We were on a short holiday in the Coorg District of Karnataka. It was September and the monsoon was still active. We experienced some heavy spells during the first two days of the trip. Nevertheless, we had thoroughly enjoyed the trip. Even before we realised it was time for us to pack our bags in preparation to return home.

The last morning that we spent there was a glorious day. The clear blue sky on a sunny morning was just perfect for a quick walk into the forest before it was time to say bye to our hosts. During the walk, we saw several butterflies that had been in hiding during the previous days. We lost track of time watching and photographing butterflies.

When we realised, we started on our way back. A butterfly basking on low vegetation, not far from a small stream, was too tempting. I stopped to photograph it. While photographing the butterfly, I saw through my lens a little fly that took me by total surprise. It had its eyes placed on the tip of stalks growing out of its head! It was constantly moving on a broad leaf. I quickly took several pictures.

On my return I poured over books to find out more about this strange creature. It turned out to be what is commonly called a Stalk-eyed fly. There are over 150 species of stalk-eyed flies in the world, largely in tropical areas, some with stalks over a centimetre long! I also learnt that there is very little known about them. The books also said that the adults are known to occur on streamside vegetation, sometimes in large numbers. This was exactly the kind of place where I saw the stalk-eyed fly. So, the next time you are walking along some streamside vegetation, be sure to keep an eye open for this strange creature!

In the recent times, I have seen this little (< 1 cm. in length) in several other places particularly during and just after the monsoon.

“Look at these crabs – they have a large pink pincer!” exclaimed one of my friends with whom I was walking along a path along the waterside vegetation on the coast. “Could they be Fiddler Crabs?” was the thought that passed through my head when I heard the description. I looked through my binoculars and they were indeed the famous Fiddler Crabs! I had heard of Fiddler Crabs and their colourful pincers and had even seen some films of their spectacular displays. But this was the first time that I had a chance to see this for myself.

While still at a distance, we saw blobs of bright pink moving on the ground. But as we approached closer, they all disappeared – even as we were watching, they retreated quickly into their burrows! Having realised that movement was the cause for them to retreat into their burrows, I decided to stay put near one of the burrows hoping to a get a picture. Three-quarters of an hour of motionless wait passed; I had cramps in my legs. Finally, I got a few pictures of these pretty creatures. I am sharing one of them with all of you.

I was visiting a popular tourist spot not far from Bangalore. I spotted a curious looking green creature on the road while walking through a disturbed forest. It was indulging in very slow deliberate movements. It was perhaps making a desperate attempt to cross the road before the next vehicle ran over. Unfortunately this creature is not known for its speed. Luckily for it, I happened to come by before any vehicle did. I held my hand in its path when it opened its pink mouth, puffed up its body and hissed loudly. I gently coaxed it to climb on to my hand. Once on my hand it quickly clambered on my clothes over my shoulder and on my head! The passers by had gathered into a small crowd while all this was happening. They were trying to tell me that this is a very poisonous creature and that I should let it go before any danger befalls me.

Having interacted with the creature earlier on, I knew what I had on my person was a harmless Chameleon. Though the chameleon is not known for its speed, it is endowed with some other amazing abilities.

The best known of them all is its ability to change colour. It is thought that the basic colour of the chameleon helps it blend into the surroundings. And, the colour changes occur based on temperature and light. Such changes in colour could be used for purposes of communication and to express its mood! The other interesting part of a chameleon is its long tongue for its prey – one with a sticky tip and almost as long as its body!

The chameleon also has two other tools for survival. Like any other reptile, it has a pair of eyes on either side of its head. Each eye is independent of the other - each eye can see in completely different directions! This helps the chameleon to keep a look out for its own predators while it is hunting its prey! This adaptation can be helpful in a variety of situations.

The chameleon has a long prehensile (capable of grasping) tail which can be used as the fifth limb. This lizard can hold on to vegetation with its tail for additional safety!

Having explained some of these interesting aspects to the audience I allowed the lizard to disappear into the shrubbery on the side of the road that it was heading towards.

Unfortunately, I did not own a camera to photograph the chameleon when all this happened. However, I was lucky much later to find one when I possessed a camera.

To see more pics of the Chameleon click here

A small creature took to air from near my feet. It flew a short distance close to the ground and landed further down the trail that I was walking. As I approached it closer, it quickly took off, and landed further down the path. This “catch-me-if-you-can” game happened a few times over.

I was curious to know what this little creature was. I tread very carefully and inched closer.  This little insect on long legs was very wary of my presence. It would run in a zigzag manner for a short distance and would stop as if to check if I was following it. All the while it kept moving away and keeping a distance from me.  However, after considerable effort, I eventually managed to get close enough to photograph it.

Slowly, I lay on my belly, flat on the ground with my camera ready to get a shot of this insect. Through my lens this little insect did look very smart indeed.I managed to quickly get a few pictures and was very happy at the achievement, more so because this little fellow was so active. I waited until it moved away from me to get up back on my feet. I knew it was a beetle because it had a pair of hardened wings. But the large eyes, powerful mandibles and the long legs were a give away. It was a Tiger Beetle indeed!

There are over 1500 species of tiger beetles in the world. Most tiger beetles are less than and inch long. Many are also very brightly coloured, some have metallic hues.

Tiger beetles are predatory by nature and get their name because they are known to ambush their prey. Though most species are active during the day, some are nocturnal too. I have, on occasion seen some species getting attracted to light in the night. Perhaps, to make a meal of the other insects that also gets attracted to the light.

The pretty tiger beetles are but just one small group of the very large order of beetles. Incidentally, beetles account for nearly a fourth of all species on Earth!

Muthodi (Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary)

I was introduced to Muthodi during the late 1980s. From that time I have been completely smitten by the place and I always would find excuses to go to Muthodi because of this. The forest - its beauty, moods and the variety, the stream - Somavahini, the rustic nature of the place, lack of electricity and the particularly tall bamboo of the Muthodi Range of the Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary were among some aspects.

The bamboo would be the first thing anyone visiting Muthodi would notice. In 2002-03 the bamboo after flowering began to wilt away. Subsequently, the place also experienced some bad fires and the dead bamboo got burnt down. One could see a few scars of the fire as one walked the forest. In fact, I can still some of the trees that stood testimony to all that had happened.

Due to a variety of reasons, I had not visited the place for four long years. So I decided to go there during Christmas of 2007. My wife, couple of friends and I planned this long-awaited trip to this enchanted setting. During this visit, if I missed one thing, it was the bamboo! The swaying of the bamboo in the gentle winter breeze, constantly complaining, on a moonlit night would have been a sight to behold; a moment to experience. Otherwise the place was charming as always.

The two days were spent walking about the forests dabbling in a bit of birding, a bit of photography, spending some time by the stream and of course soaking in the beauty of the place. Besides the 60 odd species of birds that we saw and heard, we also enjoyed seeing some of the other denizens of the forest – stately trees, a variety of fungi, the mud walls draped with ferns, some interesting spiders including the last of the Giant Wood Spiders for the season and some butterflies. I bumped into a friend and a knowledgeable wildlifer and shared notes of the “silent” times. Could you ask for more on a holiday?

Some fungi…

Maiden hair ferns that draped the mud walls…

…perhaps the last of the Giant Wood Spider for the season.

I have always associated Muthodi with the diurnal Malabar Giant Squirrel and the nocturnal Flying Squirrel. Being late December, the trees were sparsely clothed. And the Malabar Giant Squirrels were very visible. But the secretive Flying Squirrel was not to be seen on the first night. The following morning was chill and the moonlight was bright. I stepped out of my room and was enjoying the forest bathed in a ghostly light. This was when I caught a fleeting glimpse of the Flying Squirrel. That night, I heard them call. They were perhaps visiting the fig tree that was attracting a lot of birds, Malabar Giant Squirrels and Bonnet Macaques during the day.

We also saw interesting birds like the Greyfronted Green Pigeon, Green Imperial Pigeon, Whitebellied Blue Flycatcher, Brownbreasted Flycatcher, Paradise Flycatcher, Barbets (3 species), Whitebellied Treepie, Racket-tailed Drongo, Malabar Trogon, Malabar Whistling Thrush and many others. But the one bird that stole our hearts was the male Small Sunbird. It would sit in the open and prance about. The plumage catching the sun rays would throw off some brilliant metallic hues.

The second night at Muthodi was chill too. We retired early. Being a light sleeper, I was woken up from time to time by the calling Flying Squirrels. We all finally woke up to the song of the Malabar Whistling Thrush and the soothing sound of water flowing in Somavahini. Soon after breakfast we were ready to leave.

Mercara (Kalluru)

The landscape (a mosaic of fallow fields, coffee estates, and forests)

Having enjoyed the two days at Muthodi, we packed and were soon on our way to Mercara. The drive was a long one but across some nice landscape. On reaching Mercara, we moved bags to a jeep from the car and set off on some difficult roads to a destination beyond Galibeedu. It was almost dark by the time we decided on a camping site. We quickly pitched a tent and got things ready to cook dinner. Our friends, who are pros at camping in the outdoors, whipped up a simple but tasty dinner.

The sky was absolutely marvellous. I perhaps had never so many stars in one frame for a long time. There was not a wisp of cloud in the sky. By the time we finished dinner, we realised that the stars had vanished. We were enveloped by thick mist that persisted until late the following morning.

The misty morning…

Spider webs covered with dew were visible as far as the eye could see. The cold did not spare the bugs, dragonflies and spiders. They were almost frozen and would get active when the sun was high enough to thaw them.

The frozen Jumping Spider and …

… the dragonfly (with our tent in the backdrop);both waiting for the sun to warm them up.

I had this feeling that we would get to see a good number of butterflies. And, when we went out post breakfast, my hunch turned out to be right. We did see a good number of butterflies. The list included the Map, Blue Tiger, Glassy Tiger, Dark Blue Tiger, Common Spotted Flat, Malabar Flat, Lascar, Southern Rustic, Common Albatross, Painted Sawtooth, Line Blues, Pea Blue and many more. At this point, we were joined by a couple of friends who are fond of the outdoors and camping.

Our route took us past some cultivated fields and we were to enter into some good evergreen forests. The tall trees were inviting.

Before we could enter the forest, we had to cross a stream. There was plenty of butterfly activity here. Mudpuddling Bluebottles, Club Beaks and Maps were a treat to watch. And, so was the Cruiser feeding off a dead crab. The Sunbeam was seen sunning itself. As we walked through the forest, we disturbed several Bushbrowns and Evening browns. As we walked along we saw a whole variety of plants including some tree ferns.

Frond of a Tree Fern

After a gradual climb, the path opened out to a meadow only to be welcomed by the Common Birdwing. The vista was quite spectacular the rolling hills and valleys extending into the horizon. While resting in the shade, the Black Eagles put on a show of their effortless flying abilities. We admired the forest as we walked back towards the camp. We rested awhile and it was again time to cook some hot dinner.

The following day saw us waking up to a misty morning. We made some tea, lazed about, had breakfast and packed. Soon we were on out way back to Mercara and on to Bangalore. It had been a wonderful experience and a memorable vacation.

When I posted the page on Flowering Trees I had an overwhelming response to it. Many of you communicated to be either through the blog or otherwise and suggested that I put up the pdf file for download. I had promised to do so … and here it is. All you need to do is go the Flowering Trees page and download the pdf file. I hope that this fosters more interest in the Flowering Trees and gives you hours of joy watching and getting to know these beautiful organisms.

The Blue Oakleaf butterfly Kallima horsfieldi (as are other members of this genus) is known for its stunning resemblance to a dry decaying leaf. The mimicry is so perfect that it is complete in all details. The butterfly when sitting with wings closed resembles a leaf and the undersides have varying shades of brown, with markings representing the midrib and the veins of a leaf.  Signs of fungal attack (seen on most dead leaves) are also represented on the undersides of the butterfly. And the butterfly usually sits with the wings closed. When sitting, the butterfly makes very subtle movements. This behaviour enhances the effect of the mimicry. All the camouflage is restricted to the undersides. Very rarely are two individuals alike on the undersides. Often, it is very difficult to locate one of these butterflies at rest. The colours on the upperside are in stark contrast to the underside. On the upperside, the Blue Oakleaf is largely greyish with areas of blue, a band of white and a black tip to the forewing. This species is found in forested areas of south India. Members of this genus occur in parts of South-East Asia.

Newts and salamanders are largely inhabitants of the temperate regions with a few exceptions. There are about 350 species of newts and salamanders in the world.  At first sight newts and salamanders (tailed amphibian) can be mistaken for a lizard (a reptile).

The Himalayan Newt Tylototriton verrucosus is a very special creature since it is the only tailed amphibian that is known from India. Within India it is known to occur in the eastern Himalaya. It has been recorded from Darjeeling, Sikkim, Meghalaya, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh.

They frequent pools, ponds, and paddy fields. The sideways movement of their flat tail propels them forward and helps them swim well. Insects and other aquatic organisms are their main food. Being nocturnal and secretive not much is known about these creatures. During the winter months they are known to hide in burrows and other suitable places. They emerge from their hiding places during the monsoon months to breed and are most active during this time.

Habitat destruction is a threat to this uncommon species. Climate change could also threaten this species.

Coming to think of it, it has been more than 25 years since I first saw a glow-worm in my garden. Ever since, I have seen it every year around Shivarathri festival. The glow-worms would make their presence felt for a few days with their nice green glow and would disappear until the following year.

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The inch-long, segmented pale brown worm would raise the tail end of its body and would display the glowing segment. Fearing that the light producing area would be hot, on one occasion, I cautiously picked up the worm. To my surprise, it was not the case. It was only later that I realised that this process of producing light is called bioluminescence. The light emitted is due to a chemical reaction and there is no heat produced.

While talking about glow-worms I should also mention about fireflies. Both these are misnomers. They are neither worms nor flies. They are both beetles!! Glow-worms and fireflies use their light effectively for communication in the dark. This communication can be compared with the Morse code but it can be more complex.

This year I saw a glowing object in the vicinity of my home a few days before Shivarathri and was very elated. I went closer to check and I was disappointed to see a piece of glossy plastic catching a ray from the streetlight. However, it was heartening for me to discover them a few days later in a park nearby. They brightened my evening walks for a whole week and one fine day they disappeared.  I now look forward to seeing them again.

So, don’t write-off your garden or a near-by park as they can always spring pleasant surprises!

The Binturong Arctictis binturong belongs to the family of civets (Family Viveriidae). Being secretive and rare, the binturong is a little known creature. This arboreal (living on trees) creature occurs in northeastern states in India, while its range extends over a large part of Southeast Asia. This arboreal animal, unlike other members of the family, has a prehensile tail, which it uses like another limb. The tail is used very effectively when climbing and when moving about in the trees. Being omnivorous, they feed on fruits, insects, carrion and small animals like birds and rodents during their forays in the dense jungle they live in. The binturong has a keen sense of smell. Like other civets, binturongs use scent marking to communicate with other individuals. They also have good vision and hearing. These nocturnal (active during the night) animals spend the day sleeping in the trees.

Binturongs grow to about five feet long including the tail. Their colour varies from dark grey and black with grizzled fur on their face. They have a thick coat comprising of long hair, which, perhaps, has earned them the name ‘Bear Cat’.