Wayanad forest fire: samiti seeks Crime Branch probe

The Wayanad Prakruthi Samrakshana Samiti staged a dharna in front of the collectorate here on Tuesday, Earth Day, in protest against the alleged laxity of the government in taking action against those who had set the forests on fire in the district recently.

Environmentalist Susan Isaac Kettukapalli, who inaugurated the dharna, said Forest Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan had visited the sites. He had stated that the fires were manmade, Dr. Kettukapalli said.

The government should hand over the case to the Crime Branch for further investigation. There were attempts to sabotage the case and the government’s negligence was only helping the culprits, she said. A report submitted by C.S. Yalakki, Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Vigilance) had underrated the catastrophe. Nearly 450 hectares of forestland were destroyed in the fire but Mr. Yalakki had only mentioned in detail the loss of wood, she said.

All political and religious groups which had launched agitations against the K. Kasturirangan panel report on the Western Ghats had a moral responsibility too. The deep silence of the organisations in this regard was testimony to their involvement, she said.

The samiti sought action against illegal sand-mining and granite quarrying in the district. Samiti president N. Badusha was present.

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The Hindu, April 23, 2014

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On a mission from God’s own country

VISAKHAPATNAM,  
The Hindu, April 21, 2014

A five-member team of nature enthusiasts from God’s own country, Kerala, has embarked on a mission to spread the message of ‘Save water, save tree, and save nature’.

Riding on a Bolero, the team, comprising Thelhath, P. Unnikrishnan, Suresh, P. Unnikrishnan, and Abdul Kabeer, all in their late 40s, will be driving across 10 States, covering a distance of over 6,000 km to spread the message. The team was here on Saturday. Interacting with The Hindu , Thelhath said that by preserving water we would be able to save trees and holistically save nature, which was facing destruction.

“We want to spread the message of judicious use of water and refrain from rampant cutting down of trees,” said Unnikrishnan.

The team was flagged of at Kozhikode on April 15 and would be proceeding to Bhubaneswar on Sunday.

“We will be touching Odisha, West Bengal, Sikkim, Bihar, MP, Maharashtra, and Karnataka, before ending our tour on May 15 at Kozhikode,” said Suresh. The team is partnering with YHAI during the one-month tour.

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Painted Stork nesting sighted at Kumarakom

George Jacob
The Hindu, KOTTAYAM,April 14, 2014

Bird watchers here are elated as rare and exotic water fowls are selecting Kumarakom as their nesting destination.

The latest of the sighting was that of Painted Stork, which has been sighted for the first time nesting in Kerala.

The study conducted by Shiby Moses, naturalist at Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary, has identified nesting of these exotic birds at the sanctuary area.

Further study by N. Unnikrishnan, secretary, Kottayam Nature Society, has uncovered three nests in the area. According to B. Sreekumar, president of the society, more nesting places are believed to be inside the sanctuary since Painted Storks nest colonially on trees.

These large, colourful birds stand nearly one meter tall. Their distinctive pink tertial feathers give them their name. Painted Storks, listed in the Red List prepared by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), were usually sighted in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, but not in Kerala, Dr. Sreekumar said.

The sighting shows that these large wading birds, though widely distributed in the plains of Asia, are now expanding to new areas.

Good news

The arrival of the Painted Storks is good news for the tourism industry. Kokrebellur village in Karnataka attracts thousands of bird lovers during the nesting season for the sole reason that it is a well-known Painted Stork nesting destination.

“With the arrival of these birds, Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary needs special conservation strategy,” said Dr. Sreekumar. While, the largest secure Painted Stork population is found in India, they have become victims of bird trade in neighbouring Pakistan.

They were nearly wiped out in Thailand while small populations had been sighted in Cambodia and Vietnam, it is pointed out.

The latest water fowl census held jointly by Kottayam Nature Society and the Department of Forests and Wildlife, the 14th in a row, had sighted a pair of Sand Martin, perhaps for the first time in Kerala.

However, this was from Narakathara area a few kilometres away from the bird sanctuary. The census had registered a marginal increase in the bird population in the Vembanad lake area.

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A paradise in capital city

The Hindu, April 14, 2014
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM,  

The silence within stunned them.

As loudspeakers blare out the arrival of buses and vehicles honk their annoyance at the stop-and-go traffic, the East Fort area possibly records the worst levels of noise-and-air pollution in the city. And finding a bubble of silence in this urban locale took seasoned bird-watchers based in the city by surprise.

They belonged to the group Warblers and Waders, a collective of naturalists who are in the process of compiling a list of bird and butterfly species found inside Government Central High School, Attakulangara.

A few hours of scouring the grounds for winged visitors early Sunday morning and the participants already had a long list of species, some even deemed rare, considering that they were found in one of the most congested regions of the city. They identified 30 species of birds and 22 species of butterflies inside the campus, C. Sushanth, programme coordinator, said.

Among the birds sighted were three migratory ones – the Golden Oriole, Blyth’s Reed Warbler, and Brown Shrike. Other sightings that Mr. Sushanth described as significant were that of the White-breasted Waterhen, Night Heron, Brahminy Kite, Cattle Egret, Little Cormorant, Coppersmith Barbet, and Shikra.

Mr. Sushanth succeeded in getting photographs of a Black Drongo nesting. They spotted the Green Barbet and Jungle Myna nesting as well.

Among the butterfly species, the team members recorded the presence of the Indian Skipper, Common Jay, Tailed Jay, Mottled Emigrant, Plain Tiger, Striped Tiger, Blue Tiger, and Common Mormon. A migratory damselfly called the Wandering Glider also made an appearance, much to the joy of the participants. The Coromandel Marsh Dart, Orange-tailed Marsh Dart, Ground Skimmer, and Common Picturewing were the other dragonflies and damselflies documented.

“We had previously conducted surveys inside the city limits, such as at the Museum and Golf Links premises. Even so, we were very surprised that this limited space is home to species that you would normally find in a rural, more natural environment,” Mr. Sushanth said. The wide, rich canopy provided by the trees on the campus protected this rich ecosystem, the team observed.

Mr. Sushanth said since April was not the season when most migratory birds came to nest, there were fewer birds than there would have been later in the year. In fact, the group was considering supplementing their list of species towards the latter half of the year – when at least 10 additional bird species were expected to flit in.

The members of Warblers and Waders were supported by the environmental group Tree Walk Thiruvananthapuram.

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Rising sea level may hit 329 islands, including ones in Ernakulam

K.S. Sudhi
The Hindu, KOCHI,April 5, 2014 

The islands in Ernakulam Channel namely Willington Island, Ochanthuruthu, Appangad, Manjanakad, Vallarpadam, Thanthonnithuruthu and Mulavukad may be hit by rising sea level.

The researchers of the Centre for Earth Science Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, have bracketed these islands along with the other vulnerable ones in the backwater system of the State. They have estimated that as many as 329 backwater islands of Kerala are vulnerable to the impacts of Sea Level Rise (SLR).

The other islands identified in the region include the Komanthuruthu, Thevara, Nettoor, Maradu, Panampukad and Pizhala. Altogether, 33 islands in Ernakulam Channel have been identified as ones vulnerable to Sea Level Rise.

Kadamakudi, part of Mulavukad, Korumkotta, Moolampally, Cheranalloor, Kothad, Idakunnam and Chennur are also in the vulnerable list. Researchers have sounded alert that the islands of Kumbalanghi, Chattammel, Cheppanam, Valanthakadu, Kumbalam, Panangad located in Kaithappuzha Kayal in the city suburbs too may be hit by Sea Level Rise.

In Vembanad Lake, they have assessed 21 islands namely Pathiramanal, Anjuthuruthu, Amayadithuruthu and Perumbalam as the ones that may be hit by the rising waters. They feared that the extensive backwater system of the State including the “communities on the banks, ecosystems, low-lying filtration ponds, adjoining paddy fields and other infrastructure would face increased stress” due to the sea level rise.

The list has included the 25 islands in Ashtamudi Lake, 14 in the Periyar, 17 in the Bharathapuzha and 14 in the Valapattanam River among others.

The rampant reclamation of wetlands, including filtration ponds, could decrease the available area of flood plains and enhance the impact of sea level rise on the adjacent holdings, according to the scientific document prepared by the scientists.

A team of researchers led by K.V. Thomas of the CESS are working on a project for assessing the impact of Sea Level Rise and the identification of impact zones in the State. The Sea Level Rise, according to researchers, is of serious concern in Kerala which has a 590km-long coastline and large expands of backwaters and estuaries and low-lying areas such as filtration ponds.

Researchers pointed out that the presence of filtration ponds, which are low-lying areas, near many of the backwater islands increased their vulnerability. They pointed out the case of Sattar Island located in the Periyar River near Munambam, which was seriously affected during the tsunami in 2004.

The identification of the impact zone is crucial for planning mitigation measures and evolving adaption programmes.

 

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Survey finds rare species of butterflies in Idukki sanctuary

Giji K. Raman
KATTAPPANA, April 1, 2014

A survey conducted by the Department of Forests and Wildlife has found rare species of butterflies in Idukki Wildlife Sanctuary. The presence of Baby Five-ring, Bright Babul Blue, Blue Oakleaf, Cornelian and Coorg Forest Hopper is mainly because of the natural ecosystem in areas close to the Idukki lake. “It’s a very positive sign,” said Dr. Unni Krishnan Pulikkal of Butterfly Art Foundation of India, who led the survey. Most of the rare species were found in the virgin shola forest areas of the sanctuary near the Idukki dam.

Ecosystems

A major finding was that there were different ecosystems congenial to the growth of these species, Dr. Krishnan said.

Baby Five-ring (Ypthima tabella) is one of the rarest butterflies found in Kerala. “It has been found only in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Myanmar, that too very rarely,” Dr. Krishnan said.

The presence of Bright Babul Blue (Azanus ubaldus) in Idukki is rather surprising because this is the first time the species are found from the western slope of the Western Ghats, far away from the dry eastern slope that is its natural home.

Cornelian (Deudorix epijarbas), Southern Blue Oakleaf (Kallima horsfieldi) and Coorg Forest Hopper (Arnetta mercara) have been found sporadically from other parts of the State.

A survey of invertebrates carried out by the Zoological Survey of India last week had found the presence of Malabar Flash (Rapala lankana) and Golden Tree-flitter (Quedara basiflava). The total number of butterflies spotted in the sanctuary is now 148.

The survey was done by Dr.Unni Krishnan Pulikkal and Arun T.P. of the Butterfly Art Foundation with the operational support of K.Saji, Wildlife Warden and G.Jayachandran, Assistant Wildlife Warden, of the sanctuary.

The survey was conducted during the third week of March. Dr. Krishnan said the survey underlined the need for protecting such fragile ecosystems.

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Marine ESAs to be documented near Thiruvananthapuram shore

T. Nandakumar
The Hindu, Thiruvananthapuram,March 31, 2014 

The Kerala State Biodiversity Board (KSBB) is preparing a list of ecologically sensitive areas (ESAs) in the near shore region of Thiruvananthapuram, under a pilot project to document the underwater ecosystem and traditional knowledge systems of fishermen.

The marine biodiversity mapping programme has been initiated off a 20-km stretch of the coast from Valiathura to Puthukurichy. KSBB has joined hands with Protsahan, an NGO working among fishermen, to demarcate the ecologically sensitive marine areas, identify the vulnerable habitats and formulate ecosystem- based fishing management policies.

Protsahan has identified 50 natural reefs that are ecologically sensitive and host a variety of underwater species. A detailed map of 14 major reefs along with their depth and location has been submitted to KSBB. As many as six new species were also recorded in the study area.

Biodiversity Register

The project seeks to create a Marine Biodiversity Register (MBR) of ecologically important reefs and rocky areas. The MBR will document traditional knowledge on navigation at sea, seabed configuration, ocean currents and wind patterns. It will also provide early indication on overfishing and marine resource depletion. The MBR is expected to help in the formulation of measures to protect the marine ecology and replenish fish stocks.

During the pilot phase, two artificial reefs were deposited in the inshore region off the Kannanthura and Valiathura coasts.

As many as nine unused boats were purchased with the Rs.60,000 provided by KSBB, and sunk along with coconut peduncles to create an underwater habitat for fish.

Within four days, local fishermen who had stopped going out to sea because of the falling catch, reported that the area was teeming with fish.

Traditional knowledge

“For generations, artisanal fishermen have relied on traditional knowledge to identify reefs where fishes converge. The composition of the catch revealed the existence of reefs. They used a visual triangulation method to navigate to the location. The fishermen have also been using artificial reefs made of local materials to replenish dwindling fish stocks”, says Robert Panipilla, a researcher working with Protsahan. “Sadly, much of this traditional knowledge is lost today. The majority of young fishers do not possess traditional navigational skills or the techniques to identify fishing grounds”.

“When KSBB launched the pilot project for mapping marine biodiversity, we also thought of documenting the traditional knowledge of the fisher community and providing livelihood support by restoring some of the marine habitats,” says Prof.Oommen V.Oommen, chairman, KSBB.

“As the artificial reefs were deposited in the near shore areas about 2 to 3.5 km from the shore at a depth of 20 to 30 fathoms, fishermen need to spend less fuel and resources for fishing,” he said.

KSBB member secretary K.P. Laladhas said local fishermen were now reporting a daily catch of about Rs.7,000 from the area where the artificial reefs were deposited. “They are netting commercially important species like Caranx sexfasciatus (Kannan para) and Stolephorus indicus (Kozhua). It shows that our endeavour was successful,” he said.

Prof.Oommen said KSBB would convene a meeting of marine experts for scientific validation and verification of the data submitted by Protsahan. “We hope to publish the information soon,” he said.

He added that the marine resources along the Thiruvananthapuram- Kollam coast would be taken up for documentation in the next phase.

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