[Commentary] Counting bulbuls to conserve the Deccan hillocks and scrub forests
The word ‘hill forest’ often brings up an imagery of a tall cliff draped in dense greenery, rising from the plains, peaking high to vanish amidst the mist. Though that…
Saving the last remaining grassland habitat in Bengaluru region
To a mind that’s taught to see vast swathes of land where no large trees but “mere” grass and shrubs grow as inconsequential, Hesaraghatta’s distinction as a unique habitat for…
India records increase in leopard population but real number could be much more
A 60 percent rise in India’s leopard population has been recorded in 2018, compared to 2014, but there is one area in the country, the northeastern landscape, where its population…
City of blinding lights: Artificial light disturbs nature’s processes in Bengaluru
Twelve-year-old Sarah vividly remembers the first stargazing trip her parents took her to, about 70 kilometers from Bengaluru, just for a glimpse of the comet Neowise. Her father, who proposed…
Oh My Gaur! Living alongside the Indian bison that’s moving out of forests
It’s not uncommon in India to see cattle grazing in farms and backyards, ruminating by the road, or even causing a minor inconvenience to vehicles. Replace cattle with herds of…
Life and struggles of the sloth bear in human-dominated areas
Sloth bears are the world's only bears built to eat ants. They love their occasional meat tidbits of course but thrive mostly on ants, insects, fruits and wild berries. Their…
The link between Bengaluru’s lakes, livelihoods and local memories
It had been over 25 years since Neelamma N. Reddy went scouring for greens in Varthur lake. The lake then was a veritable buffet of greens and fish for her.…
Discarded single-use plastic masks and gloves are choking ocean beds
On September 16, when Subhash Chandran, a scuba diver, along with four others, went for their first underwater clean-up post the lockdown at Rushikonda beach in Visakhapatnam, they found floating…
Architectural secrets of termite mounds
Of the insect world’s many architects, the termites are undoubtedly the reigning monarchs. The earthen mounds that these tiny insects construct out of soil, water and their own saliva, are…
Frog discovered in the Eastern Ghats also found in the Western Ghats, more than 1000 km away
Over the last decade alone, more than 100 frog species new to science have been discovered in India. One of them is the Kalinga cricket frog (Minervarya kalinga), a plain-looking…
