Nature Initiative Kerala

Kerala outshines other tiger States

K S Sudhi, Kochi
The Hindu, July 30, 2019

The tiger population is growing in Kerala with 190 big cats roaming its forests and the State scoring maximum points in mean Management Effectiveness Evaluation (MEE), according to the Status of Tigers in India-2018 report.
Kerala scored the highest mean MEE score of 90.23 among the 18 tiger States of the country.
The latest Kerala tiger figures mark an increase of 54 individuals against the 136 of 2014, according to the report.
When it comes to the MEE of individual reserves, the Periyar Tiger Reserve scored 93.75% and Parambikulam, the second reserve in the State, 86.72% and was rated as very good in terms of management effectiveness.
The tiger population of the State was estimated to be 46 individuals in 2006, which increased to 71 when its population was estimated four years later in 2010.
Though not a tiger reserve, Wayanad houses the maximum number of tigers in the State with an estimated population ranging between 75 and 80 individuals. During an internal survey conducted in 2017, Forest Department officials could capture exclusive images of 74 individuals.
Since its stripes are unique to individuals like the fingerprints of humans, the photographic identification of the animals based on its stripes can be considered as an accurate counting method. However, one also needs to be aware of the foraying character of the animals and the possibility of overlapping of tiger population in the adjacent tiger habitats, cautioned an official.
Incidentally, the Wayanad tiger area shares its boundaries with the Nagarhole and Bandipur tiger reserves.
Though the 2018 tiger report does not speak about the population of tigers in the individual tiger reserves, the forest areas that come under the Periyar Tiger Reserve are considered to be the home of around 30 to 35 individuals. The dossier of the PTR has digital images of 30 individual tigers captured during the internal assessment done in 2017, said an official.
The PTR shares its boundary with the Meghamali and Srivilliputhur forests of Tamil Nadu.
The population estimation of the large felines in the Parambikulam Tiger Reserve has put the presence of the animals between 20 and 25. The reserve authorities have succeeded in camera-trapping 23 individuals during the internal assessment. Parambikulam shares its borders with the Anamalai Tiger Reserve of Tamil Nadu.

Silent Valley’s core areas took the brunt of 2018 floods

Abdul Latheef Naha, Palakkad
The Hindu, July 15 2019

The rain and floods that devastated the State in August 2018 have struck an unimaginable blow to core areas of the Silent Valley National Park. Much of the damage inflicted by nature’s wrath still remains unassesed and unstudied.
Little did the outside world know about the 50-odd landslips that ravaged the core areas of the Silent Valley. About a dozen of the landslips were so huge that had they been in human inhabited areas, they would have taken quite a number of lives along their trail.
Authorities did not publicise the extensive damage caused to the Silent Valley as there had been many theories doing the rounds about the cause of the floods. When some argued that it was a man-made disaster, others said it was a result of unprecedented copious rain.
The iron bridge across the Kunthi river in the Silent Valley had been destroyed. So were many trek paths deep inside the valley. The roads inside the virgin valley developed cracks like never before. The real extent of destruction caused to plants and wildlife is yet to be studied.

Scientific advice sought

Samuel V. Pachuau, Wildlife Warden of the Silent Valley, said that they were closely monitoring the valley and had sought scientific advice about methods of addressing the damage. He said soil had been washed off and rocks exposed at several places.
“We have been advised by experts to wait and watch through this monsoon,” said Mr. Pachuau.
He indicated that there had been no visible impact on the habitat and population of the wildlife. But he said constant monitoring was needed. “Maybe we will start restoration work from next year,” said Mr. Pachuau.
The reports of unprecedented dryness in April-May this year apart, there have been widespread concerns about the flood’s potential impact on fauna.

Impact on fauna

V. Balachandran, Indian Dragonfly Society secretary who led a study on dragonflies soon after the floods in September last year, said that they could not step into the core area because of the devastation.
He said he had to be content with the buffer zone of the Silent Valley for the dragonfly survey. Although Mr. Balachandran could not come up with any comparable data from the Silent Valley, he found that the number of dragonflies and damselflies had gone alarmingly low.
The Forest and Wildlife Department had closed public entry to the Silent Valley in the wake of the devastation.
Repairs were done to the 23-km stretch from Mukkali to Watchtower and the valley was reopened for the public in February this year.

Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary is tiger kingdom of the State

E M Manoj, Kalpetta
The Hindu, May 15, 2019

Here tigers roam without fear, and it shows in their numbers.
A monitoring programme of the Forest Department for 2017-18 has found that the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (WWS) , a biodiversity hotspot in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, holds the largest tiger population in the State.
The study was organised in association with the Parambikulam and Periyar Tiger Conservation Foundations.

75 in sanctuary

“Of the total 176 tigers in the State, 75 were identified from the WWS, which is part of a large forest complex holding the single largest population of tigers in India,” B.N. Anjan Kumar, Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife), said of the study.
Nine tigers had also been captured by camera stations set up at the North and South Wayanad forest divisions.

Periyar, Parambikulam

The Periyar and Parambikulam tiger reserves followed suit, where 25 tigers each were captured in camera traps, Mr. Kumar said.
“There are no tigers in the Idukki Wildlife Sanctuary and the adjoining Kottayam and Kothamangalam forest divisions as the landscape is cut off from the adjacent mainland (Munnar and Malayattoor forest divisions). The Kasaragod forest division is highly fragmented and degraded and does not show tiger evidence,” he said. Camera traps, where tigers are identified from photographs based on unique stripe patterns, were used to count the tiger population, Mr. Kumar, who supervised the project, said.
The forest area in the State was divided into 10 landscapes and 1,640 camera traps were set up.
It took nearly a year-and-a-half to complete the project. Close to 500 trained front line forest staff participated in the endeavour.
The Nilambur North and South forest divisions were excluded from the study as camera traps could not be set up in the forests due to Maoist issues. These areas are expected to support a good tiger population.
“Demographic simulation suggests that cubs (below one year) may comprise roughly 25% of a healthy tiger population. However, cubs are not included in the data as they have to reach three years of age (mortality rate of cubs is high). Thus, the forests are home to about 250 individuals that may or may not be part of home ranges within the Kerala forests,” he said.

Potential for reserve

“As the WWS and the adjoining tiger reserves in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu constitute a major tiger habitat in the country, the sanctuary has the potential to get the status of a tiger reserve. Such an initiative needs the support of the public,” says Chief Wildlife Warden Surendra Kumar.
Such a move would help get more funds to effectively implement projects to mitigate man-animal conflict in the area, he said.

GPS survey for elephant sanctuary in Idukki

Giji K Raman, Idukki
The Hindu, 14 May 2019

The Forest Department has completed the Global Positioning System (GPS) survey for setting up the first elephant sanctuary in the State. The survey has covered the Anayirangal and Chinnakanal areas in the Munnar region.
The region has witnessed man-animal conflicts claiming over 30 lives since 2010. The number 301 colony of tribespeople in Chinnakanal, where a farmer was killed by wild elephants on Sunday, will also form part of the sanctuary.
The Chief Wildlife Warden had earlier sought a detailed project report from Munnar Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) on the proposed sanctuary and the wild jumbo related issues in Chinnakanal and Anayirangal.
Over 6 sq km (600 ha) area will form part of the proposed sanctuary covering the areas of Number 301 Colony, Enpathekkar and another Scheduled Tribe Colony, a Forest Department official told The Hindu on Monday.
About 386 ha of land leased out to the Hindustan Newsprint Ltd. by the Forest Department and another 290 ha of forest land would be used for the sanctuary, he said.

Reasons

Habitat disturbance and human intrusion were stated to be the reasons for wild animals entering the residential areas.
When the number 301 Colony was created in 2003 to house the landless tribespeople, there was criticism that it was done without considering the report of the Forest Department which had said that the area formed part of an elephant corridor.
The main areas that came under frequent wild elephants’ attacks were in Anayirangal, Munnar, Chinnakanal, Sinkukandam and number 301 colony.
The Forest Department has estimated that 38 wild elephants are stranded in the area and some of them are causing loss to human life and property.

Otters re-emerge in Kadalundi estuary

Abdul Latheef Naha, Malappuram
The Hindu, May 14, 2019

Otters have re-emerged in the estuarine region of the Kadalundipuzha, giving fresh hope to ecologists focusing on the Kadalundi-Vallikkunnu Community Reserve.
Groups of otters were recently seen in the mudflats and mangroves in the Kadalundi estuary, which is home for thousands of migrant birds flying in from beyond continents during winter.
Ecologists vouch that the presence of otters is an indication of a healthy eco-system. “The presence of otters indicates that the riverine or riparian eco-system is strong. Here in Kadalundi, we can presume that the estuary is highly productive with a good amount of fishes and other aquatic lives,” said M. Nasser, professor of zoology from Calicut University.

Vanishing act

Although there had been otters in the estuary decades ago, the carnivorous aquatic mammals disappeared in recent years for unknown reasons.
T.R. Athira, who studies behavioral patterns of shorebirds reaching Kadalundi, noticed a bevy of otters playing in the mudflats recently. There were juveniles also among them.
“For a researcher, otters are a great sign. Their sighting has emboldened me to delve deeply into the unique ecosystem of mudflats and mangroves at Kadalundi,” said Ms. Athira.
Her guide K.M. Aarif, who had spent about a decade studying the foraging habits of migrant visitors of Kadalundi, said it was good news that otters were breeding in the mangroves of Kadalundi.
“From an ecological point of view, it is a wonderful indicator especially as we had a lot of apprehensions in the aftermath of the devastating floods in August last year,” said Dr. Aarif.
Dr. Nasser said that otters would seek to avoid any kind of interactions with human beings. Fishermen and local people in and around Kadalundi are, however, not excited about the presence of otters. Many of the fishermen in Kadalundi have had a bad date with the mammals with sharp teeth.

‘A nuisance’

“They are a big nuisance for us. Apart from devouring the fish that we catch, they destroy our nets and fishing gears,” said Hamza Koya, a local fisherman at Kadalundikkadavu.
As they breed in dens in mangroves, people living in the vicinity are not happy. “We have been living in fear as there may be wild animals in the mangroves. We have not seen any otter so far,” said Amin Faizal.
However, the fact otters rarely come in contact with human beings is a solace for the local people.

Homebound passerines bid adieu to Ghats

E.M Manoj, Kalpetta
The Hindu, May 13, 2019

It’s mid-May with monsoon just around the corner, and the migrant wildlife in the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary is planning to go back home.
Bigger mammals like elephants and gaur will soon be returning to their home turfs in the forests of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Whereas the migratory passerines will bid adieu to the Western Ghats and fly back to their far-away homelands in the Himalayas, South China, North East Europe and Siberia.

In large numbers

“When we talk about migratory birds, quite often the focus is on the large congregation of water fowls including shorebirds, as they are easy to spot and arrive in large numbers. But there are thousands of passerines that arrive from far-off places to the Western Ghats,” C.K. Vishnudas, ornithologist, says.
The State hosts one of the largest tracts of pristine forests of the Western Ghats and is home to a large number of forest birds, Mr. Vishnudas adds. A study led by ornithologist C. Sasikumar recently found that 88 species of avian population in the Western Ghats are annual migrating birds. Passerines form 48 species of these migratory birds — black birds, Orioles, Drongos, Flycatchers and Thrushes. There are also nearly 40 species of waterfowls and waders such as Pipers, Clovers and shanks.
The migration to the Western Ghats occurs usually in August when the monsoon recedes from southwest India. The birds come in hordes and fill the forests.

The tiny brigade

The study also revealed that a few among the species add to the density of avian population in the State’s forests during this phase. The density of Greenish leaf warblers in south Kerala forests is 44 birds per sq km. For migratory bird Blyth’s reed warbler, it is 25 birds per sq km. These birds are so tiny that the average body weight is 8-10 grams.
Yet, the most densely found bird in south Kerala is a native species — the Hill myna that has a count of 50 birds per sq km.
“Most of the migratory forest birds are insectivores and thus play a major role in keeping the insect population in balance. Whatever threat our forests face will thus have an impact on these migratory species,” he adds.

Bat survey in Kerala discovers seven new species

Giji K. Raman, Idukki
The Hindu, May 10 2019

A bat survey conducted in the Munnar Wildlife Division has found seven new species for the first time.
The survey, conducted in two phases in the protected area in April, could spot 20 species belonging to six families including 11 species in general categories. These include 17 insectivorous bats and three fruit bats.
Hipposideros galeritus (Cantor's Leaf-nosed bat), Hipposideros pomona (Anderson's Leaf-nosed bat), Myotis peytoni (Peyton's Whiskered Myotis) and Harpiocephalus harpia (Lesser Hairy-winged bat) were some of the rare bats identified during the survey.
The survey was conducted using advanced bat monitoring and detecting devices, besides traditional methods. Insectivorous bats were identified based on their unique echolocation calls. The devices were installed in various locations inside the Eravikulam, Mathikettan Shola, Anamudi Shola, Pampadum Shola national parks and Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary.
The survey also highlighted the need for long-term monitoring of bats to understand the impact of climate and vegetation changes on bats and other wildlife in Munnar landscape, said Munnar Wildlife Warden R. Lakshmi. This was the first bat survey in Munnar and it underscored the need for protection of the biodiversity, she said.
M.K. Sameer, P.M. Prabhu and S. Sandeep, the assistant wildlife wardens of the Shola, Chinnar and Eravikulam National Parks respectively, supported the survey.
According to Sreehari Raman, who headed the survey team, climate change has been named one of the greatest long-term threats to most species globally. To understand the current status of species that have a restricted distributional range in the mid-high elevation areas of the Western Ghats, regions such as Munnar have to be studied for the long-term conservation of bats and other wild fauna, he said.
Salish Menachery, Rajan Pilakandi, Rajeeve Balakrishnan and Swetha also participated in the survey.

In 4.5 acres, she nurtures a dense forest

The Hindu, May 5, 2019
Sam Paul A, Alappuzha

President Ram Nath Kovind after presenting her the Nari Shakti Puraskar on March 8, 2019, wrote this on one of his social media accounts, “Her contribution towards the environment has been a driving force of change and has raised awareness and consciousness of people.”
At the age of 85, G. Devaki Amma, a native of Puthiyavila in Kandalloor panchayat, near Kayamkulam, is showing the way to safeguard biodiversity and secure our future. She has transformed 4.5 acres of her ancestral property into a thriving forest.
Close to the backwaters, Kollakal Thapovanam, which is intrinsically green, is an ecosystem teeming with life, a fruit of nearly four decades of relentless planting and nurturing by this nature lover.

3,000 trees

At a time when forests are fast disappearing, Devaki Amma’s forest has around 3,000 trees, including over 1,000 trees of common, rare, endangered and biologically important species that support a wide variety of organisms. Huge trees and chirping of birds on them make it a special place in the coastal district.
Devaki Amma says she turned to planting spree following a road accident. “I used to enthusiastically participate in paddy cultivation. But, following the accident I was bedridden for almost three years and was forced to abandon rice cultivation. But it led to something more important. Helped by the family members, I started planting saplings 35 years ago. I never thought at that time the place would become a forest,” she says.
Today, Krishnanal, musk trees, star trees, and mahogany, among others, grow in the sandy soil in natural environment. It is also home to a wide variety of medicinal plants, fruit-bearing trees and tuber crops. The forest has ponds and different species of birds like Paradise Flycatcher and Emerald Doves visit the place.

Family’s backing

Devaki Amma’s age and physical challenges have not deterred her from planting new saplings and taking care of the forest. “I get enormous support from my children, grandchildren and their children in conserving the forest.
They contribute in a big way and want to protect the forest in the best way possible,” she says.
Her daughter D. Thankamoney, former head of Environmental Engineering Division, College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram, says planting trees is the best way to reduce carbon footprint and fight climate change. “Our mother started planting trees when nature conservation was yet to gain momentum. We are committed to continuing her legacy,” she says.
The place receives a lot of people, including students and researchers, regularly.

Protect trees at estuary: Greens

The Hindu, May 4, 2019
Alappuzha

Environmentalists and local residents have expressed concern over the government move to cut down a large number of trees close to the Thottappally estuary.
A high-level meeting on Thursday had decided to cut trees immediately by invoking various sections under the Disaster Management Act.
The decision was based on an observation that the trees were impeding water flow from the Kuttanad region.
According to officials, around 500 trees, mostly casuarina trees on a land parallel to the Thottappally spillway, will be felled. The meeting also decided to go ahead with the planned removal of mineral-rich sand from the estuary.
The Irrigation Department will sell the sand to the Indian Rare Earths (IRE)/Kerala Minerals and Metals Ltd. (KMML). Environmentalists alleged that the decision to remove trees and extract mineral sand was interconnected.

Olive Ridley turtles

“Without cutting the trees, they cannot extract sand from the estuary. The move will endanger the ecology of the area. The Thottappally coast is one of the prime locations for egg-laying Olive ridley turtles in the State. It is also home to several species of butterflies and migratory birds,” said, Saji Jayamohan, secretary, Green Roots Nature Conservation Forum.
According to environmentalists large-scale extraction of mineral sand from the area will not help prevent flooding in the Kuttanad region.
“It will result in the intrusion of salt water into Kuttanad. The government should instead deepen the leading channel of the spillway for smooth flow of water, Mr. Jayamohan said.
Sources said that the Forest Department too conveyed its concern to the government over the move to cut down trees. “It is not a forestland. But, we have already made our stand clear at the meeting,” said an official.
Although the meeting decided to invite the expression of interest (EoI) to dredge the downstream and upstream of the spillway along with removing sand deposit from the leading channel at Veeyapuram, the work is unlikely to be carried out before the start of the monsoon season.
The move to remove mineral sand from the estuary comes at a time when local residents are up in arms against the dredging and mineral-sand mining at the Thottappally harbour.
Meanwhile, Irrigation Department officials said that it was imperative to cut down trees and remove sand from the estuary to prevent flooding in Kuttanad.

Kerala forests home to new spider species

Aathira Perinchery, Kochi
The Hindu, Arpil 6 2019

A group of jumping spiders that mostly occur in Eurasia and Africa, has been spotted for the first time in Ernakulam’s Illithodu forests by arachnologists from Kochi’s Sacred Heart College, Thevara. The team also found that the spider belonging to the genus (a taxonomic classification above species) Habrocestum is a species new to science.
The team came across the different-looking spiders — six of them, predominantly brownish-black in colour with white and creamy-yellow patches — while conducting a routine survey (funded by the Department of Science and Technology-Science and Engineering Research Board) for ground-dwelling spiders in the Illithodu reserve forests of the Malayatoor forest division, barely 60 km from here. Back in their laboratory, they examined the physical features of males and females. They also compared these to similar-looking spider specimens collected earlier from the Thattekkad Bird Sanctuary.
A detailed examination of the spiders’ physical features revealed that they belong to the genus Habrocestum that has been recorded mostly in Eurasia and Africa and never in India, till now. Comparisons with studies of European Habrocestum spiders revealed that the spiders from Illithode are a new species altogether, for they had distinctly different reproductive organs.
The spider also has a single long spine on the underside of both its first legs, and this gave it its scientific name Habrocestum longispinum (after Latin ‘longe’ meaning long and ‘spinae’ for spine). “It measures just around 2 mm and seems to prefer dry habitats, dwelling in forest litter,” said Mathew M. Joseph, assistant professor at Sacred Heart College and a co-author of the study published in the Journal of Natural History last month.
While more detailed ecological studies are required, threats could include unregulated tourism activities and even climate change (which could affect the small insects by altering the specific micro-climates that they prefer), he said.
The study extends the range of these spiders to India. The discovery also lends support to the continental drift theory that suggests that the world’s continents were one large, contiguous landmass where these creatures thrived many millions of years ago, added Dr. Joseph.

Greens come to rescue of Olive ridley turtles

Sam Paul A, Alappuzha
The Hindu, April 6, 2019

Overcoming the challenges posed by the August deluge, heatwave and other impediments, environmentalists and local people have incubated and released 226 hatchlings of endangered Olive ridley turtle to sea at Thottappally coast. The last of the hatchlings of the current nesting season were let into sea on Friday morning.
The Thottappally coast is one of the prime locations for egg-laying turtles in the State. According to environmentalists, they stumbled upon only three nests with a total of 342 eggs during the entire season as against 11 nests a year ago. Last year, 1,648 hatchlings were released to the sea.
“This season, the first nest with 106 eggs was found just before the floods in August 2018. When the floodwaters started to submerge the area, we built a small concrete tank with roof and placed the eggs in it for incubation.
The entire tank was then covered with plastic to prevent the water from entering it. Although it took more time than usual, 53 eggs have been hatched. Further, two more clutches with 120 and 116 eggs have been found after the turn of the year. Despite the dry conditions, of the 116 eggs in the third nest 110 eggs have been hatched,” Saji Jayamohan, secretary, Green Roots Nature Conservation Forum, told The Hindu.

Sea erosion

Mr. Jayamohan said the floods and sea erosion had eroded around seven acres of the coast that used to be the main nesting sites of Olive ridleys.
“Other than the damage caused by the floods, the presence of stray dogs and mineral sand-mining at the Thottappally harbour also prevented turtles from nesting in the area,” he said.
The environmentalists said lack of a permanent hatchery and rescue centre hampered their conservation efforts.
At present, after Olive ridleys lay eggs, the environmentalists and social forestry officials, with the help of local people, relocate eggs to temporary hatcheries from areas with tidal fluctuations. Also, they want to protect it from stray dogs and other dangers.
Although a proposal for a permanent hatchery has been submitted to the government, the project is yet to get the nod.
Other than the mineral sand-mining at the Thottappally harbour, the move to extract mineral sand from the Thottappally estuary will further adversely impact the nesting of turtles, the environmentalists warned.

Fire ravages Kurinji sanctuary, Pampadum Shola

Giji K Raman, Idukki

The Hindu, April 2 2019

The wildfires that started at Anchunadu and Vattavada four days ago reached the proposed Kurinji sanctuary and Pampadum Shola National Park on Tuesday, causing large-scale destruction.
Sources in the Forest Department said large plantations of grantis and eucalyptus were destroyed in the fires and if an emergency intervention was not made, it would engulf the entire Pampadum Shola National Park and the proposed Kurinji sanctuary.
According to an official of the Munnar forest division, a team of over 250 members comprising local people and staff of the Forest Department were working hard to douse the fire.

In all directions

He said the fires were spreading at different directions, making the counter-measures ineffective. They created a firewall by felling trees, but that too proved ineffective as the fires spread to large areas in different directions, he said.
Though official estimates said that only 100 acres of land was destroyed in the fires, unofficial estimates said that over 500 acres of forestland was destroyed.
The wildfire engulfed the areas of Kadavari and 65th block (Kurinji Sanctuary), Pampadum Shola and Vattavada on Tuesday.
A Forest Department official said that the fires were man-made and were done in the Kurinji sanctuary with ulterior motives. Last year also, wildfires were reported inside the sanctuary prior to the blossoming of neelakurinji (Strobilanthes kunthiana).
It was done by the land mafia so as to avoid the inclusion of the area in the proposed Kurinji sanctuary, he said adding the fires would destroy neelakurinji seeds.

Heritage site

The Pampadum Shola is a protected biodiversity spot and is known for its unique flora and fauna.
The Western Ghats Anamalai sub-cluster, including the park, is under consideration by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee for selection as world heritage site.
Unless an immediate intervention was made, there was a threat of the fire destroying the flora and fauna of the Pampadum Shola.
The shola had completely dried-up areas of grasslands, the official added.

Kerala is home to two new plant species

Aathira Perinchery, Kochi
The Hindu, April 3, 2019

A small ironwood tree that bears clumps of white flowers on its stalks, and a new species of wild fern are the latest additions to Kerala’s flora.
Researchers at the University of Calicut’s Department of Botany discovered the new species of ironwood, Memecylon idukkianum, from the borders of a shola forest (a high-altitude evergreen forest) in Idukki’s Mathikettan Shola National Park during a three-year plant survey there.
The discovery, published in the international peer-reviewed journal Kew Bulletin (the official journal of the United Kingdom's Royal Botanic Gardens) last month, details the features of the plant and where it grows.
The plant, that grows to the size of a small tree, can be identified apart from other Memecylon species by its pure white stalk-less flowers borne on its stalks during February and March, said research scholar S. Syam Radh, who discovered the plant along with Santhosh Nampy (Head, Department of Botany, University of Calicut).
Currently, the plant is known only from within the Mathikettan Shola National Park and its immediate environs.

Eight locations

The researchers found the plant growing in only eight locations here, some of which are vulnerable to anthropogenic activities.
Due to these potential threats as well as its rarity, the team suggests that the species be categorised as ‘Near Threatened’ based on criteria listed in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
However, the other plant discovered recently, the wild fern Pteris subiriana, is found not just in Kerala but also Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.
A team including researchers from Kolkata’s Botanical Survey of India first collected the fern from Mahabaleshwar in Maharashtra and then compared those plants with existing herbarium specimens of similar ferns species in several plant collections.
Using a scanning electron microscope, they studied the arrangement of the ferns' spores (small globules located under fern leaves through which ferns reproduce).
This showed that these ferns — which grow near waterfalls — are a new species, according to their study published in the international journal Phytotaxa.

Mushroom species

Another team from the University of Calicut has also described a new species of mushroom from Kerala, based on detailed studies of its physical features and by using genetic methods as well.
The new species Laccaria violaceotincta is currently known only from the single area it has been collected from by the team: the threatened myristica swamps of Kulathupuzha in Kollam district.

Dilution of norms for quarries irks Greens

T. Nandakumar, Thiruvananthapuram
The Hindu, March 25, 2019

In a decision that has raised the hackles of regulatory experts and environmental activists, the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) has cut the minimum distance for quarries from forestland by half, to 50 metres.
The 87th meeting of SEIAA in January took the decision to dilute the distance regulation after a detailed discussion on the report of a sub committee which studied the environmental impact caused by quarrying adjacent to forest areas. The meeting observed that a large number of quarries were operating in the forest boundary without environmental clearance from the SEIAA or district level EIA authorities.
The authority chaired by H. Nagesh Prabhu verified available documents and found that neither the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change nor any State EIA authority had fixed a minimum distance for quarries from forest boundary.
Taking the facts into consideration, the meeting decided to impose a minimum distance of 50 m between quarries and forest land. However, it authorised the State Expert Appraisal Committee to recommend higher distance from the forest based on scientific reasons.
Sensitive areas
The decision, however, has been opposed by regulatory experts who caution against diluting the regulations for quarrying in a State like Kerala with large tracts of ecologically sensitive areas.
Former chairman of SEIAA K.P. Joy said the authority had prescribed a distance of 100 m from the forest for mining activity as a safeguard for the protection of the environment.
“The decision on the buffer distance was taken after considering the importance and fragility of the ecosystems of the Western Ghats.
Sub terrain disturbances and tremors caused by mining and the noise and dust from quarries would be catastrophic to not only to big animals like tigers and elephants and huge tropical trees but also small life forms like rodents, birds and snakes,” he said.
“Allowing quarries to operate close to the forest boundary may lead to a spike in the instances of man- animal conflict,” says T.V. Sajeev of the Kerala Forest Research Institute.
“The constant dust and sound from quarries could force animals to leave the forest in larger numbers,” he observes.
“Sound waves travel fast through granite and could destabilise the slopes, enhancing the risk of landslips during rains,” says Dr. Sajeev.
A study conducted by KFRI in 2017 found that there are 79 quarries within one km from protected forests and 1378 close to reserved forests in the State.

Forest fire detrimental to ecosystem, warns KFRI

E M Manoj, Kalpetta

The Hindu, March 21, 2019

Scientists at the Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI), Peechi, have warned that recurring forest fire will lead to degradation of the ecosystem in forest areas, especially grasslands, of the State.
According to the data with the Forest and Wildlife Department, 1,056.72 ha of forestland had been devastated in 381 incidents of forest fire in the past four months.
“Since dried materials are needed as fuel, grasslands, scrub jungle, dry deciduous and moist deciduous forests are more susceptible to fire,” says K.A. Sreejith, scientist, Forest Ecology, KFRI, told The Hindu.
He says evergreen and shola forests generally escape the fire due to high moisture content in soil and absence of fuel load. But in the grasslands, the impact will be mainly on soil which gets degraded and mineralogical transformation may occur, which is irreversible. It decreases soil moisture and water holding capacity, that will have a negative impact on hydrology, Dr. Sreejith, who led a study, says.
He says fire creates open spaces in the grasslands and there will be an increase in soil nutrient content immediately, which will favour the growth of invasive species that will further degrades the system. The study indicates that the faunal diversity and density could not reach its original state even after a couple of years of a forest fire.
In natural conditions, when the fuel load is less, the fire will restrict as ground fire but additional fuel material, such as dry leaves, branches and fallen trees, may lead to surface fire.

Crown fire

In case of crown fire, the extreme stage of a disaster, fire extends to the crown of trees where complete loss of vegetation may happen. Crown fire generally happens when there is fuel load which can act as ladder up to tree canopy.
Forest fire will also make the system susceptible to exotic species, which is detrimental to the existing natural vegetation, T.K. Hrideek, scientist, KFRI, said.
When the diversity and density of vegetation go down, it will have a negative impact on all ecosystems services. This will lead to increased soil erosion, soil degradation, decreased water holding capacity, and ground water recharge, Dr. Hrideek added.

Hero to nature lovers, this messiah of trees is down-to-earth

Abdul Latheef Naha, Plakkad

The Hindu, March 21, 2019

If the hottest, largest district in the State is looking for a hero to celebrate World Sparrow Day (March 20), World Forest Day (March 21) and World Water Day (March 22), here is one man who can beat the competition by miles.
Nature lover Shyamkumar M. has more than 23,000 trees to his credit, befriended thousands of birds, and saved many human lives through his timely interventions in society.
This green hero from Thenkurissi is much in demand in neighbouring villages of Palakkad. Mr. Shyamkumar’s trees have grown to provide shelter and shade even in places such as Puduchery, Kavaratti, Kochi, and Thrissur.
This messiah of trees continues to be down-to-earth, planting and nurturing saplings even after many an accolade came his way. “Planting trees is not a big thing, but nurturing it is,” Mr. Shyamkumar told C.A. Geetha, Principal of Calicut University Teacher Education Centre at Koduvayur.
Dr. Geetha and her students were gratefully ecstatic on Wednesday when Mr. Shyamkumar dropped onto the campus to take a look at the jamun, Indian beech (ungu), mandaram, bedda nut tree (thanni) and rain tree he had planted in 2012. “These trees are our saviours in this scorching summer,” said Dr. Geetha, who is planning to set up a garden of herbs with the support of Mr. Shyamkumar.

Missionary zeal

Mr. Shyamkumar is remembered by many a beneficiary across the State for planting trees along the side of roads, near hospitals, schools, colleges, bus stands and other public places with missionary zeal. He has trees to remember any occasion, including the death of former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.
“Trees such as neem, Indian beech and sacred fig or arayal are the best trees for our summer,” said Mr. Shyamkumar.

Always ready

An autorickshaw driver by profession, this one-man green army ensures drip irrigation for his plants by installing discarded water bottles on them. The palm trees he planted on both sides of the Malampuzha canal between Kinassery and Navakode are a sight to watch. He always carries enough seeds and seedlings and the tools to plant them in his autorickshaw.
His help is sought whenever people want to plant a tree in public and private place alike.
Mr. Shyamkumar is truly a down-to-earth hero.

Wardens on their toes after elephant killings

G Anand, Thiruvananthapuram
The Hindu, March 18, 2019

The discovery of two wild elephant carcasses in the buffer zone of the Silent Valley National Park in February has put wildlife wardens on their toes.
The killings have also spotlighted the threat posed by poachers who hunt wild elephants to harvest tusks and the powerful inter-State mafia that profits from the sale of ivory artefacts to wealthy collectors.
Forest Range Officer, Silent Valley, Najmal Ameen, said the carcasses were found on February 27, an estimated 400 metre from each other. One was that of a tusker and the other of a cow elephant.
Gunshot wounds
He said the animals had died of gunshot wounds and the poachers had hewn off their tusks. Wildlife enforcers have arrested two persons and recovered a country made musket from the suspects.Wildlife wardens also found the carcass of a bull elephant in the periphery of the Mannarkkad Forest Division. Sunil Kumar, Divisional Forest Officer, said the kill appeared to be the handiwork of persons farming land on the fringes of the forest.
Chief Wildlife Warden, Surendra Kumar, told The Hindu that the evidence collected so far did not indicate an organised effort to poach elephants for their ivory as witnessed in Malayattoor, Vazhachal and Munnar forest divisions in 2014-15. (The killings of an estimated 18 bull elephants had resulted in an asymmetrical sex ratio in specific herds).
Surveillance stepped up
Mr. Kumar said wildlife enforcers were not taking any chances. They have stepped up surveillance and wardens were increasingly relying on technology, including hidden night vision cameras and aerial drones, to tack poachers.

Drought forcing animals out of interior forests

Radhakrishnan Kuttoor, Pathanamthitta

The Hindu, March 17, 2019

The Pampa river is facing acute water scarcity in the foothills of Sabarimala despite the Kerala State Electricity Board periodically releasing water from its Kullar dam in the upstream forest reaches.
But the KSEB is not in a position to release huge quantities of water from its dams into the Pampa during the summer months.
Pilgrims find it difficult to have their customary holy dip in the river prior to trekking to Sabarimala owing to the low water level, which is ankle-deep on many stretches.
The drought in the forest interiors is forcing wild animals to stray into human habitations in the forest fringes of Sabarimala, Ranni, and Konni.
A tiger was spotted in the forests behind the Ayyappa Seva Sanghom camp on the banks of the Pampa on Friday night. There were also reports of leopards and elephants straying out of the forests at Pampa, Plappally, and Sabarimala in search of food and water.

No attack reported

Forest officials attribute this to the acute water scarcity and shortage of food inside the forests during the summer months. However, no wild animal attack on humans has been reported.
The changes in the forest ecosystem owing to climate change and excessive human intervention have been identified as the major factors forcing wild animals to stray into human habitations, where they can pick cattle and dogs as easy prey.
The pressure on the forest fringes due to cultivation and an increase in wildlife population is another factor.
The mushrooming of granite quarries along the forest borders has also contributed to the situation. Unscrupulous quarrying has reportedly led to depletion of the groundwater table in the region.

Grizzled giant squirrel scores a century in Chinnar sanctuary

Giji K. Raman, Idukki

The Hindu, March 11, 2019

The number of Grizzled giant squirrel has crossed one hundred in the Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary, its only natural habitat in the State.
The latest survey conducted from February 12 to 14 recorded the direct presence of 76 Grizzled giant squirrel and including those indirectly noticed using scientific methods, its number has crossed one hundred.
Assistant Wildlife Warden P.M. Prabhu told The Hindu on Friday that the rise in number of Grizzled giant squirrel in the sanctuary was significant as the presence of the tree squirrel in the country was around 500.
Other habitats
Its presence is also noticed in the Srivilliputhur Wildlife Sanctuary under the Theni forest division in Tamil Nadu, Thiruvannamalai division, Anamala Tiger Reserve, Hosur forest division and the Kaveri Wildlife Sanctuary. Elsewhere, Grizzled giant squirrel, known by the scientific name Ratufa macroura, is mainly confined to the Central and Uva provinces of Sri Lanka.
The Chinnar sanctuary is known as its natural habitat, providing unique features for its breeding and growing. Its habitat is mainly spread on the banks of the Chinnar and Pampar riverine and along the streams joining the rivers. The largest concentration is reported near the riverine of Chinnar.
Its presence is seen mainly on Arjun tree, Indian almond, Palamaram ( Alstonia scholaris ), Java plum tree, Pongame oil tree and tamarind which are largely distributed along the riverine.
The survey was conducted in Chinnar, Champakad, Chunkam, Alampatty-Thoovanam, Vazhathura, and Karimutty as different blocks and in 21 transectlines based on riverbanks, streams and waterlogged areas.
Last year’s figure
In the survey held last year, the direct presence of only 68 Grizzled giant squirrel was noticed and there were apprehensions whether the number was on the decline in the sanctuary.
Grizzled giant squirrel is smaller compared to the common Malabar giant squirrel.

Post-floods, Vazhachal’s winged species hit a low

Aathira Perinchery, Kochi
The Hindu, February 22, 2019

The results of a two-day survey in Vazhachal’s riverine stretches, including areas affected by last year’s floods, seem disquieting. It records a ‘low’ abundance of some insect taxa – butterflies and odonates (damsel and dragonflies) – as well as birds, especially along the Chalakudy river.
But with no similar surveys for comparison, do these results portray the actual impacts of the flood?
On February 9 and 10, volunteers – both amateurs and experts in species identification – from across the State recorded bird, butterfly and odonate species diversity and counted their numbers in 20 locations along the Chalakudy river and its streams. This revealed 196 bird species (including the great hornbill), 131 butterfly and 51 odonate species.
Though this shows “high” species diversity, the counts of all these taxa were lesser in flood-affected areas such as the Chalakudy river and higher in smaller streams not affected by the flood, claimed K.H. Amitha Bachan, an assistant professor, who supervised the survey, which was supported by the Kerala State Biodiversity Board and conducted by the Vazhachal Forest Department, the Western Ghats Hornbill Foundation and the Botany Research Department of MES Asmabi College, Kodungalloor.
“The flood damaged about 70% of the riverbank,” he said. “Areas immediately downstream of dams were most affected.”

Tell-tale changes

However, volunteers noted only tell-tale changes such as fallen trees and sand deposits which may not sufficiently capture the changes in the habitat. There is also no similar survey of the area, as well as its birds and odonates – especially abundances – before the flood to make comparisons.
But comparisons can be made, insisted Mr. Bachan, adding that small islands in the river disappeared due to the flood, as did existing mudbanks and sandbars. While new sandbanks appeared in some areas, the depths of pools in others decreased due to the silt deposition. Such alteration and loss of habitat could have caused the lower numbers of odonates, which are very dependent on specific aquatic microhabitats for survival, he said.
The flood would indeed have affected the habitat and its denizens, but without previous data for comparison it would not be useful, commented a scientist independent of the survey.
Rejuvenating ancient riparian forests would not be easy, but a project to initiate a tree nursery and plant riparian saplings in appropriate areas during the monsoon has been mooted, said Divisional Forest Officer of Vazhachal, S.V. Vinod.

Wayanad sanctuary yields a new spider

Mini Muringatheri, Thrissur
The Hindu, 16 February, 2019

A new species of spider has been discovered from the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, a major biodiversity hotspot in the State. The new species, Cocalus lacinia, spotted in the Kurichiad forest range of the sanctuary, is taxonomically related to an Australian species, described by arachnologist Fred Wanless in 1981.
A biodiversity investigation team, based at the Centre for Animal Taxonomy and Ecology (CATE), Christ College, Irinjalakuda, spotted the new species.
The head of the 8-mm-long male spider is brownish yellow and there are black lines along the sides of the hairy head region. Its eyebrows and forehead are white. The oval shaped abdomen is yellow and covered with black and white scales. The head of the 13-mm-long female is brownish and hairy. There is a V-shaped black mark on the upper surface of the head and red lines along the sides.

‘United biosphere’

“The nocturnal spider hides in the crevices of teak plants during day, and hunts at night for small insects. This discovery of a new species of spider from India and the presence of its close relative from Australia supports the theory that millions of years ago the biosphere was united and the present continents were formed by splitting a single big continent named Pangea,” says Sudhikumar A.V., Assistant Professor, Department of Zoology, Christ College, who led the team. Investigations are on with the help of genetic samples from the Australian species and Indian species to get more evidence for the theory of supercontinents. It may give more information on plate tectonics and the evolution of modern spiders, he said.
Sudhin P.P., Nafin K.S., and Sumesh N.V., research scholars of CATE, also took part in the study.

Blink and miss: Kerala’s mystery frog

Aathira Perinchery, Kochi
The Hindu, February 14, 2019

Forget dense forests. Even roadsides could be harbouring new species that are hard to find. Scientists from the University of Delhi have discovered a new amphibian — a mysterious narrow-mouthed frog, that makes only a four-day appearance in seasonal roadside puddles every year in Kerala’s Wayanad district — according to their study published on Wednesday in Scientific Reports.
The frog Mysticellus franki (named after evolutionary biologist Franky Bossuyt from Brussel’s Vrije Universiteit) is not just a new species but also belongs to a completely new genus, Mysticellus (after Latin mysticus, meaning mysterious; and ellus, meaning diminutive, for the frog is just around 3 cm long).
Sonali Garg, a doctoral researcher at the University of Delhi, first found tadpoles of the species — whose physical features and DNA did not match any known species — during routine field surveys in Wayanad district in 2013. After a long search, the team finally found large groups of around 200 adult frogs in 2015 in a single locality in Wayanad, just metres away from vehicular movement, plantation activities and human settlements.
After breeding for four days, the frogs mysteriously disappeared from the spot; a habit that earned the tiny amphibians their name. Back in the laboratory, Ms. Garg and her supervisor S.D. Biju studied multiple aspects of the species — including physical characteristics of adults and larvae, DNA and calls of adult males that they recorded on field — in detail.
Physical features (such as its marble-patterned underside) and DNA studies revealed the frogs to be a completely new species. Adults have two black spots that look like eyes on their backs, a defensive feature.
‘Genetic studies further revealed that the frog is around 40 million years old and its nearest relatives live more than 2,000 km away, in southeast Asia (including Indo-Burma, Malaysia and Vietnam). This southeast Asian connection adds strength to the theories that India and southeast Asia were connected in the past by land bridges, suggest the authors.

Rare butterfly species found

Sarath Babu George, Thiruvananthapuram
The Hindu, February 11, 2019

Garhwal Large Branded Five-ring, a rare butterfly species, was rediscovered in the Himalayas over five decades after it was initially recorded.
The species, scientifically known as Ypthima hannyngtoni Eliot, was recorded and photographed by nature conservationist and wildlife photographer Kalesh Sadasivan of the Thiruvananthapuram-based Travancore Nature History Society from Dehradun in June 2018 while on a butterfly walk to the Western Himalayas.
“It had been initially described by noted English entomologist J.N. Eliot in 1967 in the scientific paper The Sakra Moore, 1857 Section of the Satyrid Genus Ypthima Hübner, which appeared in the famous journal Entomologist. Since its original description, the species was never spotted or photographed,” Dr. Sadasivan said.
The identification was confirmed recently by subject expert Krushnamegh Kunte of National Centre For Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bengaluru. In an e-mail, he was quoted as saying,
“These are the first images of the species from India as far as I know. I have been looking for this species for a long time.”
According to Dr. Sadasivam, the species appeared to be a rare one and was possibly confined to the mid-lower elevations of the Western Himalayas. “Nothing is known about the early stages of its natural history,” he said.

Uploaded

The images were compared with the Type specimens in the London Museum of Natural History (BMNH) for confirmation of identity.
The species images have been uploaded in the peer-reviewed site on Indian Butterflies www.ifoundbutterflies.org/ ifoundbutterflies.
This discovery implied that lepidopteran diversity of Western Himalayas called for a more dedicated study.
Further species were likely to be found with scientifically structured butterfly surveys, Dr. Sadasivan said.

Kole Fish Count records 82 species

The Hindu, February 3, 2019

Kochi: The Kole Fish Count, conducted on February 2 in connection with World Wetland Day across the Kole wetlands of central Kerala, recorded 82 aquatic species. These include 71 fish species (18 species of brackish water fish and 53 species of freshwater fish), five shrimp species, four crab and two mollusc species.

The participatory assessment, in which scientists, students and nature enthusiasts from the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, the Kerala Agricultural University’s College of Forestry and the Kole Birders Collective participated, covered the entire expanse of Kole habitats distributed across Thrissur and Malappuram districts. Among the major Kole regions, Ponnani had a higher diversity than Thrissur.
Maranchery in Ponnani Kole had the highest diversity (45 species) followed by Uppungal (also in Ponnani Kole) and Enamavu (Thrissur Kole) with 34 species each.
With just 18 species, Adat (Thrissur Kole) recorded the lowest diversity.
Some of the most common species encountered during the survey include the orange chromide (known as pallathi in Malayalam), the dwarf pufferfish, Malabar leaf fish, and pearl spot or karimeen.

Future threats

However, the teams also came across six non-native fish species, raising concerns on the sustainability of the fishery and aquaculture practices being followed in the Kole and vicinity.
The presence of six species of non-native fish in the Kole is of significant concern as these have the potential to compete with, and outnumber native species, said Rajeev Raghavan, assistant professor at KUFOS and the South Asia Coordinator of the IUCN’s Freshwater Fish Specialist Group.
“Particularly alarming is the frequent catches of the Amazonian sucker catfish from various parts of the Kole,” he added.
The government needs to take immediate action to prevent illegal fishing practices carried out during the annual harvest of auctioned waterbodies that are part of the Kole wetlands, noted M. K. Sajeevan, Head, Department of Fisheries Resource Management, KUFOS.
In addition to aquatic biodiversity, the teams also collected samples to assess the health of the ecosystem through evaluation of key water quality parameters, results of which will be released soon.

Vellarada set to take on quarries

Sarath Babu George, Thiruvananthapuram
The Hindu, February 3, 2019

After a lull of two years, the ecologically fragile Vellarada and adjacent areas have again come under the threat of quarrying. Concerned over repercussions, local people are gearing up for another long-drawn agitation to conserve their land.
The many hill ranges, which form part of the tail-end of the Western Ghats, had come under focus in the past when constant attempts were made since 2010 to establish manufactured sand (M-sand) plants in the area. Vehement opposition raised by the residents, spearheaded by the Action Council Vellarada, against commencing the units had met with success.
Their efforts also led to the last of the 36 small-scale quarrying units winding up its operations two years ago.
According to action council president V. Resalayyan, several large quarrying firms had targeted the region over the years, but they were kept at bay.
Though the grama panchayat had earlier given approval for establishing M-sand factories, the decision had to be withdrawn following an order issued by the Principal Secretary of the Local Self-Government Department.
“However, three firms have now obtained no-objection certificates (NOC) from the panchayat and have sought the licences required to operate M-sand factories. They eye large tracts of land usurped by the quarry mafia after coercing local people to cede their properties at rates lower than the market prices,” he said.

6,000 families to be hit

The resumption of quarrying will destroy a major portion of the Vellarada grama panchayat as well as adjacent parts of the Amboori village, an ecologically sensitive area, they feared. Such activities also threaten to impact around 6,000 families. They have now pinned their hopes on the Kerala High Court, where they have filed two petitions against commencing the M-sand units.
As a prelude to their stir, the action council took out a torch rally from Vellarada to the city on Friday and submitted a petition to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at the launch of the Nava Kerala Samskarika Rally being undertaken by the Purogamana Kala Sahithya Sangham.

3-day satyagraha

The action council will undertake an intense sensitisation campaign among the residents, following which they will launch a three-day satyagraha in front of the Vellarada grama panchayat office on February 11, demanding the withdrawal of the NOCs.

Delayed start for CRZ regime in State

K.S. Sudhi, Kochi
The Hindu, January 24, 2019

Kerala may have to wait for some time to take advantage of the new Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification for want of an approved Coastal Zone Management Plan (CZMP).
For the new notification to come into play, coastal States, including Kerala, will have to get their CZMPs prepared under the CRZ, 2011 notification updated in tune with the 2019 notification issued last week. The CZMP, prepared in consultation with various stakeholders, will define the development activities that could be undertaken along the coastal belt. Under normal circumstances, the CZMP shall not be revised in five years.
For Kerala, even the CZMP prepared under the 2011 notification has not been approved and the document is awaiting the nod of the National Coastal Zone Management Authority (NCZMA).
The thus notified CZMP will then have to be revised in tune with the 2019 notification and submitted for the approval of the Ministry. While revising the CZMP, the State will have to repeat the process of public hearing and inviting comments from all stakeholders regarding the changes it intends to make in the document.
It was after a delay of nearly three years that the State succeeded in preparing a CZMP.
Section 6 (1) of the CRZ, 2019 notification specifies that the new CRZ regime will not come into force unless the coastal States revise or update their respective CZMPs.

Norms to continue

It further states that “until and unless the CZMPs is so revised or updated, provisions of this notification shall not apply and the CZMP as per provisions of CRZ Notification, 2011 shall continue to be followed for appraisal and CRZ clearance to such projects.” Till the revised CZMP is approved, the CRZ, 2011 will have to be considered for clearing projects, according to the new notification.
According to those at the Kerala Coastal Zone Management Authority, the CZMP of the 10 coastal districts have been submitted to the NCZMA for approval. Once approved, the document could be revised in tune with the latest notification, they hoped.
Any changes in the CRZ notification will have far-reaching ramifications in the State, which has a nearly 580-km-long coastline and hundreds of thickly populated islands in its backwater and mainland coast. With its high population density and pressure from the tourism, industry and housing sectors, the management of the CRZ regime has always proved to be a tough task for the authorities.

New notification for coastal areas in force

K.S. Sudhi, Kochi
The Hindu, January 23, 2019

The Union Ministry of Environment and Forest released the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) 2019 notification on Friday, opening up the coastline of the country for construction and tourism activities.
The new notification could result in reduction of No Development Zones (NDZ) significantly. This may pave the way for a construction boom along the coastline.
Tourism sector is to benefit from the relaxation of NDZ, as more hotels and resorts are likely come up on the beach areas. Tourism activities could be undertaken in the designated areas to be identified by the State governments and included in their respective Coastal Zone Management Plan, according to the notification.
Most of the recommendations of an expert committee headed by Shailesh Nayak, which looked into the concerns of coastal States and various stakeholders, relating to the CRZ 2011 notification were incorporated in the new notification, according CRZ experts.
The notification has classified the CRZ 3 areas (the land areas that are relatively undisturbed and those which do not fall under CRZ 2) into CRZ 3 A and 3 B based on the density of population.
The areas with a population density of 2,161 persons or more per square kilometre, as in the 2011 census, will be become CRZ 3 A and construction activities could be undertaken towards the landward side from the 50 metre point of the High Tide Line (HTL).
All other CRZ-3 areas with population density of less than 2,161 persons per square kilometre will be designated as CRZ-3 B and development activities will be permitted beyond the 200-metre-mark from the HTL towards the landward side.
The notification has covered all the backwater islands and islands along the mainland coast and a uniform NDZ of 20 metres from the HTL towards the landward side has been put in place.
All the coastal States with such islands will prepare Integrated Island Management Plans and get them approved by the Ministry. The 2019 notification will come into force in these islands only when the Plan is framed.
B. Madhusoodana Kurup, former Vice chancellor of the Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies, Kochi, said the new notification failed to acknowledge the issues of global warming and sea level rise.
Even though the notification did away with the No Development Zone for the construction and repair of dwelling units of communities including fishermen along the coast, it would expose these group to the perils of nature more. The opening of the coast for tourism activities would lead to reduced livelihood options for fishermen, he feared.
K.K. Ramachandran, a former member secretary of the Kerala Coastal Zone Management Authority, said while the notification attempted to bring in some clarity on the enforcement aspects, it could result in misuse of provisions for eco-tourism activities in mangrove stretches and compensatory afforestation for affected mangroves.

‘VIP’ sighting at Kadalundi enthuses birders

Abdul Latheef Nahan MalappuRAm
The Hindu, January 20, 2019

The sighting of a lone Great thick-knee at the Kadalundi-Vallikkunnu Community Reserve last week has enthused researchers studying the annual migrant bird visits to the estuarine sanctuary.
Sujesh P.K. and Athira T.R., who have been studying the foraging habits of the shorebirds reaching Kadalundi from thousands of miles afar to escape the harsh winter, said Great thick-knee, also called Great stone-curlew, was sighted at Kadalundi for the first time in 14 years.
“We were so excited to find a lone Great thick-knee near a couple of Eurasian oystercatchers during an observation last week. It is a sign that new migrant species have begun to prefer Kadalundi,” said Ms. Athira.
She said Great thick-knee, though a local migrant, had not been reported at Kadalundi since 2005. “We have the complete data of migrant species that reached Kadalundi during winter in the last 14 years. Although the presence of several rare species was reported, it’s the first time we could see an extremely sensitive Great thick-knee in the sanctuary,” she said.
Mr. Sujesh said they could observe the ‘VIP’ only from a good distance because of its sensitive nature.
“It was feeding voraciously on small crabs in the mudflats using its powerful beaks,” said Mr. Sujesh. The researcher duo had found a few Bar-tailed godwits and Eurasian oystercatchers at Kadalundi a couple of months ago. Both those birds have been listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as near-threatened species. “Those birds, particularly Bar-tailed godwit, are not among the common migrants reaching the Kerala coast during winter,” said Mr. Sujesh.

Researchers upbeat

A bird known for long, non-stop inter-continental migration, Bar-tailed godwit too has given fresh hopes for researchers by re-emerging at Kadalundi after many years. Ms. Athira and Mr. Sujesh demanded that efforts be made to prevent all kinds of waste, particularly poultry and slaughter waste, from reaching the community reserve.
The waste gets caught in the mangroves, inviting scavenger and predator birds to the region. Waste is the predominant reason for the presence of crows and kites in the sanctuary. “Crows and kites scare away the migrants, however large the visitor birds are. Ridding the mangroves and mudflats of waste is the best way to handle the threat the migrant birds face from crows and kites,” said Ms. Athira.

Jackal spotted for the first time in PTR

Giji K. Raman, IDUKKI
The Hindu, January 17, 2019

The presence of a jackal was reported for the first time in the Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR) recently. Patric David, a researcher at the Periyar Tiger Conservation Foundation (PTCF), noticed the animal near a penstock pipe carrying water from the Mullaperiyar dam to Tamil Nadu on January 9. It was later photographed by naturalist Rajkumar. After scrutiny of the photograph and the descriptions of its behaviour, it was confirmed by wildlife experts P.S. Easa and Vivek Menon as the golden jackal. It is believed that the animal might have entered the forest from the eastern side of the Western Ghats.

Usual habitat

Mr. Easa who has been conducting animal research at the PTR from 1990, said this was the first sighting of jackal (Canis aureus) in the area.
The photograph is the first evidence of its presence. Jackals are mostly found in open areas with thorny shrubs. Researchers at the PTR said that the animal might have either entered the PTR in search of the remains of carnivorous animals such as tiger or leopard or reached the area after being separated from its group.
Compared to the eastern side of the Western Ghats, which is in the rain shadow area, the PTR is green and has fewer geographical features preferred by the Canis aureus species. It is notified as an animal in the category of ‘Least Concern’ on the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List. Native to Southeast Europe, Southwest Asia and South Asia, its presence is widespread in areas where food is abundant. It is also seen in groups near tributaries or lakes and is rarely found in foothills and low mountains.

Tribes’ version

However, a tribal leader at Mannakudy settlement near PTR said their ancestors had seen jackals scavenging from burial sites. As jackals mostly move during night, their presence is not easily noticed. An official at the PTR said there were no records yet of the presence of jackal in the area.

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