Elephant Census, First hand experience

Location:  11°53'13.30"N  77° 8'10.39"E

Namaste my dear friends, well wishers colleagues, producers, Editors, Peers and cousins,

 I want to share with you my excitement of having participated in the Wild Elephant Census 2005. For a wildlifer to participate in something like this is the ultimate zenith of achievement... imagine sighting widlife in their habitat, being a part of their day watching and documenting it and taking pictures! Need no more in life! 💝 I must say in all honesty that the pictures in this blog are from my stock photographs, and from Creative Commons... during census forest department disallows photography. 

 

I was very keen to live up to the promise of wildlife census. After smoothening a few hiccups and delays we finally parked ourselves in the office of the Chamarajanagar Wildlife Division office one day before the Water Hole Count.

 

At this stage I must share with you all, the touching, personal care the forest staff took of me both in Bangalore and in Chamarajanagar. I told them honestly at forest headquarters in Bangalore itself that I am very interested in participation, but all these years I have feared participating in this, given the fact that I am physically challenged. They were very encouraging. They, specifically Mr. Anur Reddy, Conservator of Forests Wildlife, Forest Dept., Bangalore, counselled me to take up water count method which does not call for walking in arduous terrain in the forests. He also immediately called up the Chamarajanagar WL office and left a word with the Deputy Conservator of Forests that I will be participating in the Census and that I might perhaps be fit to do only the water hole count. I knew the DCF and the DCF was apparently apprehensive of my lack of fitness / disability.  But he was told to let me participate in the water hole count anyway.

Yes I was overweight when this picx was shot in February 2009. 

 

Well, water hole count calls for volunteers like us sitting watch over a particular water hole where there are watch towers usually. A forester or forest guard / watcher sits with us with a wireless set cracking. And we are called upon to keep a count of all animals that visit the water hole from Sunrise to Sunset on a given day. That summarises water hole count for you in one sentence! We have to count the number of elephants / animals in a herd, mark their gender and age, time of sighting and the activity it / they indulged in. They could be having a  blast in the water, they could be munching on the creepers, they could be resting, or they could be socialising or even romancing! Its really exciting, trust me.

 

So after we - my good friend from All India Radio  and I arrived in the Chamrajnagar  WL office, we were already one day late for the elephant census. But since I had called earlier and sought permission to participate only in the Water Hole Count, we were indeed well received. The officials had apparently waited for us to arrive but when we had not arrived till 5.30 p.m. on 5th May, they left for the Billi Giri Ranga Hills Wildlife Sanctuary. They had actually been worried that we had not arrived there till then and had called up Forest HQ in Bangalore to enquire about us! Then after our tardy 5 1/2 hours lunarscape journey to Chamarajanagar, the forest officials in their office cracked on the wireless and informed them about our arrival. Incredibly, the forest officials asked me to wait there, for, once they reached the forest guest house in K Gudi they would send the jeep back to Chamarajanagar to have us picked up. I was touched by their personal attention, because though all volunteers had been asked to assemble at the forest office the previous day to be ferried to the different forest ranges in the Chamarajanagar WL division, they were still sending a jeep exclusively for us, after they had reached their destinations in the forest. The block count method was undertaken on 5th May and we had missed out on it firstly because I couldn't possibly have covered a few odd square kilometres on foot looking for wild elephants, and secondly we had a few hiccups before leaving.  

 

Finally we landed at the Kyathadevaragudi range of the BRT WL sanctuary at 9.30 p.m on 5th May. We were ushered intothe K Gudi forest guest house not the plush suites or cottages or log huts of Jungle Lodges and Resorts. With good reason. The whole idea of recruiting volunteers is to share with us the rough working conditions for hapless, forest officials. The K Gudi forest guest house is devoid of power supply. There were no beds, furniture either. We were given spare cushions from the caretaker's warehouse. One kerosene lamp to be shared between two of us in two separate rooms / spaces. I was allowed to sleep on the spare cushion in the room which had an attached bathroom. My colleague / friend from All India Radio had to rough it out in the main lounge of the guest house. The forest officer asked us to join him for dinner and then I was given a room which was still vacant. It was so vacant that they bed too was missing! My colleague decided to rough it out on the couch in the forest guest house while I was given another set of cushions to make do for a bed. Well we were tired and managed to slumber off in different rooms / halls / or whatever was available. It was early next morning... really early for me to get up at 4.30 and get ready for the day. The boys as far as I knew did not even bother to shower.

 

The forest department had made excellent logistical arrangements. Volunteers were grouped off with an accompanying forest watcher or a guard and sent in jeeps to various water holes. I had with me a young teenaged daughter of a forest officer  besides a late entrant Sunil a guest at Jungle Lodges from the Jungle Lodges and another young 12 year old boy with me. We had a forest watcher with his famous wireless set and a Soliga tribesman whose sense of smell, feel and touch was incredible. We were given food packets for lunch and breakfast besides water bottles and the data forms. I was further equipped with pens, tablets,  toilet paper, sun glasses, hat etc. Enroute to Basavannikere, the whole lot of us - 16 I think in the jeep, saw a herd of 9 Bos gaurus - popularly known as Bisons. A lil' further we saw a herd of around 27 to 30 spotted deer.  Then another lonely spotted deer,  and two Rhesus monkeys. We were the first to be dropped off at the first water hole on this jeep's route. 

We arrived @ Basavannikere exactly at 6.55 a.m K Gudi forest range of the Billigiri Ranga Hill Temple Wildlife Sanctuary.   When we were still alighting from the jeep in which more than 16 people were squashed like cabbage leaf, Bingo there comes a family of 3 adult female elephants chaperoning a baby. The forest guard - Pasha quietened us with his index finger on his lips and gesticulated to us to hurry up to the watch tower. We - Myself, Sarayu, the forest officer's daughter, Karan the 12 year old boy and Pasha scrambled up to the watch tower, while the jeep hurtled off. The elephants were about 70 feet away from us at that moment. The Soliga boy scrambled up to the nearest tree.

Once we were inside the the watch tower we noted down on a piece of paper the the number of females,  their approximate age, etc in the Elephant herd. There were 3 females and one Baby which was about 45 days old, according to Pasha. The beasts splashed into the water and we were so excited to watch this that one of us spoke something I don't remember who. That was enough for the elephants to ring the alarm bells... they quietly left the pool and walked away from the left side. When they disappeared it was 7.03 a.m. On our left was dense forest cover behind which we could barely make out their outlines as they were marching to safety from human rascals.

 

The watch tower was rusted and was making such a noise everytime one of us moved a muscle. An hour later Pasha went down to sit with his Soliga friend for breakfast. We stayed up. Half an hour passed and not a fly to be seen. I became restless and so I walked down cautiously with Sarayu. It was around 8.45 a.m. when Pasha noted that there were a couple of elephants far away to our northwest and they were likely to come down to the water hole. He ushered us back to the tower. We scrambled back. We had to wait another 25 minutes to have them show themselves up. Finally they appeared clearly between 9.10 and 9.23 a.m. They started making their way to the water hole but just before getting into the water they sniffed the air by throwing their trunks up in the air, smelt human beings. Both mother and daughter started charging towards the watch tower! Goodness we were excited and panicky at the same time. They threw their trunks into the air - apparently to smell us. They trumpeted noisily rebelling against us. They knew that we were there somewhere. Owing to their poor eyesight they could not quite sight us. They were still hurtling towards the watch tower. Then suddenly, the mother pulled at her daughter, and turned around to a trench between the watch tower and the water hole. They felt much safer in the trench I guess for they had the cover of bushes, trees and the narrow trench. We actually heard them scream out in stress and call out to their herd or family or whoever. In seconds they disappeared beyond the trench into the forest cover on our left side.

 

I guess the forest was so dense on our left side - on the left of the water hole - that all elephants that came to the hole that day found their way to the forest cover on this side of the water hole. Elephants use their own well  trodden path; they get traumatised by disturbance to their habitat. They are used to their own ilk and family, they need their space and habitat. These are the elements which make a patch of forest an "elephant corridor". 

Believe me when I say this, it is epiphanic, nay ethereal to watch the mighty beasts so sensitive to our presence... they look so utterly vulnerable smelling us constantly out of fear, yet evoking awe and fear in us hapless, yet merciless human beings. I loved the elephants and for a moment hated our own species. It is touching, you know, -  their sensitivity and awesome might seem to us. Amazing.

 

We were seated for a while longer inside the rattling watch tower. Then Sarayu and myself came down again, sought the permission of Pasha to walk up a distance of atleast 100 feet. Pasha permitted us to go only as far as a particular tree some 100 odd feet away and to come back in 5 minutes. We just went to stretch our muscles. By the time we came back, Pasha had cushioned himself under the shade of a luscious tree with the leaves of a tree. He looked really comfortable in the sweltering heat. The poor Soliga was still looking out into the shaded horizon for wildlife. We too came to the fallen trunk of the Mathi Mara (Mathi tree) or Terminalia tomentosa - tropical deciduous tree whose foliage is actually used by forest staff to douse forest fires. We seated ourselves on it. Pasha came up to us saying he could hear the jeep rumbling somewhere and that forest officials will come to check on us any moment and that if we are outside the watch tower he will lose his job. So we went back to the rattling watch tower. The heat was stifling inside the tower. 10 minutes later without any trace of the jeep, we came down again! This time we went behind the watch tower well behind the fallen trunk, and, incredibly, lay down on the forest floor. I covered my face with my Panama hat and uttered a prayer on my lips to save me from the elephants, because if they were to come back to the water hole from the dense forest cover on our left they would certainly cut across the path where we were audaciously lying down. I was actually lying on shrubs and a thorny bush scrapped my right forearm. At that moment we heard an elephant trumpet not so far ahead from where we were lying. We scrambled to our feet again and looked at Pasha rather sheepishly and quietly made our way to the watch tower.

 

I drew Sarayu's attention to a spotted deer which ran across from right to left near the tree upto which we had gone walking. Then we heard repeated alarm calls of some animal a little farther away from the tree upto which we had gone walking earlier. Pasha told us that it was a barking deer's shrill call alerting all and sundry about some predator closeby. Now I knew why the spotted deer ran for its life. We were fervantly hoping that the leopard would show up. Pasha clarified that it has to be a leopard because no tiger had been sighted here. Later this was disputed by the forest ranger who said this is indeed tiger territory. The barking deer kept its shrill alarm for atleast 20 minutes. Later we heard a Langur Monkey the black faced silver haired monkey calling out in alarm beyond the dense forest cover on the left side of the watch tower. I gathered, and Pasha concurred, that the leopard or whatever carnivore it was, must have moved away. The barking deer quietened down.  

 

A bevy of ants were making their way from the bushes to god knows where. Orchids and climbers hung daintily from the railings of the watch tower's steps. We climbed up the tower and then the jeep came rambling. A photographer alighted from the forest jeep. I could not help asking the ranger how this guy was allowed to shoot when we were explicitly told not to bring our cameras. I was told that he is the official department photographer. By then a 50 year old lonely princess of the Elephant kingdom had entered the water hole at the far end rather quietly. Royal folk are known for their grace and quiet demeanour right ? Another tourist from the Jungle Lodges alighted from the jeep - and joined us in the census. He too had brought his food and water. The forest officials were really doing a good job, as far as I could see.  Pasha ushered us inside because a Matriarch was present at the opposite shore of the water hole. This lady - the Matriarch of Basavannikere section in the K Gudi forest range of the Billigiri Ranga Hill Temple Wildlife Sanctuary was indeed a desolate depressed meloncholic sentimental and rather thinny old Cow Elephant. She looked rather forlorn with her ribs jutting out like unpainted nails of a old materiarch who has renounced worldly life. She stayed in and around the water hole for a good 50 minutes from11.00 a.m. to 11.50 a.m. Finally she sauntered away from the shore at the far end of the water hole.

 

Karan, and Sarayu sat down with their legs dangling out of the railings at the entrance of the watch tower door while I went down to chat up with the forest guard. Pasha looked deeply into the bushes near the tree up our walking path. Two Sambhars were browsing at the bushes. He pointed out with his forefinger, careful not to crack the human vocal chord. I looked at the Sambhar - tiger's favourite prey, - they were three in number, and I waved to the kids at the watch tower to come down and watch these wonderful genteel beasts. By the time these two kids came down the rattling rusting stairs of the wretched watch tower the beasts ran away!

 

Then I asked Karan who was bored stiff to count all the birds that he would sight that day. I taught him how to count in the barcode way in multiples of 5. He did it for a while and gave up because it proved a tad difficult for him I guess. He asked me innocently "Anuntie do I have to count all the birds even if I don't know their names ?" Well what could I say ? I just said try your best and do it as long as you can." 

 

Around 1.00p.m. another group of 4 elephants with one male sub adult and 3 adult Cow elephants came to the water hole. They splashed around for 20minutes before leaving for the dense forest cover on the left side of the watch tower. Then at 2.15 another set of 3 elephants came by. They too splashed. Ooh they had a baby with them right in the middle. They bathed in the sweltering heat of the afternoon and graciously went up the left bank. There were two cow elephants and one male sub adult. These guys knew we were there. They became rather suspicious and edgy inside the pool when they felt our phony presence. Quietly, slowly but decisively they had to usher their rebellious baby out of the water. But they succeeded eventually 20 or 25 minutes later.

 

After 3.00p.m. it was party time. Elephants were coming in larger numbers. Oh but listen to this. Sunil, the jungle lodges tourist had his packet of rice pulav and could not keep his eyes open so he went down to dose off against the fallen trunk. He was apparently in deep slumber when the Soliga boy, still atop a tree gesticulated to all of us in the watch tower that he had seen some big creature, his excitement was telling. Pasha who was munching his lunch rather respectfully on the steps of the rusted watch tower hurriedly packed off his lunch and ran down to rescue Sunil! Sunil was apparently snoring! Pasha just woke him up equanimously, rather unapologetic! Imagine being woken up like that! Poor Sunil later told me that it took a couple of seconds for him to understand what happened. By then Pasha had figured that nothing less than a lone tusker was on its way! He brought back Sunil to the watch tower. It was only after a wait of 30 good minutes that the tusker - a huge mature male of 35 - 40 years appeared behind a cluster of bushes making his way to the water hole.

 

Except the Soliga boy we were all ensconced in the watch tower, breathless with excitement. He took his time to saunter into the northern shore of the water hole. Just when he was a couple of steps away from the water he turned around and went away. That was so disappointing. He made us wait for so long, and though we saw enough of him to mark statistics, he did not give us a display in the water. It took another 15 minutes for the Soliga boy to come down and tell us that he had seen the tusker disappear at the far end. By then our water bottles were all exhausted. Pasha asked the Soliga boy to fetch us some water. He took our bottles and went away for a good 40 minutes. When he did come back he brought with him 4 bottles of light brown coloured water. I told Sunil, "well we are in the forests let us rough it out, I shall even skip brushing my teeth in the night". He did not utter a word, he opened the cap of the bottle and downed some water. I followed him, Sarayu followed after me. Karan too drank a bit, I think.  Incredibly, the water was very sweet, not the sour taste of salty water,one would have expected of light golden brown water! It was real fresh water from some spring in the forest. It felt really refreshing to soak in the blessings of Mother Nature like this.

 

By then another elephant had gotten into the water in a loud splash. He was having a blast. Whether or not he knew of our presence seemed immaterial. He was out to have fun. The shadows had just started lengthening on the western front, and he was making the best use of the summer cool. He was actually prancing about in the algae infested waters of the water hole. Then he started coming to the centre of the tank. A tall tree hid my view so I moved a foot away and the rusted watch tower creaked in agony. Pasha who was also watching from inside the watch tower agonised on his face for the noise I made. I twitched, regretting the whole thing, by then the elephant had positioned himself under the broken trunk of the tree inside the pool. He started scrubbing himself vigorously. It made such a strange noise that Sunil looked at me questioningly. I had no clue what it was. Then Pasha whispered that this guy was scrubbing himself. Sunil clarified that the sap of the trunk must have served him as a bath loofah. He splashed around for a while more and then swam around then he scrubbed himself again and swam again then slowly but very reluctantly he moved out of the water. He went right around the tree where our Soliga boy was perched and came behind the watch tower. Pity we could not turn around in the watch tower just as noiselessly. Then this elephant trumpeted rather loudly while marching behind us. We came out of the watch tower and stood at the door of the tower high above the ground. At that point our elephant friend started coming menacingly very close to the watch tower and crossed the point where Sarayu and myself had actually laid down in the morning. Worse, it sniffed my toilet spot behind the big bush, which really scared me. What if he could smell my DNA or genes from what I had left behind ? Believe me I was scared at that moment. He was joined by another cow elephant which was hanging out there, which we had not seen till then..

 

In barely another ten minutes we had a mother and son pair of elephants coming into the water for a late afternoon shower. They had a decent bath for about 20 minutes and also came back on the same path where our friend had passed through to the lowlands adjacent to the dense forest cover on our left side. Ah! finally with the setting Sun, we could clearly sight all the pachyderms that had made their way to the forest on the left side since morning. I saw atleast another 6 elephants a few in pairs . They were grooming each other playing with each other and generally socialising.  They were making quite a racket there. But I could trace their brown bodies under the thick forest cover for they had showered themselves with cool mud after their cosmic shower in the water hole. At close up we could see that one guy's coat had a shine to it after that fantastic indulgence in the water. Now I know what is meant by an elephant bath!

 

It was a surreal experience. By the time we entered the data of this last count after 5.00 p.m. the jeep came to pick us up! Oh what a pity. We had to get away from there, alongwith our litter bag, water bottles data file and our personal kits. I had a whole department store in that utility jacket of mine. On our way back to the guest house we saw another herd of 11 bisons - Bos gaurus, and another herd of 15 spotted deer. It was a once in a life time experience and none should miss it if one is around in India at the time of elephant or tiger census. Its worth the effort. Not much effort actually. We should be grateful to the forest department for inviting us to participate.

 

I wanted to share my cosmic experience with you all. 

 

warm regards

Malini