 In spite of suggestions and advices not to head towards the north east, I decided to go ahead with my long awaited trip plans to Assam. Though my friends and family were concerned about my safety, I got first hand information that it was not all that bad. Last year, I started developing this urge to visit Kaziranga National Park during February and like most wishes, I went ahead to fulfill this too. Recent developments by the ULFA, a couple of bombings, killing of Bihari migrant laborers and wide spread news of extremist activities in Assam along with Malaria and Dengue were strong reasons to keep away. But with a lot of hope and good will, I started a lonely journey to Guwahati from Bangalore on a lovely Saturday morning.
Manas National Park, Assam
  As per plan, I was supposed to first visit the Manas National Park. Four hours drive from the Guwahati airport took me to the eastern edge of this Park. I entered the land of the “Bodo” (Pronounced as Boro) and got inside the Manas Jungle Camp just outside the park’s entrance of the Bhyuapara Range from the Kakla Bari area. I was told that, I would be the only guest who would stay in the camp for the next few days. While I was filling the check-in formalities/details, I realized the previous guest had visited the place many days ago and tourists don’t frequent the area as much as they do in other parks. Manas, was a very peaceful place with almost no urban signs and not much connectivity to the modern world. Unreliable power supply to the place, scarcity or in availability of water at times really made my stay as basic as possible. For once, I was happy to be out of any possible cellular network with only local BSNL post paid working in the area (Roaming pre-paid BSNL networks don’t work). This is one of the most remote jungle areas of the country.
  I spent the night trying to know more about the people and the place I was in and the stories I heard were interesting and endless. The next morning, along with a bird-watcher named “Rustom”, we set out on a safari from the eastern end of the park. I was thrilled to see hills behind the park which were supposedly in the Bhutanese territory. After a point, it belongs to Bhutan which is called the remarkable Royal Manas National Park. Bird life in the park was so abundant that you hardly get time to recover from a bird sighted that you see another. I was fortunate to have had the company of Rustom, It became easier for me to identify and document birds on the safari. “Black-crested Bulbul” he would say and I would turn my head everywhere to find the tiny beauty chirping and hopping trees restlessly. That was a lifer!
  After a while, we spotted a pair of “Yellow-throated Martens” run across the road and I was spell bound to see such variety of wildlife in the park. I hadn’t even known of their existence. Wild Boar, Jungle owl, bulbuls, doves, pigeons, minivets and a hundred other birds were sighted on the way to the Dwaimari camp in the middle of the forest. We crossed ranges and moved on to the Mothanguri forest office and the sight was amazing. The ferocious Manas River flows from the mountains of the Bhutan in to Assam through this place. The River actually separates Bansbari and Panbari range and one has to cross the river to either go to Panbari Range from here or to Bhutan on the northern part of the park. Rustom showed me a small concrete dome and mentioned that, we were on the edge of India-Bhutan border. I spent some time bird watching around the area and lazing around the Manas River that afternoon. I was dying to sight the glittering Golden Langur which supposedly lives in the Panbari Range and the range that falls in the Bhutan territory. We had to wait till lunch to meet the Ranger of the area to seek permission to try and venture on the other side of the bank.
 Post lunch, I heard good news that I had actually got permission to cross the river and venture on the other side of the park hoping to sight the Golden Langurs. Meanwhile, I was blessed with an introduction to one man whose book on “Mammals” is referred by every wildlife enthusiast of the country. Vivek Menon – the Executive Director of Wildlife Trust of India was quite down to earth and friendly. I was thrilled to meet him and spend the next few hours with him. Mr. Menon, another lady from Russia who was from the IFAW - International Fund for Animal Welfare, the naturalists and I crossed borders to meet the Bhutan Ranger, and to try and sight the Golden Langur trekking on the sands of the Manas river banks.
 River lapwings, Ruddy Shelducks, cormorants and plenty of swifts were present around the area. While we were entering the forest office of the Bhutan area, we read two huge sign boards alerting visitors to take precautions against Malaria and Dengue. After a while, we spotted a Malayan Giant Squirrel climb a tree and at least three Great Indian Hornbills at close distance on tall trees of the Bhutanese territory. We even found pug-marks of a Tiger while trekking and the long day ended after sighting a herd of really furious elephants and shy wild buffaloes apart from the gaur and capped langurs of the area. One elephant herd charged us and the way the guide and the driver controlled it was amusing. They infact, stood up and yelled at the top of their voices and the herd of 5 cows and a couple of teenage tuskers retreated.
  The next morning, Rustom and I set out in search of the Great Indian Hornbills on the Indo-Bhutanese border. The area was named “Alabari” and the drive on the dry river bed was rich with a variety of bird life. We spotted at least 75 species of birds on the way to Alabari and back with at least 20 of them totally new to me. Within minutes of reaching Alabari, scarlet minivets showed in dozens near the gypsy. I was amazed to see 6 pairs of minivets together. I have hardly seen 5 individuals till now and this was overwhelming. Just then, I heard loud wing flaps of the horn bill. Two large hornbills flew across the area hiding in the thick vegetation and constantly calling. Photographing them was not very easy and most of the times they would be hidden behind tall trees and thick forest cover. How ever, I enjoyed sighting them for nearly 20 minutes before I got back to the base camp. On the way back, a wonderful photo opportunity of the Eurasian Griffon Vulture came by my way and I happily welcomed it. In fact, the result was surprising.
  Post lunch, Rustom and I set out to the Kakla Bari Seed Farm. Our target was the extremely endangered Bengal Florican (Houbaropsis Bengalensis). I must admit that, I haven’t come across such a shy bird ever before. The florican belongs to the bustard family and surprisingly loves the man made habitat of the grasslands in the seed farm outside the Kakla bari settlement. At least 30 plus individuals exist in this part and sighting them from a distance is very easy with some experience. But the challenge is to approach them. In the three attempts I exercised, the nearest I got was about 15 feet from an individual after hard work of stalking them. But I had lost track of the bird in tall grass and was blindly stalking towards the direction. Finally, the bird took off making loud calls and noise. I hardly got a second or two to react and I missed photographic opportunities on this lovely occasion. How ever, I did get a couple of documentary shots of the gorgeous bird. Other than the florican, I was blessed with the sighting of a Pied Harrier which I thought was amazing. I hadn’t even heard of the species and I learnt this is found only in the north east and parts of south East Asia.
  Birds like the shrikes, stone chats, Asian open bill storks, lesser adjutant storks, egrets, over whelming number of drongos were sighted. I decided to try my luck the next morning in the seed farm looking for the florican. I was fortunate to have sighted 8 individual floricans in two sessions and got as close as 15 feet away which rarely happens – I was told. I also met a Bodo girl called Nomita, who is apparently doing a research on the Bengal Florican’s interest in the man made habitat in spite of the natural grasslands available inside the park. After exchanging some facts with Nomita I had to rush back to the camp as I had to travel 7 hours from Manas to reach Kaziranga. I also got an opportunity to sight the Golden Langurs which are found no where else than the Bhutanese hills and some parts of north eastern India. A few close-ups of the beautiful langur ended my trip to Manas. I thought, I had to spend at least two more sessions in Manas for better photographic opportunities. But again, I would feel the same even after those two sessions – I had to move on at some point.
Kaziranga National Park, Assam
 At 5:45 in the morning I was supposed to report to the forest office for my morning elephant safari in the western range of Kaziranga National Park. Sun rises before six and sets at 5.30pm in eastern India during this time. I was surprised by very less number of tourists in the park and that was almost like a blessing. Otherwise parks like these are crowded by hundreds of tourists. My guide told me, they had quite a few cancellations due to the recent ULFA terror.
 This was my first elephant safari ever and I tentatively got on to a male named “Rai-Bahadur”. He slowly took me towards the adjacent grasslands and within minutes a humongous Rhinoceros got up from the middle of the grassland. The grass here is at least 8-10 feet high and is rightly named the “Elephant-Grass”. The huge guy stood up and was gazing at us constantly. We let him carry on and moved towards a herd of Wild Buffaloes (Bubalis Bubalis). At least 50 Wild Buffaloes started sprinting across the grass and it reminded me of a trip I am desperate to do in the near future – Serengeti’s Wildebeest migration.
 After a while, I spotted a mother Rhino and her calf very shy and anxious to see the elephant around. We ventured close by and the mother was protecting her off-spring very cautiously. I was lucky to have sighted a calf which was hardly 5 days old according to the guard. Indian Rollers, Shrikes and the Stone chats flew across the grass-lands as my Elephant Safari spanning about an hour came to an end. Just before I got down, I was taken very close to a Pallas’s Fishing Eagle’s nest. The nest was pretty high and I couldn’t see what was inside it, but the eagle was hanging around the bald tree keeping a watch on the nest.
 After breakfast, I hired a gypsy and ventured inside the Central Range of the park. A really close Rhino encounter on the edge of the swamps with the usual egrets and mynah’s bothering him was the only mentionable sighting of this safari. Though I did sight quite a few Rhinos and buffaloes, they were very far. I did come across a herd of the Barasingha or the Swamp deer which are available only here and in the Central Indian – Kanha National Park (Hard Ground Swamp Deer) which I am visiting shortly. The hog-deer population of the park seems quite encouraging and they seem to be one of the major food sources for the Tiger which was approximately estimated to be in between 60-70 in the park. Sighting a Tiger here is as rare as sighting one in South India – I learnt. Most of them were sighted in the Eastern Range of the park according to sources.
  Over the next three days, I ventured out on Gypsy safaris to all the three ranges of the park (East, Central and Western). I loved the watch tower of the western range and at one point I thought, I wouldn’t do the safaris blindly but just settle down in such a machan and wait for some nice event to happen. The Rhinos were seen constantly feeding on the edge of the lake while plenty of pelicans and storks flew across the lake. I haven’t seen any place like this before where, you just sit back and start counting the number of mammals and birds you can see. You will never stop counting. After I realized it was much better to be stationary in the Western Range to photograph the Rhino in the open and near the lake, I did plenty of trips to this place. In one such safari, I came across an aggressive male posing for me against the back light of the setting sun. I really loved the result of this encounter. Every time I traveled on the streets of the settlement next to Kaziranga national park, I would observe the concrete life-size statues of the rhino. The association of the birds like the mynah and the egrets with the Rhino is so strong that most such statues have these birds featured on the backs of the large mammal. I checked most of my pictures and these birds rarely let the Rhinos alone.
  After having spent a few days here, I got introduced to the Ranger who took me to a part of the park which had fewer tourists but great open grass-lands. I had told him, I wouldn’t want to venture deep in to the forest but wanted open areas to make some photographs as per my liking. This range was really wild. Every animal here was very shy but on the other hand the Rhinos were very aggressive in nature. So we had to either stop pretty far or drive quickly from such individuals if at all we encountered any danger. A herd of Wild Buffaloes welcomed me to the grassland next to a stream which is born from the legendary Bramhaputra. The background of this scene reminded me of the Kabini Backwaters and I loved clicking every picture of the aggressive and shy buffaloes. I even spotted a troop of the Assameses Macaques which were shy too. I could hear loud calls of the Capped-Langurs behind the tea-estates and the morning safari ended with a lot of satisfaction.
 On the way back to the camp, I saw a few capped-langurs cross the road and one female while crossing met with an accident. The speeding Scorpio just touched the langur which fell dead on the spot. I immediately parked my car next to it and shifted it off the road. The sight was very sad. I had just purchased a film made by “Gautam Saikia” about the danger the animals face in the National Highway here. It seems such a sight is very common and this subject was so huge that a film on this had to be made. Gautam Saika in fact calls this the onslaught on NH 37.
  On the last morning of my stay here, I decided to again go to a lesser known, lesser frequented Rhino reserve before my flight to Delhi. After I came back from this place I was thrilled beyond words. I went out on Elephant back on the grasslands of the sanctuary. Plenty of Rhinos, Buffaloes, Lesser Adjutant Storks, Asian Open Bill storks, and thousands of lesser-whistling teals and flocks of pin-tail ducks were a treat to watch. A very aggressive Rhino mother started charging my elephant trying to protect her off-spring. After letting her know, I was just interested in seeing them and may be clicking a picture or two; she ran back towards the interiors of her territory. Within minutes, I sighted a spectacle. Hundreds of pin-tail ducks took off from the swamps making loud flaps and flying in formations. I was spell bound by their co-ordination and team work. I was wondering how they fly together at such pace so close to each other. There surely was a lesson or two for us to learn. We crib about traffic jams so much. I think even if more vehicles are added daily, if we drive in an organized way, we still can reach places on time and in peace.
 It was the last minute of my safari in Assam and it ended with a lovely treat. A Rhino calf ran quickly to its mother and started sucking milk. The forest guards were so happy that I was gifted with this sight. It surely was a rare one. With smiles bigger than what my face could carry, I got down from “Vikram” the elephant and happily drove towards the airport.
 I made my usual declaration that I should spend at least a month in Assam and most of it in the Manas National Park. Very less is known about this place and so much is present. Other than wildlife, the life of the Assamese, the Bodos, their issues, revolutions and the repercussions to Mother Nature is a big story. Fortunately, Manas is recovering from the humiliation and torture it suffered during the Bodo Andolan Era (Revolution). This wonderful recovery job and conservation awareness activities is done by a society formed by the Bodo youth called the MMES – Manas Maozigendri Eco-tourism Society. They seem to be committed individuals with a natural love for their land and nature. They swear by their slogan – “Know Manas, Love Manas, and Save Manas”.
 I surely have fallen in love with Manas and have liked Kaziranga’s wildlife more than I had imagined. I wish more people visit these parts of the country and witness what Assam can give you. Remember, Mother Nature showcases her beauty here which isn’t present anywhere else in India. At least for the Rhino, one should visit Kaziranga. Though this dosent seem to be the safest of havens in the country right now with a lot of terror in proximity, during most occasions people are unharmed and taken care off. Tourists havent been affected at all. I closed my eyes on the way to Madhya Pradesh via Delhi recalling every wild encounter in Assam with a large smile on my face.
With awesome experiences of the Rhinos & Buffaloes, I headed towards the central Indian jungles for a fortnight to relish the big cat extravaganza. More from the “Temple of the Tigers” will be up soon…
Assam is truly astonishing!
Photographs of this trip
Birds and Mammals Sighted in Manas and Kaziranga National Parks
*** Birds ***
1. Black-tailed Crake (Porzana bicolor)
2. Green Sandpiper (Tringa ochropus)
3. Spotted Dove (Streptopelia chinensis)
4. Emerald Dove (Chalcophaps indica)
5. Oriental Turtle Dove (Streptopelia orientalis)
6. Great Hornbill (Buceros bicornis) also known as Greater Indian Hornbill
7. Green Imperial Pigeon (Ducula aenea)
8. Yellow-footed Green Pigeon (Treron phoenicoptera)
9. Pin-tailed Green-Pigeon (Treron apicauda)
10. Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
11. Black Drongo (Dicrurus macrocercus)
12. Scarlet Minivet (Pericrocotus flammeus)
13. Jungle Owlet or Barred Jungle Owlet (Glaucidium radiatum)
14. Red-vented Bulbul, (Pycnonotus cafer)
15. Crested Serpent Eagle (Spilornis cheela)
16. Red Junglefowl (Gallus gallus)
17. Green-billed Malkoha (Phaenicophaeus tristis)
18. Brown Shrike (Lanius cristatus)
19. Pied Wagtail (Motacilla alba yarrellii)
20. Oriental Magpie Robin (Copsychus saularis)
21. Red-breasted Parakeet Psittacula alexandri
22. Common Merganser (Mergus merganser)
23. Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea)
24. Asian Fairy Bluebird (Irena puella)
25. River Lapwing (Vanellus duvaucelii)
26. Hodgson’s Redstart (Phoenicurus hodgsoni)
27. Blue Rock-Thrush (Monticola solitarius)
28. White-winged Redstart (Phoenicurus erythrogastrus grandis)
29. Indian Roller (Coracias benghalensis)
30. Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis)
31. Asian Pied Starling (Sturnus contra) also known as Pied Myna
32. Greater Coucal (Centropus sinensis)
33. Griffon Vulture (Gyps fulvus)
34. Malabar Pied Hornbill (Anthracoceros coronatus)
35. Little Spiderhunter (Arachnothera longirostra)
36. Indian Nightjar (Caprimulgus asiaticus)
37. Black-crested Bulbul (Pycnonotus melanicterus)
38. Black Bulbul (Hypsipetes leucocephalus)
39. Hill Myna (Gracula religiosa)
40. Shikra (Accipiter badius)
41. Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
42. Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis)
43. Intermediate Egret or Yellow-billed Egret, (Ardea intermedia)
44. Great Egret (Ardea alba)
45. Changeable Hawk eagle (Spizaetus cirrhatus)
46. Bay-backed Shrike (Lanius vittatus)
47. Black-winged Cuckoo-shrike (Coracina melaschistos)
48. Stone-chat (Saxicola rubicola)
49. Chestnut-tailed Starling also known as Grey-headed Myna (Sturnus malabaricus)
50. Red-whiskered Bulbul (Pycnonotus jocosus)
51. Rufous-winged Bush Lark (Mirafra assamica)
52. Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker (Dicaeum cruentatum)
53. Jungle Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos)
54. House Crow (Corvus splendens)
55. Greater Racket-tailed Drongo (Dicrurus paradiseus)
56. Bengal Florican (Houbaropsis bengalensis)
57. Pied Harrier (Circus melanoleucos)
58. Grass Owl (Tyto capensis longimembris)
59. Asian Openbill Stork (Anastomus oscitans)
60. Lesser Adjutant Stork (Leptoptilos javanicus)
61. Long-tailed Shrike (Lanius schach)
62. Paddyfield Pipit (Anthus rufulus)
63. Black-shouldered Kite (Elanus axillaris)
64. Red-wattled Lapwing (Vanellus indicus)
65. White-throated Kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis)
66. Common Swift (Apus apus)
67. Hoopoe (Upupa epops)
68. Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
69. Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis)
70. Jungle Myna (Acridotheres fuscus)
71. Grey-headed Fish Eagle (Ichthyophaga ichthyaetus)
72. Rufous Treepie (Dendrocitta vagabunda)
73. Lesser Whistling Duck or the Indian Whistling Teal (Dendrocygna javanica)
74. Pintail or Northern Pintail (Anas acuta)
75. Crested Bunting (Melophus lathami)
76. Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea)
77. Stork-billed Kingfisher (Pelargopsis capensis)
78. Golden Oriole (Oriolus oriolus)
79. Bar-headed Goose (Anser indicus)
80. Pied Kingfisher (Ceryle Rudis)
81. Pallas's Fish-eagle or Band-Tailed Fish-eagle (Haliaeetus leucoryphus)
82. Spotted Owlet (Athene brama)
83. River Tern (Sterna aurantia)
84. Rose-ringed Parakeet (Psittacula krameri),
85. Spot-billed Duck (Anas poecilorhyncha)
86. Green-bee Eater (Merops orientalis)
** Mammals **
87. Malayan giant squirrel (Ratufa bicolor gigantea)
88. Yellow-Throated Marten or the Himalayan Marten (Martes flavigula)
89. Orange-bellied Himalayan squirrel (Dremomys lokriah)
90. Capped Langur (Trachypithecus pileatus)
91. Asiatic Water Buffalo (Bubalus bubalis)
92. Asiatic Elephants (Elephas Maximus)
93. Hog deer (Axis porcinus)
94. Eastern Swamp Deer (Cervus duvauceli ranjitsinghi)
95. Gaur (Bos gaurus)
96.Rhesus Macaque (Macaca mulatta),
97. Indian one-horned rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis)
98. Assam Macaque (Macaca assamensis)
99. Golden Langur (Trachypithecus geei)
100. Pygmy Hog (Sus salvanius)
_________________
Cheers,
Jayanth Sharma
jay@wildlifetimes.com
Last edited by Jayanth Sharma on Thu May 03, 2007 5:06 pm; edited 5 times in total
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