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News From The Jungle |
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Kanha Tiger
Reserve
introduces a
mascot of its
own |
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Kanha Tiger
Reserve has
become the
first tiger
reserve in
India to
introduce a
mascot of
its own, and
it's not one
of its
famous
tigers, but
'Bhoorsingh
the
Barasingha'.
As per the
forest
department,
the mascot
will not
only play an
important
role in
attracting
the younger
generation
towards
conservation
but will
also be used
to spread
awareness in
form of
stories and
comic
strips.
Sanjay
Shukla,
Field
Director of
Kanha Tiger
Reserve said
the idea of
having a
mascot
emerged
during a
conversation
with
award-winning
cartoonist
and
illustrator
Rohan
Chakravarty
in February,
who then
came up with
the
caricature
of a
Barasingha
(swamp deer)
and decided
to name it
Bhoorsingh.
"Kanha is
famous for
its tigers
and
Barasingha.
While it
would have
been easier
to simply
choose a
tiger as a
mascot, we
instead
decided on a
Barasingha
as this
subspecies
of hard
ground is
not only
found in
Kanha, but
also its
conservation
is one of
the biggest
wildlife
success
stories of
India," he
said, adding
that it was
good
conservation
practises
coupled with
grassland
management
by the
forest
department
that saw the
population,
which was on
the brink of
extinction
in the 70's,
to increase
to more than
800 now.
Shukla
states that
that the
younger
generation
is extremely
digital-savvy
and they
connect
quickly with
creative
concepts,
and in this
age to
spread
awareness,
one has to
use
innovative
methods.
"Using the
caricature
of
Bhoorsingh
we will help
people build
a bond with
forest and
also
emphasise
how
Barasingha
or other
species seen
in the
forest are
as important
as a tiger.
We will also
use him to
narrate
stories
aimed at
creating
awareness on
issues like
man-animal
conflict,
safeguarding
forests and
wildlife
among
others.
There are
plans to
also come up
with comic
strips," he
said adding
that these
creative
messages
will not
only be seen
across Kanha
by tourists
but also on
social
media.
Keeping in
mind the 'selfie-loving'
tourists
visiting
Kanha, the
forest
department
also plans
to have
selfie
points with
life-size
cutouts of
Bhoorsingh
at key
locations
like
interpretation
centres and
gates.
"It's a very
refreshing
and an
innovative
move.
Visiting the
forest and
seeing the
age-old
boring
messages
painted on
the walls
asking
people to
save the
forest and
wildlife
hardly has
any connect
these days,"
said
Mumbai-based
wildlife
enthusiast,
Prashant
Rane. |
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Proposed
Ghodazari
wildlife
sanctuary opens
for tourists |
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Ghodazari:
Even as the
Bramhapuri
forest
division has
proposed
Ghodazari,
home of
Jai's
siblings —
Bittu and
Shriniwas,
as a 200 sq
km wildlife
sanctuary, a
part of it
has been
thrown open
for
ecotourism.
The proposal
has already
been sent to
state's
chief
wildlife
warden.
Though
wildlife
excursion is
available in
buffer zones
of Pench and
Tadoba tiger
reserves,
Ghodazari,
103 kms from
Nagpur, is
the first
jungle
safari in
the state to
be opened in
any
territorial
forest area.
"Presently,
a 25 kms
safari route
through
dense forest
is open from
Ghodazari
gate. |
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New species
of rabbit-like
pika discovered
in India |
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In the
remote upper
reaches of
the Eastern
Himalayas in
Sikkim,
India,
scientists
have
discovered a
new species
of pika, a
cute
rabbit-like
mammal. The
new species
— named
Sikkim pika
or Ochotona
sikimeria —
was
previously
classified
as a
sub-species
of the
Moupin pika
or Ochotona
thibetana,
known to
occur in the
mountains of
the eastern
Tibetan
Plateau and
along the
Himalayan
ridge in
China,
India,
Myanmar, and
Bhutan.
“Many people
have
photographed
O. sikimaria
and there
are several
specimens in
museum
collections
of India,”
lead author
Nishma Dahal,
a PhD
student at
the National
Centre for
Biological
Sciences in
Bangalore,
India, told
Mongabay.
“It is also
the most
common pika
species in
Sikkim. So
it’s not as
if no one
had seen
this animal
before.
However,
because it
looked like
O. thibetana,
it was
classified
as a
subspecies
of this
species.” |
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