Butterflying in Kanha

 

With more than 18,000 species of butterflies in the world, India is known to have 1501+ species. Today butterfly watching has become a major hobby for many and information about these beautiful insect is available from books and online through net. We can see 140+ butterflies in forests of Central India. Butterflies can be seen in open grasslands, thick forests, bushes and especially around flowers and water bodies.

Butterfly fall under insect order Lepidoptera, have 4 wings, 6 legs, 3 parted main body comprising of head, thorax and abdomen, compound eyes, exo skeleton and a pair of antennae. They are classified into two Super families: Hesperioidea and Papilionoidea. It is a pleasure to see these beautiful creations of god.

Kanha  National Park is a very good place to observe and study butterflies with more than 115 species listed till now although Satpuda / Panchmarhi area is known to have more than 130 species and is more famous for watching these silent flyers. Kanha Village Eco Resort has planted host plants which help to attract native butterflies species to lay eggs. They also have spots with flowers, grassland, trees and shrubs which act as perfect hosts for our colored friends once they start flying making their property a hot spot for butterflies and their predators spiders and birds.

 

If you are interested in photographing butterflies or are interested in studying them do remember to carry a binocular and good guide book on butterflies of Central India and for photography a good macro lens with flash and light tripod or monopod. Butterflies can be seen in all the seasons  but late June onwards till early December is one of the best time to see them.

Here is a small list of Butterflies found in Tiger reserves of Central India. Full list of Butterflies found in Central India can be checked at Kanha Village Eco Resort's website.

1) Swallowtails (Common Rose, Pachliopta arstolochiae, Crimson Rose, Pachliopta hector, Common Mime , Papilio clytia, Lime Butterfly, Papilio demoleus, Common Mormon ,Papilio polytes),

2) Whites & Yellows (Common Jezebel, Delias eucharis, Yellow Orange Tip, lxias pyrene, Lemon Emigrant , Catopsilia crocale , Common Grass Yellow, Eurema hecabe, Small Grass Yellow, Eurema brigitta, rubella

3) Blues (Zebra Blue , Leptotes plinius, Pale Grass Blue , Pseudoziziria maha, Gram Blue , Euchrysops Cnejus, Common Silverline , Spindasis vulcanus, Plum Judy , Abisara echerius),

4) Milkweed butterflies (Plain Tiger , Danaus chrysippus, Common Tiger, Danaus genutia, Glassy Tiger, Parantica aglea, Indian Common Crow , Euploea core) ;

5) Browns (Common Evening Brown, Melanites leda, is meme Dark Evening Brown, Melanitis phedima)) ;

6.) Nymph Lids (Angled Castor, Ariadne ariadne, Common Castor , Ariadne merione , Common Leopard , Phalanta phalantha, Lemon Pansy , Junonia lemonia, Yellow Pansy , Junonia hiertas, Peacock Pansy, Junonia almanac, Chocolate Pansy, Precis iphita, Blue Pansy ,Junonia orithya, Grey Pansy, Junonia atlites, Danaid Eggfly, Hylpolimnas missipus, Orange Oakleaf , Kallima inachus, Common Sailor ,Neptis hylas, varmona, Baronet, Euthalia nais Synphaedra nais, Tawny Coster ,Acraea violated.

7) Skipers (Indian Grass Demon , Edaspes folcus).

 

Kanha and my experiences

Mr. Sanjeev Kulhalli has spent more than 20 years at Kanha starting as Manager of one the resorts. We had been asking him to write down his experiences of Kanha National Park which we always hear, stories which make us jealous at times on his good luck to have spent a major part of his life at a place he loves so much. Finally here is something for all - one of his anecdote which I am sure all will cherish.

After spending close to two decades in Kanha I am frequently asked about exciting encounters or experiences with tigers or other wild animals, there have been so many that it would be impossible to pen down even a fraction of the entire collection in a single sitting. It was late in the morning after breaking our fast at Kanha museum we were on Schaller’s hide road when suddenly chital's alarm calls erupted from all over and from the circular road grasslands emerged a pack of 14 wild dogs who successfully brought down an adult chital hind, while all this was going on I was frantically trying to draw the attention of my clients who were near the barasingha enclosure in a another jeep, By the time they covered the intervening 800 meters there was nothing left of the deer ! gory! may be, brutal may be !BUT VERY REAL!!! Unfortunately that is how the wild dogs hunt.

Wild Animals at Kanha National Park. (Here we see Wild Dog, Peacock and Tiger, Photographs by Navneet Maheshwari.)

It was Christmas eve on 24th Dec. in the mid 1990'sand I was on link 7 road trying to escape the crowd as there was no restriction on the number of vehicles then, As I reached a cluster of the Indian Ghost tree ( sterculia urens) I stopped to explain the trees to my clients, When we restarted we had to cross a patch of van rahar ( a wild shrub ) and bamboo for a few hundred meters, as we turned a bend, I thought I glimpsed something streaking past at a distance I wasn’t sure what It was, the very alert guide Vinay kumar and my Jeep driver Ganesh not having reacted at all gave me the impression that perhaps I had imagined it, Never the less, I stopped the vehicle and after waiting and looking around for 2-3 minutes, I asked Ganesh to go another 20-30 metres and stop, All of us i.e. 4 clients, guide, driver and myself were trying to look beyond the bushes when with a fearful whisper Ganesh pointed from beside my right side and he was looking down and left and lo behold this tigress with a snarl on her face, her udder engorged with her belly facing us let out a thunderous roar and sprang about 3 meters vertically in the air when she landed back on the shrubs and leaves disappearing magically moaning loudly about the invasion on her privacy, We did feel guilty about disturbing her albeit unintentionally, the entire experience was exhilarating and unforgettable.

It has been a privilege working in one of the Best Tiger reserves in the country, may Kanha continue to excel in management, commitment, discipline and its glorious sightings of Fauna & flora. May it continue to lead the way in conservation.


Sanjeev Kulhalli


Mr. Sanjeev Kulhalli is presently stationed as Resident Director of Kanha Village Eco Resort at Kanha National Park.

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Rejuvenate with Yoga

Yoga and Meditation had been practised in Indian sub continent for time unknown with earliest identified documentation done by Patanjali in first millennium BCE in Yoga Sutras. Connection between the Indus Valley and later yoga and meditation practices is seen in some of the seals found in excavations. Physical, Mental and Spiritual upliftment are the basic idea behind yogic postures which were adopted by different religious sects and traditions in coming time.

 

While the Yoga Sutras focus on discipline of the mind, Hatha yoga concentrates on health and purity of the body. Many studies have determine the effectiveness of yoga as a complementary intervention for cancer, schizophrenia, asthma and heart patients and it has been reported to have shown muscular, skeletal and mental health improvements. In the specific sense of Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, its purpose is defined as chitta - vṛtti - nirodhaḥ (inhibition of the transformation of mind). Today yoga is used to alleviate health problems, reduce stress and as a complete physical and mental exercise program all over the world.

There are many Yoga teaching centers all over the world where you can learn the nuances of this age old tradition of living happily and healthy. One such upcoming school is – The Yoga Village Project. It is a non-profit, Eco friendly yoga centre planned in Northern Spain by Greg and Deva both well trained and experienced in science and art of Yoga. The vision is for it to be as self-sustainable as possible, using sustainable power sources and natural building materials. This will in turn sponsor a charity called The International Yoga Teacher Training Fund (IYTTF), which will support yoga practitioners all over the world who are unable to afford the expensive tuition fees.

 

Greg and Deva the founders of the project are currently learning a few methods essential in eco- house building and perma-culture. It is an ambitious project which will not only help people benefit from age old Yogic methods but also base itself on Sustainable living. I am really happy to see young and energetic people like them taking up a just cause to help people. Further details about the project can be checked at:

 

Webpage http://yogavillageproject.wix.com/yogavillageproject

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Yoga-Village-Project/354244527992222



Photograph from Net.

Flying Squirrel and Owlets

Flying Squirrel are one of the rarest mammals to see as they are mostly nocturnal. We had been seeing one near the resort for last few months but could not photograph it ever. I always wanted to do so but it was difficult as I rarely use flash for wildlife photography since it disturbs the subject.

A few days back we got a chance to not only see a very rare instance but also photograph a Flying Squirrel. I am giving herewith details of the incidence as well as photograph of Flying squirrel here under.

Date: 6th April 2012

Place: Kanha Village Eco Resort, Village Boda Chhapri, Kanha National Park.

Species: Indian Flying Squirrel and Spotted Owlets

Incidence:

It was early morning at around 9.00 AM and we were enjoying a cup of tea. Suddenly we heard noice and turned. It was a old Mahua Tree around 60 meters from the resort which was falling down since its owner had put fire on its base night. This is how mostly trees are killed in villages either by burning the base or girdling them.



Flying Squirrel at Kanha Village Eco Resort, Kanha Tiger Reserve 

What attracted us was something flying out from the top of the tree which we could not recognise at once or may be were not very sure of since it looked like a flying squirrel. On checking with binoculars its identity was confirmed. It was sitting on another tree nearby, shaken, looking at the old tree which was also its house once, falllen down to human greed. After few minutes it jumped from that tree and glided towards the Jamun tree at the resort, just a few meters from where we were looking at it. We were watching intently and I called for my Camera kit, I never wanted to miss the chance to click my first Flying Squirrel.

FS waited on one branch for few minutes and at this point happened what we never expected. Suddenly it ran towards a hole on the Jamun tree which is occupied by our resident Spotted owlets. We have seen the Owlet family increase from 1 to 5 in last few years. All, hell broke out and started a fight between the owlets to defend their home and FS to take it over. Screeching and trying to bite the intruder, flying around and hooting, Owlets were so very agitated. And, in meantime FS settled a bit but had to save itself from continous assault. After few minutes it had to come out of the hole and again sat on a branch looking at the Owlets. It is here that we got some time to click a few photographs of the FS. It was a cloudy day so I could not get good shots but was happy to see something rare atleast.




Indian Flying Squirrel at Kanha Village Eco Resort, Kanha National Park

In the evening FS left the hole and was followed / chased by the Spotted Owlets for almost  100 meters. We have been trying to find it again for last few days but do not know where it has made its new residence since owlets are in peace, back with their home to themselves. We had expected FS to come back by next morning and waited to have a glance but it was nowhere to be seen.

Hope to see it soon.

Navneet Maheshwari,
Kanha Village Eco Resort