…..

When most people think of lions, they probably think of Africa. But another, lesser-known subspecies of lion actually lives in India, where they represent a major conservation victory — for now, at least.

Asiatic lions are a distant cousin of the much bigger African lions that diverged from the African continent over 100,000 years ago. They once roamed throughout the Middle East, including Mesopotamia, Syria, Iran, Palestine, Arabia and Balochistan, along with much of Northern India to the Bay of Bengal. Sadly hunting caused the lion’s numbers and territory to shrink, until they were only found on the Indian subcontinent. After that, trigger-happy British colonialists and Indian maharajahs shot practically all of India’s lions except for a handful in the Gir deciduous forests in Junagarh, a district in Gujarat in western India.

By the beginning of 20th century only an estimated 20 Asiatic lions remained in the wild. Their fate would have been sealed forever if not for the timely act of the nawab of Junagarh who offered immediate sanctuary — from a king to the king of the jungle — and the lions finally found a safe haven. The nawab was succeeded by his son, an even bigger animal lover, who in 1922 totally banned hunting of lions in Gir and declared the region as a protected area.

Over the next 100 years, as colonial rule gave way to an independent democratic country, national parks and wildlife sanctuaries started sprouting across India especially to save the national animal — the tiger. Gir became a government-protected reserve and, as the last bastion of Asiatic lions, has continued to play a vital role in the conservation of the species.

New Troubles

The last census of the cats’ population in 2015 showed 356 Asiatic lions living in the Gir National park and another 167 in the unprotected forest and revenue areas of Gujarat state.

The lions owe their survival and recovery to the assiduous efforts of India’s Forest Department, the state and central governments, and the local communities who have revered the lions as the true king of their last abode. It came as no surprise when, in 2015, the Asiatic lions became the first big carnivores to be downgraded from “critically endangered” to “endangered” on the IUCN Red List of threatened species. They’re a rare conservation victory any nation would be proud of.

But is it all good news for Asiatic lions? Perhaps it seems that way when you look at their rising numbers, but it appears less so when you look at the bigger picture of a shrinking habitat. With more than 500 lions in the 8,494-square-mile park (22,000 sq. km), many experts feel there’s just not enough room for their population to continue to grow. Meanwhile, keeping them all in one place also leaves the lions vulnerable to the ravages of a future natural or man-made disaster like fire or floods, which could spell doom for the whole species.

In fact one of those disasters may have now arrived, as at least 23 Asiatic lions have died in the past few months. About half of the deaths have been linked to an outbreak of canine distemper virus, an infectious disease that has also threatened other wild cat populations. In response, the Gujarat State Forest and Animal Husbandry departments have started a program to vaccinate local cattle and dogs, from which the disease probably spread to lions, but it’s as-yet unknown how many lions remain at risk.

The People Problem

Meanwhile, there’s another threat: With millions of tourists flocking to see the animals each year, the villagers living on the fringes of the forest have found a new way to earn quick bucks by showing off “their state’s pride” to passing tourists.

In May this year seven people were arrested in Gujarat for planning an illegal lion show, where a somewhat tamed lioness was lured out of the forest with live chicken bait. The viral video — and many other such episodes of locals abusing wild lions through staged hunts and wild chases that surfaced one after the other — burst the bubble for the custodians of the forest, who had until then believed they were doing everything right to protect the lions.

The Gujarat state government immediately took stern steps. New rules include a ban on taking videos of the wild lions, which will now amount to hunting. Any individuals shooting a lion with a camera could get seven years of imprisonment and will be booked under section 9 of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.

Other initiatives suggested are radio collaring each of the wild cats to track them constantly and the enrollment of local guardians into a troop called SinhMitras (Friends of the Lion) who, accompanied by dogs, would roam the forests to keep a watch not on the lions but the tourists and ensure no one uses any illegal means to get a glimpse of the lions. The state is also intent on adding two additional safari parks and turning them into protected areas to reduce the tourism pressure on the current safaris.

The Missing Step

However, a step the Gujarat government is reluctant to take is to give away its pride — or at least to share the responsibility of conservation by extending the lion’s territory to a neighboring state and thereby improving the lions’ chances of survival in the face of unexpected disasters like the current disease outbreak.

Five years ago the Supreme Court of India, the nation’s highest judicial body, issued an order to move some lions from Gir national park to Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary in central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, but to this date no lion has been moved.

Gujarat claims that the translocation will happen only after 33 studies have been conducted in Madhya Pradesh under the IUCN guidelines. The Madhya Pradesh government, on the other hand, says it is ready for the lions, having expanded the size of the Kuno protected area from 133 square miles (344 square km) to 270 square miles (700 sq. km). They have also spent Rs. 90 crore (U.S. $13 million) for relocation of 24 villages in the core area, development of prey base and other infrastructure needs. Ravi Chellam, a member of an expert committee formed by the Environment Ministry, believes it is the complete unwillingness of the governments — both central and the states — to deal with the complexity and the urgency of the problem that is delaying the shift of the lions.

What is worrying is Gujarat’s unflinching belief that it is the only state in India capable of protecting the cats; this could turn catastrophic. A recent study showed that of the 184 deaths recorded of lions in 2016 and 2017, 32 were due to unnatural causes like falling into open wells, being hit by trains or vehicles, electrocution and poisoning. The presence of six highways, a railway line and about 18,000 open wells only increase the danger of continued accidents. “At the moment, all our eggs are in one basket and that is a huge risk,” warned Chellam.

Even the recent canine distemper outbreak has not swayed the government’s position. This month Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani emphatically stated that the lions were “completely safe in the forest” and “will not be relocated.”

The lions of Gujarat are admittedly doing relatively well overall despite the current threats, but Asiatic lions are still endangered and need a contingency plan that ensures they can roar beyond the boundaries of their lone territory. While at one time the resolute action of a nawab saved the lions by closing the boundaries of the state, what would do greater good today is to open dialogues, share expertise, encourage development of more secure habitats through translocations and give the kings of the jungle a chance to spread their kingdoms.

Atula Gupta

Original Publication: The Revelator

Published on: 24 October, 2018

Link: The Last Lions of India

Image courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

…..

In 1970, an album titled ‘Songs of the Humpback Whale’ was released
with 35 minutes of sound recordings of these whales. The album was
nothing like anything people had heard before and it went on to sell 30
million copies worldwide. The operasque sounds created by the whales,
dolphins and most other cetaceans continue to fascinate scientists even
today with many recordings revealing the extreme frequencies these
sounds can be emitted in. Scientists have also found through several
studies that the sounds are not just for social interactions in the
underwater world. They are also fundamental cues for feeding,
navigation, and communication in the ocean.

What happens then if a mother whale is trying to teach the baby whale to
swim across a difficult waterway and suddenly the baby cannot hear the
mother’s cues because there are multiple other sounds coming its way?
What if the other distractions are so loud and unfamiliar that the baby
whale actually gets alarmed on hearing them and gets lost? Increased
noise from shipping traffic, motorized fishing vessels, underwater oil and
gas exploration, offshore construction and other human activities are
creating exactly this kind of ruckus for the whales and other marine
species that can leave them confused and disoriented. And because the
physics of sound travel underwater is so different from the way it travels
in air, there are multiple levels at which such noise pollution can interact
and affect the lives of all marine animals.

Francis Juanes, an ecologist at the University of Victoria in Canada and
Arlos Duarte, a marine ecologist at the Red Sea Research Center in Saudi
Arabia recently analysed decades of data sets and studies of the effects of
noise pollution on marine creatures. They found that human-made
sounds are impacting all marine dwellers in a negative way – so much so
that some fish larvae are unable to find their habitats or homes.
Prof. Duarte says that while the importance of sounds has been studied
in detail in humpback whales, who are able to communicate through
thousands of miles using complicated songs, there is also evidence that
miniscule fish larvae ‘hear’ the call of their habitat and follow it to find home when they are drifting on the waves. Unfortunately, he says, that
call is no longer being heard.

“Imagine having to raise your kids in a place that’s noisy all the time. It’s
no wonder many marine animals are showing elevated and detectable
levels of stress due to noise,” said Joe Roman, a University of Vermont
marine ecologist.

The scientists found that fish and some invertebrates avoid certain areas
of the Red Sea where the frequency of ships travelling is high. They also
noted that the overall number of marine animals has declined by about
half since the 1970s. “In some parts of the ocean, there were fewer
animals singing and calling than in the past – those voices are gone,”
said Duarte.

The Sound Impact

There are several reasons why sound tends to become a greater stress for
aquatic animals than those living on land. Sound travels almost five
times faster through sea water than through air, and low frequencies can
travel hundreds of kilometres with little loss in energy. In addition to
this, the hearing range of marine mammals is far greater than their
vocalisation range as they rely on sound cues much more than visual
cues to avoid predators too. Also, because the whales and dolphins utilise
a wide band of acoustic frequencies – from low-frequency sounds down
to ~15 Hz used by Blue Whales to 120–150 kHz used by several species of
porpoises – the broad range can easily intersect with almost all sounds
introduced by humans in water. All this gives rise to conditions that can
be quite complex to maneuver for all kinds of animals be it tiny shrimps
or massive whales.

According to a 2018 study by Maritime Research Centre (MRC), Pune
ship movement in the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean led
to decibel (dB) levels increase in the seas from a maximum of 185-190dB
to 210dB over seven decades. In this period, the minimum noise levels
along major shipping routes too, had gone up to 110dB from 90-95dB.
The sources of these sounds included > 200dB: Sound from ships for
communication purposes or to detect any danger, 200-250dB: Seismic surveys airguns used to illuminate the sea bottom to understand the nature and detect presence of oil activity, and 100-150dB: Sounds of various machines that aid movement of large ships and vessels. The researcher warned that such sounds could not only lead to discomfort but also internal injuries, bleeding, haemorrhages, or even death among the marine animals.

A 2019 study noted another harsh effect of human sounds. Increased
ship traffic across the Ganga is stressing the river’s iconic dolphins –
India’s national aquatic animals – and changing the way they
communicate. For a mammal that’s almost blind, and relies heavily on
echolocation to communicate, feed and breed, this kind of stress can
easily spell the difference between life and death.

Turning the Volume Down

An interesting observation Juanes and Duarte additionally made during
their study, was the effect of the global lockdown on the reduced human-
made sound levels and thereby the activity of marine creatures. They
found that when 60% of people were under lockdown in 2020, there was
20% reduction in the human noises created underwater. Almost
immediately, large marine mammals were seen around coastlines and
areas of the seas where they had not been observed for decades. The
scientists say this showed how easy it is to set the volume right for
marine animals to live alongside all the development noises humans are
creating.

The scientists strongly feel that when it comes to the various
environmental challenges like climate change and plastic pollution that
are also impacting ocean health, noise pollution is often given less
attention whereas tackling this marine “anthrophony” was the “low-
hanging fruit” of ocean health.

“If we look at climate change and plastic
pollution, it’s a long and painful path to recovery,” Prof Duarte said. “But
the moment we turn the volume down, the response of marine life is
instantaneous and amazing.”

While the whales are fish cannot have a mute button or ear plug to
muffle the alien human noises, the responsibility to lower the marine
‘loudspeakers’ for our marine neighbours lies with us and is not difficult
to execute.

Atula Gupta

Original publication: Deccan Herald

Published on: 10 March, 2021

Link: Underwater Under Seige

Featured image courtesy Pixabay , Image 1, Image 2

मार्च-अप्रैल के महीनों में, जब फागुन के फूल बहार में हों, गोंड जनजाति की महिलाएं अक्सर एक पेड़ के नीचे हजारों की संख्या में बिखरे पड़े मनमोहक फूलों को बीनती हुई मिलेंगी. यह पेड़ इनके लिए रोजगार का साधन भी है, आराधना योग्य भगवान भी और सांस्कृतिक धरोहर भी है, जो पीढ़ी दर पीढ़ी इनके जीवन को सजाती और संवारती चली आ रही है. यह विशेष वृक्ष है महुआ, जिसे गोंड आदिवासी “Elixir of Life” या जीवनदायिनी मानते हैं.

गोंड आदिवासी मुख्य रूप से मध्य प्रदेश, छत्तीसगढ़, महाराष्ट्र, आंध्र प्रदेश, तेलंगाना, ओडिशा और बिहार में रहते हैं. ये भारत के सबसे पुराने भूखंड “गोंडवाना” के मूल निवासी हैं. इस धरा के पेड़, पौधे, जीव-जंतुओं के बारे में जितना इन्हें व्यावहारिक ज्ञान है, उतना शायद ही किताबों में किसी ने लिखा या पढ़ा हो.

गोंड शब्द का अर्थ ही है ‘हरा पहाड़’. ये अपने घरों को पेड़-पौधे, फूल-पत्तियों और जानवरों की आकृतियों से सजाते हैं. इनकी बिंदुओं और रेखाओं वाली चित्रकला अब दुनिया भर में प्रसिद्ध है. वैसे तो इनमें शेर, हिरण, तोते.. सभी चित्रित किए जाते हैं पर जिस चीज को ये सबसे ज्यादा दिखाते हैं, वह है महुआ का पेड़, मानो इसी के इर्दगिर्द सारी दुनिया बसी हो. देखा जाए तो यह इस समुदाय के लिए शाश्वत सत्य भी है.

जन्म से लेकर मृत्यु तक गोंड जनजाति के लोग महुआ के पेड़ का उपयोग करते हैं. उनके हर त्योहार, हर पूजा, हर विशेष दिन में इसका एक महत्वपूर्ण स्थान है. बच्चे के जन्म के समय उसे महुआ का तेल लगाया जाता है, शादी के समय वर-वधु महुआ के तने को पकड़कर उसके चारों ओर रस्म निभाते हैं और मेहमानों का आदर-सत्कार भी महुआ से बनी शराब से किया जाता है. पेट की बीमारियों से लेकर हल्का बुखार होने पर भी महुआ इनके लिए हर रोग का इलाज है. इस वृक्ष को कभी भी काटा नहीं जाता बल्कि गोंड आदिवासी इसे धन-संपत्ति के समान अपनी आगे आने वाली पीढ़ियों के लिए छोड़ कर जाते हैं.

एक समय था जब भारत में महुआ का पेड़ काफी आम था, खासकर उत्तर और मध्य भारत में. यह इतना प्राचीन पेड़ है कि इसका वर्णन वेदों में किया गया है. चरक संहिता में भी इसके औषधीय गुणों का उल्लेख है. कालिदास ने तो यह भी लिखा है कि मां पार्वती महुआ के बने फूलों का हार पहनती हैं.

महुआ के फूलों की अनूठी बात यह है कि ये रात में खिलते हैं और सुबह तक मुरझा जाते हैं. पेड़ के नीचे बिखरे पड़े फूलों की महक दूर तक जाती है जिससे चमगादड़, जंगली कबूतर, स्लोथ भालू आदि जैसे पशु-पक्षी इनकी ओर खिंचे चले आते हैं. गोंड आदिवासी इन फूलों को इकट्ठा करके उन्हें सुखाते हैं और दुनिया की एकमात्र फूलों से बनने वाली शराब बनाते हैं.

अगर आप गोंड चित्रकला को ध्यान से देखें तो आप पाएंगे कि उसमें कभी हिरण के सींग पेड़ की शाखाओं का आकार ले लेते हैं तो कभी पक्षियों के पंख महुआ की पत्तियां बन जाते हैं. अपनी हर रचना में गोंड यह सरलता से समझाते हैं कि पेड़ों से ही जीव, पेड़ों से ही जीवन है.

मूल लेख प्रकाशति मीडिया: NDTV Hindi
लिंक: महुआ की छाया में पलती गोंड चित्रकला
दिनांक: 30 मार्च 2024
आभार: Nature Conservation Foundation

Featured image courtesy Jean-Pierre Dalbéra cc/Flickr, Ramesh Lalwani cc/Flickr, wikimedia commons