The early morning hubbub in Pangti village of Nagaland’s Wokha district came to a standstill when the villagers stopped to greet the first flock of Amur Falcons arriving in the North eastern state. The 100 or so birds arrived on 8th October, marking the beginning of this year’s migration season. What was once a death […]
New Species of Wolf Snake Discovered in India
India gets a new species of snake and the state of Odisha lends its name to this new snake! In a delightful news for snake lovers across the world a wolf snake found in India’s eastern state of Odisha (Orissa, formerly) has added to the growing list of new species discovery. The snake has been […]
India’s Tiger Protection Squad Ensures Zero Poaching in Maharashtra Reserve
“Tyger, tyger, burning bright,” wrote William Blake in his famed poem. And now it appears that thanks to a dedicated team belonging to the Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF), tigers will once again shine bright in the forests of Maharashtra. The expertise of these trained hands was on display in February at the Ashta village […]
Diclofenac Poisoning Threat Spreading to Vultures Worldwide
Vultures, the huge scavenging birds with their large beady eyes and bald heads perform the very important task of cleaning up remains of dead carcasses of humans, cows and other animals. Once found in large numbers all over India, these birds are now in dire risk of extinction because of Diclofenac, a veterinary drug that […]
Lack of Data Pushing Freshwater Crustaceans of Western Ghats to Extinction
A large number of freshwater shrimps and crabs in the Western Ghats are in danger of becoming extinct due to increasing human activity in their habitat and irregularities in their classification and documentation. More than 90 % of gecarcinucid crabs found in Western Ghats are endemic to the area. A study was conducted recently on […]
India has the Highest Forest Ranger Mortality in the World
Being a forest ranger in India seems to rank top on the list of jobs with high mortality rates. Based on statistics provided by a non profit organization called IRF (International Ranger Federation), past three years saw the death of 72 forest rangers in India. This number is very high as compared to their counterparts […]
Mammals respond to Baby Cries of other Species
A mother’s pull to a crying baby, is so strong, that it does not matter if the baby is its own or even the same species. Researchers have recently found that the distress calls of mammal infants sound very similar to each other and when a mother of any species hears these calls, she will […]
Bengal considering Birth Control to solve Human-Elephant conflict
The continual decline in the population of a species poses a major threat to biodiversity. On the flip side, the unhindered and rapid multiplication of species also brings forth its own set of problems. It is this rise in the population of the elephants in West Bengal that has led to increased man-animal conflict, say […]
Frogs in Western Ghats Affected by Logging even after 40 Years
Frogs living in Western Ghats forests that were logged more than 40 years ago are still recovering from the impacts of deforestation, shows a recent study. Comparatively, unlogged forests had twice the number of frogs. The study also found some species of amphibians to have completely disappeared from logged areas. Rough skinned Bush frog by […]
Tigers Living Outside Protected Areas in Maharashtra
A large number of tigers are inhabiting the forests outside protected areas in Maharashtra, finds a new survey. The study, conducted in the Nagzira-Tadoba corridor found 27 tigers in the area with some inhabiting areas outside the protected reserves. The researchers believe such kind of field analysis can give good guidance to which are the […]
Ousteri Lake Becomes Tamil Nadu’s 15th Bird Sanctuary
Ousteri Lake, a wetland known for sometime as an important feeding and breeding ground of several bird species has been declared as a bird sanctuary by the Tamil Nadu government taking the number of protected areas in the Southern Indian state to 4 wildlife sanctuaries, 5 national parks, 15 bird sanctuaries, 4 tiger reserves and […]