92 species recorded in bird survey

The Hindu, August 30, 2017  
E.M. Manoj KALPETTA

A three-day monsoon bird survey, organised jointly by the Forest Department, College of Forestry, Thrissur, and the Hume Centre for Ecology and Wildlife Biology (HCEWB), in the North Wayanad Division recently recorded 92 species.
No bird surveys have been conducted in the forest division in the past eight years. The survey found five species of bulbuls, seven species of babblers, five species of pigeons, and three species of raptors. It recorded Bright Headed Cisticola and broad-tailed grassland birds in the higher grasslands of the Brahmagiri hills. “Presence of these birds showed higher conservation significance of the Brahmagiri grasslands,” C.K. Vishnudas and R.L Rathish of the HCEWB, which performed scientific and technical coordination of the survey, told The Hindu.
“Other species include Rufous-Bellied Hawk Eagle, Lesser Coucal, ”Mr. Vishnudas added. As many as 25 birdwatchers from Kerala, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu participated in the survey. The survey was conducted during torrential rain braving leeches. “This was one of the toughest expeditions, especially during the monsoon. ,” Hemanth Batroy from Bengaluru, who led a trek to the Banasura mountains for the survey, said. The survey reports will aid in sanctuary management, North Wayanad Divisional Forest Officer K.C. Prasad said. The logistic support for the survey was coordinated by range forest officers M.N. Najmal Ameen, Prem Shamir, Arunesh, and K.J.John, section forest officer of the Mananthavadi forest range.
Birdwatchers Hemanth Batroy (Bengaluru), A. Shwetha (Mysuru), H. Sahana (Mysuru) Arun Chungapally, Muhammad Aslam, Abhijith, C. Anusreedha, and R.L Rathish led various camps.

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Survey reveals butterfly diversity of Wayanad

T. Nandakumar Thiruvananthapuram,  
The Hindu, January 12, 2016

A three-day butterfly survey organised by the Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) and the Forest and Wildlife Department in North Wayanad has revealed 178 species, including at least four rare species. The survey which covered portions of the North Wayanad forest division, Wayanad wildlife sanctuary and South Wayanad forest division was conducted to document the butterfly diversity of the region and understand their role as indicators of the state of the environment.

As many as 43 species of skippers, 44 species of blues, 15 species of swallow tails, 19 white and yellows and 57 species of brush-footed butterflies were recorded. The Sahyadri Banded Tail was first recorded from the region. Rare species like the Danaid egg fly, Crimson Rose and Malabar Banded Swallow Tail were sighted from Mattilayam, Periya and Kuruva island. As many as 180 people, including 40 students, from various biodiversity clubs in Wayanad district, 19 experts, six officials from KSBB and nine Forest staff participated in the survey. The expert team included Muhammed Jaffer Palot, senior scientist, Zoological Survey of India; Balakrishnan Valappil; Chandrasekharan Koyilandi; and Pavithran Vadakara.

The participants were split into 15 groups to cover different transect each day. Each group consisted of one or more experts, forest watchers and staff from KSBB. A datasheet and detailed species checklist were prepared for each transect. The photographs of all the butterflies have been filed.

K.P. Laladhas, member secretary, KSBB, said the survey was part of a study to assess the migration pattern of butterflies and use it as a tool to formulate conservation strategies.

Climate change issues

“Apart from understanding the biological behaviour of the species, the study will also help to assess how climate change influences mass migration. The findings of the survey will be linked to other data like climate parameters to draw inferences”, he said.

“In many countries, butterflies are recognised as environmental indicators for their sensitive response to habitat and climate changes,” says Oommen V. Oommen, chairman, KSBB. He said periodic surveys would be conducted to keep the data up to date.

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Greens oppose move to plant teak in forest

E.M. Manoj
KALPETTA,  
The Hindu, June 10, 2015 

A strong protest is brewing against the alleged move of the Forest and Wildlife Department to replant monocrops on two pieces of forestland in the North Wayanad forest division in the district.

The department has prepared nearly 22 hectares of reserve forestland at Irumbu Palam, near Thurunelly, in the Begur forest range and 14.5 hectares at Kunhome in the Mananthavady range for replanting monocrops such as teak and mangium, N. Badusha, president, Wayanad Prakruthi Samrakshana Samiti, has alleged.

Such a move will adversely affect the biodiversity of the district, he said.

Mr. Badusha said monoculture plantation would increase man-animal conflict.

It would also worsen water scarcity and speed up desertification, a phenomena that had begun in villages in the district on the border with Karnataka.

The total forest area of the district, he said, was 1,100 sq km, of which nearly 350 sq km had been planted with monocrops such as teak and eucalyptus after clear felling the natural forest.

Teak wood had been planted on 50,000 hectares of forestland as monoculture in the State, of which 30,000 hectares was in Wayanad, he said.

The unique climate and biodiversity of the land had changed drastically after the planting of monocrops in the forest, E.K. Sakeer Husain, secretary, Green Cross, an environmental organisation, said. It had also increased man-animal conflict in the past two decades.

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Rare Himalayan bird sighted

E.M. Manoj
KALPETTA,  
The Hindu, April 28, 2015 
The rare chestnut-winged cuckoo ( Clamator coromandus ), found usually in the western and eastern Himalayas and southeast Asia, has been spotted by ornithologists in the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary. There have been very few recordings of the species from the State in the past, C.K. Vishnudas, an ornithologist who coordinated a survey held recently in the sanctuary, told The Hindu . The bird, said to be a winter migrant to south India, was sighted at Nallathanni and was photographed by A. Navneeth Nair, a budding ornithologist. The bird has glossy black upper parts, a black head with a long crest, rufous throat, chestnut wings, and long graduated tail.

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