is always neglected by many people and only researchers and serious wildlife lovers pay attention to these beautiful creatures of our planet. Nature has inspired the human in many ways. We have learned and invented many things from the nature. Butterflies are one of the most colourful creatures on the planet and they always inspired our lyricist and artists.

Butterflies belong to the order Lepidoptera which includes moths and butterflies and is the second largest order among insects with approximately 150,000 species. Out of 150,000 species there are about 17,820 species of butterflies in the world and about 1500 species of butterflies are recorded so far from Indian subcontinent.

Indian Fritillary Corbett

Studying the butterflies is not an easy task but even amateur nature lovers can easily study butterflies. All one need is some basic things like a field guide, net, jar, paper envelops, forceps lens and microscope. But with above all you need a will to learn with great degree of patience. One needs to identify the species and observe their behaviour. Main things to be noted during the observations are like their behaviour, feeding habit, range, mating behaviour and their life history are few things which can be of great use. There are four stages in the life cycle of a butterfly – Egg, Larva, Pupa and Adult. This transformation from an egg to an adult is called complete metamorphosis. Average life of a butterfly is 15 – 20 days but some species also live up to six months.

Usually people confuse moths with butterflies but both can be differentiated from each other with following features:  Butterflies fly usually day time while most of the moths are nocturnal. Butterflies antennae are clubbed or hooked and never covered with hair while in moths they are of various shapes and sometimes hairy. Studying the butterflies can also be done by taking their photograph. Butterflies are very difficult subject for nature photography as they can see the movement easily due to their compound eyes. It requires lot of patience to for their photography and one can get best shots during early morning. The best place to look for the butterflies is either a garden of any open area in a forest like a nala or open areas with flowering plants. Lantana flowers are best to look for many species of butterflies.

Pea Blue

Conservation of these insects is very important from the ecological point of view. On one hand they are an important food chain component for the birds, and other animals. They are good indicators of environments and on the other hand they also help in the regeneration of many plant species. They are the second highest group of pollinators after honey bees.

Today because of various developmental activities going on near their habitat these butterflies are facing a threat. Agricultural activities, urbanization, grazing and forestry activities together degrading their habitats. Such disturbance damages their habitat and their food plants. One or Two degree temperature increase in the atmosphere due to global warming can lead to extinction of many species. There is a need to spread awareness amongst people for their conservation. Protected areas should be declared for their conservation. Like all other life forms these creature also has equal right to live on earth.

Fore more info please contact – Sanjay Chhimwal, junglee_s@rediffmail.com, +919837517359

Now, conservationists are breeding the Mahseer and hope to release them in rivers in Indian Kashmir. The programme is the result of a peace process between India and Pakistan that has led to a drop in violence in the region.

“We have bred this fish nicely and reared it out,” Showkat Ali, joint director of Kashmir’s fisheries department, told Reuters.

Ali said hundreds of Mahseer used to migrate to Indian Kashmir each year until Pakistan completed the Mangla dam in 1967 across the Jhelum river, the traditional migratory route for the fish.

The omnivorous red-finned Mahseer, scientifically known as Tor tor, is prized by anglers because of its huge size — reaching up to 2.75 metres (9 feet) and weighing up to 54 kg (119 lb) — and for its fighting spirit.

The fish lives in clear rivers and lakes throughout India and Southeast Asia and needs fast-flowing rivers and streams in the mountains to breed.

Finding enough of the thick-scaled carp in the area to breed at a farm in southern Kashmir proved difficult. Over time, enough were collected and fisheries officials plan to introduce young Mahseer into Indian Kashmir’s rivers and lakes in coming months.

Two more breeding farms are planned in the region, including one in the Uri area, near the Line of Control — a 740 km (460 miles) line which divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

A DREAM

Local anglers hoped the programme will bring back an exciting sport.

“I am sure, Inshallah (god willing), the return of the fish will attract more anglers to Kashmir,” Mohammad Amin, 65, said. “For me, fishing for Mahseer is only a dream now, the last catch was 15 years ago.”

To fulfil the dream, militancy in Indian Kashmir needs to remain under control.

Plans to conserve the Mahseer were disrupted in 1989 when Islamic militants launched a revolt against Indian rule in part of Kashmir.

Spiralling violence led to budget cuts and made the programme to unsafe for staff. But India and Pakistan’s 2004 peace process led to the project being revived.

While conservationists welcomed the move to restock Kashmir’s rivers with the Mahseer, they said it was crucial the government took a broader approach if they wanted the fish to remain in area for good.

“We need to look at this in more detail than just restocking,” said Sumantha Ghosh, naturalist and president of the Mahseer Conservation Society.

“We must study the habitat and see what other factors are causing populations to drop and also introduce protected areas as they have done in other Indian states like Uttaranchal and Karnataka.”

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/38098/story.htm

In a major boost for environmentalists, vultures were sighted in Uttarakhand after the recent discovery of the near-extinct birds in Himachal Pradesh.

Over 150 vultures of five species can be found nesting and feeding at three locations around Ramnagar in Uttarakhand — Van Gujjar village of Tumeria, Ringora and Hatidagar. The three sites fall under two categories:

Regular nesting sites (Ringora and Tumeria): Vultures are consistently seen roosting and occupying nests throughout the year and these are likely to be important breeding sites;

Regular feeding sites (Hatidagar): Cattle carcasses are regularly left here and vultures feed on them.

Ringora is an “encroached” village with around 25 families on either side of NH-121, about thee km north of Ramnagar in Nainital district. Earlier, Ringora residents used to keep a large number of cattle. However, at a time when the natural scavengers suffer a population catastrophe triggered by medicines; at Ringora, Indian white-backed vultures are seen roosting virtually every day on four trees, all of which are large kadam (Adina Cordifolia) trees. In a monitoring research undertaken recently by a Corbett-based vulture conservation NGO, 235 white-backed vultures were recorded in 60 observations spread over a month. Vultures in groups of 15 or more are often sighted here.

Significantly, the slender-billed vulture (SBVs), which is even more threatened than the tiger in India, has also been roosting occasionally at Ringora. A captive breeding scheme in India, run by a coalition of conservation groups, including the Royal Society for Protection of Birds and the Zoological Society of London, has seen successful hatching and fledging of two slender-billed vultures for the first time this year. Given that there are just 1,000 slender-billed vultures left in the wild, even the five resident SBVs recorded by researchers is good news for conservationists. Besides, Cinereous or black vulture and red-headed vulture have also been spotted at Ringora.

The second colony borders Tumeria dam, 22.5 km south-west of Ramnagar in Udham Singh Nagar. It is a village of Van Gujjars with about 15 families. Their general attitude is quite pro-vulture and, interestingly, the village also has an old Government poster dating at least 10 years with information on Rajasthani vultures. Well-known for their large holdings of buffaloes, these Gujjars have herds of hundreds grazing in and around the reservoir.

The village is surrounded on three sides by degraded sal forest (Shorea Robusta) and on these trees can be seen large numbers of white-backed vultures and their nests. The villagers say the vultures have been constantly roosting in the village for a couple of years now.

According to Tumeria residents, around 40 vultures can be seen roosting after 4 pm just about every day. Corroborating it, Sumantha Ghosh of Corbett Tiger Reserve in interactions with The Pioneer recounted having observed 49 vultures on August 24 and 39 vultures on August 2 this year.

The vultures found at Tumeria roost in the upper canopy of the sal trees in the village and appear to nest within the approximate boundaries of the village. Forest officials attributed the presence of the very large number of vultures in the area to frequent presence of carcasses nearby.

The third location is a regular feeding site of the white-backed, Egyptian and slender-billed vultures. Hatidagar is a scattered village 9.2 km south-west of Ramnagar in Nainital. The place where these vultures are being sighted is not situated within the village, but is close to a gurdwara by the side of a drying riverbed, where cattle carcasses are regularly left. On July 23, 17 SBVs and 12 WBVs were recorded (the majority observed feeding on the remains of a carcass) and on August 24, 17 WBVs were present at this site.

Information from local naturalists indicates that the vultures have been frequenting this place regularly in the last couple of years. Both slender-billed and white-backed species appear to use the Bombax Ceiba trees, popularly known as cotton trees, as temporary roosting spots while there is food available at the site. With their breeding season at its peak starting October, dedicated monitoring and preservation of these vulture colonies must be taken up on priority; for their extinction is likely in the next 10 years. We do not have any time to waste.

You can find this article by clicking on the following link:

http://www.dailypioneer.com/206903/Hope-takes-wings-as-vulture-colonies-thrive-in-Uttarakhand.html