I set out to do some birding in the fading light of the day on the outskirts of Agartala (Tripura). In the short time that was left of the day I enjoyed the company of Racket-tailed Drongos, Red-breasted Parakeets and a few other birds. The light faded quickly and everything around me was quiet.

This is when I heard a two syllable call that went “tok-kay” or “tuck-too” from a nearby tree. For a moment my mind scanned through all the bird calls that I was familiar with. I drew a blank. Then it occurred to me that this was indeed a gecko and named after the call it utters – the Tokay Gecko Gekko gecko (also known as the Tuctoo Gecko) and the largest gecko in India!

Later in the evening the call of this nocturnal gecko was heard several times. So, I went around the old buildings searching and finally managed to see the monster of a gecko. I had not seen such a large, and at the same time beautiful, gecko. I was really lucky. The adult that I spotted was also accompanied by four young ones ! They were all very shy and photographing them was not easy.

Though the Tokay Gecko is known to grow to about 14 inches, the adult that I saw was about 8 inches long. It was pale bluish grey with orange spots.

Tokay Gecko Gekko gecko (adult)

The young ones were equally colourful with orange spots spread all over the body with bands of white spots interspersed in between. The banded tail was also characteristic.

Tokay Gecko - young one

Naturally, the Tokay Gecko lives on trees and rocky cliffs. However, in many parts of NE India and parts of SE Asia, the Tokay Gecko is known to live in residences too.

The Tokay Gecko was incidentally described by Linnaeus way back in 1758. However, today, this gecko has sadly become prey to misconceptions. In several parts of SE Asia they are caught and used as a remedy for several ailments. This has led to this gecko being collected and traded illegally. Besides, it also can be part of pet trade.

It was one of those year-end jaunts into the wilderness with like-minded friends. Destination – Coorg. After enjoying the forests and its denizens through most part of the morning, we reached a stream at the edge of a coffee estate. It was late afternoon when we ate our packed lunch and rested for a while. The trees were towering over us and forest was slowly beginning to get dark. One of us, while exploring the area around the stream, found something very peculiar under a large dead tree that had fallen to the ground.

All of us gathered around this strange subject but none of us were able to fathom what it was. It looked like a cluster of globular pinecones of various sizes, the largest about the size of a badminton ball. We were guessing – fungus, part of some plant – all distinct possibilities. However, we all took some pictures and left.

Cluster of Balanophora inflorescences

Much later, when we enlarged the image, we realised that it could indeed be a plant ! Each of the globular structures was indeed an inflorescence ! In fact, what I missed when photographing was a bee sitting on the flower. However, there were no leaves as part of the plant that we could see. This was very intriguing and left us wondering. We forgot all about this plant in question on our return, albeit for a short while. The curiosity of a plant kept nagging me. Only when I learnt a little more about the subject did things fall into place.

Bee on the Balanophora flower.

It turned out to be a plant that is more fungus-like – a rare one at that – Balanophora fungosa!

Close-up of the flower.

Balanophora fungosa, like most others of the family, lack the green pigment – cholorophyll – that enables plants to photosynthesize. It is a parasitic flowering plant. Most of the time, it remains underground where the plant grows on the roots of trees with only the inflorescence showing above the ground. Several species of trees (over 25) play host to Balanophora fungosa.

Balanophora grows in moist areas and has a wide distribution. In India, it occurs in the southern states of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Goa; north-eastern India is also within its distribution range. There are reports of the plant from various parts of the world primarily the tropics.

We know very little of the biology of plant. All these make Balanophora a very unusual plant indeed.

A renewed interest in spiders in the last 5 years prompted me to read up about the various spiders we have in India. And, ever since I stumbled upon this specific one, I have had this urge to see one in person and photograph it – due to the intriguing name it sports!

I was walking a trail with the naturalists at Kabini River Lodge when we spotted this spider. One of the naturalists suddenly stopped as he was about to walk straight into the web and drew my attention to what was in front of him. It turned out to be the Scorpion Spider ! The excitement among all of us soared. In spite of knowing pretty well that the spider was not going to disappear, all of us were still vying to get a closer look of the scorpion look alike!

The Scorpion Spider is a spider indeed. It has all the characteristics of a spider. Just that its body is elongated and resembles that of a scorpion, tail, sting and all. In fact, the genus to which it belongs to Arachnura simply means “spider with a tail” (arachne = spider; ura=tail). When disturbed these spiders do raise the tail part of their body enhancing their resemblance to a scorpion. There ends all relationship to scorpions. If you are expecting it to sting like the scorpions do, don’t worry, these spiders don’t sting !

Scorpion Spider with "tail" raised.

The Scorpion Spider is an orb-weaving spider. As can be seen in the pictures, it sits on the web with all its legs pulled up close and looking like some dry twig or leaf. The pattern on the body further enhances this camouflage.

Scorpion Spider with egg cases.

Subsequently, I have chanced upon these spiders in other places too, the forests in the vicinity of Dubare Elephant Camp being one such.

So, the next time, before you just walk past a spider web thinking that it has only some debris, pause for a second closer look. You may be staring at a Scorpion Spider !

Kabini has always sprung surprises on me. The recent visit was no exception. It was mid-November and there was a distinct nip in the air.

I reached Kabini River Lodge late in the evening just in time for dinner. After a quick wash, I headed towards the dining area. Normally this space is well lit. But to my surprise, much of the dining hall was dark. I was left wondering. Was I too early for dinner? Not really.

Initially, I thought that the lights were off to prevent the termites (alates) from getting attracted to them. However, only on closer observation did the answer become apparent – hundreds of mayflies had emerged from the water! Being attracted to light they were congregating near all the lights that were left on. The walls were dotted with mayflies; for that matter they were sitting on virtually everything. For some time now they have been growing from egg to nymph and were waiting for the opportune moment to make their maiden flight and out of water.

Adult mayfly

Mayflies are very interesting insects and have an equally interesting life-cycle. During mass emergence like the one described above, they mate, lay eggs and die. The females lay eggs on water or other substrates under water. The eggs sink down to the bottom of the water body. Eventually the eggs hatch and nymphs (also known as naiads) come out. They are aquatic and breathe through gills. The time taken for completion of the nymphal stage is very variable both within species and across species. During this time they moult several times as they grow feeding on aquatic organisms like algae besides some debris at the bottom on the water body.

When the time is right, there is mass emergence, they mate and the entire process is repeated. However, the mayflies that have emerged from water often settle down to moult one last time before they become adult mayflies. This makes mayflies unique – these are the only insects that have winged immatures.

Mayfly moult

As adults they live for a very short time. Hence the order to which they belong to is called Ephemeroptera (ephemeral – short-lived). Many survive for a day or two with some species surviving a little longer. As adults they have rudimentary mouth parts and don’t eat at all.

Next morning I went on a walk on the campus. I saw several mayflies sitting on plants, lamp posts, on the fence, and pretty much everywhere. What was striking though was the moult left behind by hundreds of mayflies. Several mayflies had got entangled in spider webs. Spiders were having a feast – a time of plenty. Perhaps insectivorous bats might have fed on them too during the night.

Mayfly entangled in the web of an Orange Orchard Spider

Mayflies are an integral part of the food chain. Being insects that spend much of their lives underwater, they are fed upon by a host of creatures – fish, frogs, birds, other insects, etc. When they do emerge, they fall prey to a host of terrestrial organisms.

Jumping Spider feeding on mayfly

Mayflies spend much of their lifespan as nymphs in fresh water. This makes them good indicators of water quality too. They generally prefer unpolluted waters. And they form a very important link in the food-chain both as aquatic nymphs and as winged adults. The world over, there are about 2500 species of mayflies with about 124 species recorded from India.

I had mentioned in the previous post titled The Mast Tree and the Tailed Jay that there are other characters in this story. I cannot introduce them to you without going back in time. So here it goes.

The banana plants owe their advent and existence in our garden to my dad. He, with great enthusiasm, brought a banana plant from our village. In quick succession, another visit to the village saw another small banana plant coming into our garden. They were showered with great care and attention. All this did not go in vain. The plants responded well. They grew tall quickly, and their leafy crown looked grand. All this effort was, of course, with selfish motives. All of us, day after day, looked towards the garden hoping to see a red inflorescence taking shape. The wait had just begun.

Perhaps an entire year had passed. We saw the banana plants through the summer, monsoon and winter. But there was no luck. One day, I was just exploring the garden. To my surprise, I saw a new shoot raising its head from the ground. I was overjoyed to see our family of banana plants grow in number. Gradually, we had a small cluster of five or so banana plants, all of varying heights. Together, they had created a different level to the garden which otherwise consisted of only shrubs.

A recent picture of my garden showing many levels

One evening, I was sitting on the terrace of our home trying to soak in the sunset which was all set to become rarer due to the rapidly changing skyscape of the city. The sun went down and I was enjoying the changing hues of the sky. All traces of sunlight disappeared and the streetlights came on. This is when I saw a small bat flying around. It flew in and out of the garden and would also venture farther afield. I had seen the Indian Flying Fox fly past on several occasions but had never seen this little fellow. A series of questions passed my mind. What species of bat was it? Where does it roost? What does it feed on? Does this species, like many bats, also roost in colonies?

The following morning even before it got bright, I was up on the terrace hoping to catch a glimpse of the bat and perhaps find out where it roosts. I was in luck. Hanging beneath a banana leaf was a furry mass – it indeed was the bat! I was very excited and I got my parents to come out and have a look at it.

It so turned out that it was a Shortnosed Fruit Bat Cynopterus sphinx. And, as the name suggests it eats fruits and does not roost in large colonies. It normally roosts under leaves like the one in my garden or at times under the eaves of houses and old buildings.

Over the years the banana plants have put forth several suckers and we have a cluster of them today. This, in spite of having removed several on request from neighbours for religious purposes, those that got stolen and the ones that decided to call it a day and fell down due to strong winds.

Notwithstanding the number of plants, we have had these bats in our garden regularly and a search invariably yields at least one, sometimes more. The maximum that I have seen at any instance has been six individuals. I have also been lucky to see adult bats roosting while embracing a baby with their membranous wings.

The Shortnosed Fruit Bats, like all other bats, are nocturnal in habit. This being the case, bats as a group are poorly understood. There are also several myths that revolve around them. However, the fact remains that this is a successful group constituting 25% of all mammals on Earth! India alone has about a 100 species with Bangalore having its fair share.

The presence of bats has also led to other interactions involving the omnipresent crow. The Jungle Crow, in particular, seems to have an uncanny knack of locating the bats roosting under the leaves and harassing them. The squeaky nasal call of the bat, reminiscent of rats, has drawn my attention each time the crows were up to mischief. Time went by and the banana plants started bearing flowers one by one. It was wonderful to watch the bats (during night) and squirrels and bees (during day) visit on the banana flowers as and when they were exposed by the falling of the red leathery spathes. Eventually, the flowers were replaced by fruits. When we were hoping that we would be able to feast on them, we realised that these were unsuitable for human consumption. For me, this came as good news – the fruits would be on the plants for the bats and squirrels! Now, when we see a flower or fruits developing on the banana plant, we completely ignore it and take delight in the fact that bats, squirrels and birds are having a good time.

These bats over the years have sprung surprises time and again. This is largely by way of adding to the plants that now grow in our garden. Several plants that we never planted have now taken root and have established themselves. The curry leaf plant is perhaps one of them. My mother would go to great lengths to grow one of these. But now, we have so many saplings – all growing on their own. There was one cluster of these just below a leaf under which the bats roosted frequently! The bats must have fed on the fruits of the curry leaf plant elsewhere and dropped the seeds in our garden.

Perhaps a year or so ago, I had noticed a Mast Tree Polyalthia sp. which had taken root in the garden. Now it stands about 2 feet tall. It looks like the bats are planting their own garden! In the process, they are also helping other wildlife come in to the garden. I had written about one such instance in my previous post.

The banana plant was one of the key additions to the garden. It provided a roosting place for the Shortnosed Fruit Bats. We just let them be, and they in turn enriched my garden by planting species which included the curry leaf plant and the Mast tree. The curry leaf plant has always played host to larvae of the Common Mormon and now the Mast tree is supporting the Tailed Jay.

Larva of Common Mormon

We can see how each of these characters fit into the larger drama of life that is enacted constantly all around us. It only requires us to see, observe, understand and appreciate all that happens right in the midst of urban chaos.

Ideally, the title should be “The Banana Plant, the Short-nosed Fruit Bat, the Mast Tree and the Tailed Jay”. I did not put up this title fearing that it would scare you all and also due to the lack of space for such a lengthy title.

Recently, I was casually looking at the wild growth in my garden. There were some jumping spiders amidst the foliage as well as many flies belonging to family Neriidae on the trunk of the drumstick tree. I also spotted a moth larva with a colourful head and busied myself photographing it.

While doing so, I saw a Tailed Jay butterfly sitting under a leaf of the Mast Tree Polyalthia sp. not taller than 2 feet. The Tailed Jay is a very restless butterfly and not the most easily photographed. So, I approached it very carefully and hoped to get a good shot. As I positioned myself for the task at hand, I realized that the butterfly had just about emerged from its pupa and was sitting on the same leaf on which the spent pupa remained attached. I took pictures of the butterfly with its wings closed.

I had photographed the Tailed Jay with the wings open several years ago on slide film. Another opportunity had presented itself now. I knew that I had a good chance of getting a picture of the butterfly with the wings open if only I waited for the butterfly to attempt its first flight.

To kill time I looked around the garden for other things and found a large green mantis which was busy cleaning its legs. Photographing the mantis took quite some time.

It was now time to visit the Tailed Jay again. I was really lucky. The butterfly had just started to fly weakly. On its solo flight it flew and settled on another plant nearby and I got an opportunity to get a picture of it with wings open.

You must be wondering as to what happened to all the other characters in the plot. Well, this is just the first part. The other characters will come into the story in the next post.

Dragonflies ruled the air. When they evolved some 300 million years ago, they were unquestioned masters of the skies. They were also large – a fossil dragonfly had a wingspan of about 75 cm! Today, we do not have such giant dragonflies flying about. However, they still continue to be strong, powerful and agile fliers. They are also among the fastest flying insects in the world.

Armed with powerful mandibles and 6 spiny legs that form a neat little basket just below their heads, they are also excellent predators. Dragonflies can catch their prey in mid air. They are known to make a meal out of mosquitoes, mayflies, butterflies, moths, and a whole lot of other insects. They virtually feed on anything that they can overpower.

Dragonflies, though predators themselves, must be wary of other organisms which could feed on them. Birds particularly, pick dragonflies with ease. Lizards, frogs, spiders are all potential threats to adult dragonflies and their dainty cousins – the damselflies.

During a recent visit to Corbett National Park I stayed at the Club Mahindra Safari Resort. What I saw here took me completely by surprise. I was walking up the ramp to the dining hall when something on the railing caught my attention. I ventured closer to understand what was happening. To my amazement, I saw a robberfly holding on to a dragonfly. The robberfly was in complete control of the situation – with a firm grip on the dragonfly and the proboscis pierced into its neck, the dragonfly had no chance of escape!

Robberflies are powerful predators too. I have often seen them prey on non-predatory insects much larger than themselves. To see a dragonfly, a powerful predator itself, becoming a meal of a robberfly was a learning indeed.

Often such amazing things happen around us and we are blinded by the urge to see more charismatic things. An open eye and mind can cause far less disappointments when we are in the outdoors for nature always has something on offer, albeit for the discerning eye and mind.

We (Vidya Venkatesh and I) recently ventured into the forests of Jeypore-Dihing in Assam between April 24-29, 2011. The primary intent of the trip was butterfly-watching. Though 2 days of our trip were washed out due to heavy rains, the rest of the time spent in the field yielded over 80 species of butterflies.

On April 26th, 2011 late morning, we sighted and photographed a Hesperid. Initially, when it flew and settled under a bamboo leaf we thought it could be the Water Snow Flat – a butterfly that we had seen already during the trip. However, on closer examination of the first picture that was shot (by VV) we realised that it was different. We quickly, shot more pictures of the butterfly. It was not until we got back to our respective home towns that we could identify the butterfly.

It turned out to be the Snowy Angle Darpa pteria. The Snowy Angle is an uncommon butterfly. The nominate race is known to occur in Philippines while the race dealbata has a wide distribution extending from Assam, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Malay Peninsula, Tioman, Borneo, Sumatra, Java, and Palawan.

This sighting and the subsequent photographic record of this species is perhaps the first in the recent times and also possibly the first photographic record of the species from within Indian limits.

All this was possible, solely due to the co-operation extended to us by the Assam Forest Department. We would like to thank Mr. Suresh Chand, Chief Wildlife Warden, Assam and Mr. Anurag Singh, DFO, Dibrugarh for according necessary permissions. We would also like to thank Mr. Daka,  RFO for his co-operation and hospitality.

http://ifoundbutterflies.org/351-darpa/darpa-pteria

Aristolochias are also popularly known as Birthworts besides many other names given to them. The family is represented by about 500 species world over. Most birthworts are creepers and several species with very showy flowers are grown in gardens as ornamentals. In India, we have a few species belonging to this family of plants.

These plants use a very interesting strategy to effect pollination of their flowers. The pollinators are perhaps attracted to the flowers owing to their colour and smell. The flowers have downward pointing hairs on the inside wall leading from the mouth to the bulb at the base. These hairs facilitate the downward movement of the pollinator. When the insect is in the bulb part of the flower, pollination is effected. Subsequently, the hairs wither allowing the pollinators to fly out.

Aristolochias also have interesting fruits. Several winged seeds are packed inside each fruit. When the fruit is mature, it breaks open and releases the flat winged seeds. At this stage the fruit looks like a little inverted parachute.

Recently, I saw an Aristolochia indica creeper entwined completely on a thorny shrub. When I saw the plant my eyes automatically started searching for the larvae of the Crimson Rose butterfly. At first, I saw a small caterpillar sitting on a flower.

Subsequently, I saw one that was feeding on the fruit of the plant.

There was also one large caterpillar resting on the main stem of the creeper. I quickly set about photographing various aspects of the flower and the larvae.

It is interesting to note that the Crimson Rose butterfly lays eggs selectively on the Aristolochia indica vines.

For that matter, all female butterflies are very particular about the plant on which they lay eggs. They will not lay eggs on every other plant they come across – they are host-specific. This is yet another example of how things in nature are inter-related.

These pictures (except that of the open seed case and the butterfly) were shot during a recent visit to the Blackbuck Resort near Bidar run by Jungle Lodges & Resorts Ltd.

I returned home from work as usual, rested awhile, had a cup of tea and walked up to my room on the first floor. Having put my bag away, I switched on the light and walked into the bathroom to freshen up. As I stepped into the room, something small scurried past the bathroom floor. Even before I could get a good look at it, the rodent like creature climbed up the shower curtain and made an exit from the bathroom window. The rest of the night was eventless. The next evening, the same set of events repeated and I failed to get a good glimpse of the creature. I had to wait until the following evening and hoped that I would get lucky.

The following day was like any other. As was the practice, I went up to my room and went directly to the bathroom to look for the creature. Nothing was in sight. But something told me that my little guest was somewhere there – hiding away from my sight. So, I decided to come back into the bathroom in a few minutes. On my return, I looked around and what caught my attention came as a surprise to me. My little guest had come out from his hiding, wherever that was, was cleaning itself sitting on the window ledge. It was a rich shade of fawn, had a long tail and black beady eyes. It quickly stepped out of the open window and disappeared. However, I noticed that it used the branch of a Jamun tree, the branch of which was within reach from the bathroom window.

This observation, albeit brief, combined with those that made the following day helped me identify the little fellow. It was a Long-tailed Tree Mouse Vandeluria oleracia. The fourth evening I decided to find the hiding place of the mouse after it had exited through the window as on previous occasions. I was excited as I eventually found a little pad of grass and some fibre hidden by some bottles and cans in an open shelf. I quickly replaced things that I had moved in my quest to find the nest. In the past, I had stumbled upon a Long-tailed Tree Mouse using an abandoned nest of social spiders. But, a nest in my bathroom was not something that I had bargained for.

Not quite knowing the habits of this mouse, my mind quickly started thinking about my precious library, my computer, my wardrobe, my camera equipment and all my slides-the result of many years of hard work stored in my room. As I kept thinking, I realised that the mouse had spent some time in the bathroom and it had not disturbed or damaged a thing. This gave me a sense of comfort. So, I did not take any special precautions to restrict the mouse to the bathroom.

Though only five days had elapsed since the first sighting of the mouse, it had already become a habit for me to go into the bathroom looking for my guest that had for some strange reason decided to make our bathroom its home. Amid all the suspense and excitement I had completely forgotten that I should take pictures of the mouse.

On day six, I equipped myself fully to photograph the mouse. I entered the bathroom with my camera fully ready and a lot of hope. The mouse had already come out. I first saw it on the railing that supported the shower curtain. I started clicking away. It was completely restless and kept moving about all over the bathroom. After giving me a tough time, it finally settled in the corner of the window for a couple of moments. This gave me ample photo opportunities before it went out of the window. Another day, another interaction with our guest, and I was a happy man.

The mouse and I had got habituated to each other over the week that had elapsed. We saw each other over the next couple of days in the manner not different from the previous days. Our little guest seemed to have settled down and I was glad that the guest found our place hospitable. One evening, perhaps, just over ten days since the first sighting the scheduled meeting did not happen. I was worried. I waited for our guest to show up, but to no avail. The next few evenings were spent in anticipation. The Long-tailed Tree Mouse seemed to have made a quiet exit. I still cannot fathom what attracted it to our bathroom and also what prompted it to go out, and in the intervening time even a build a little nest.

Later, while I was reminiscing about the events that had transpired, the fact that we (the mouse and I) used the same space without any conflict came out in a very striking manner. The mouse being nocturnal would make a quiet exit around the time I entered the room. The mouse, after a busy night, would return to its nest and I would exit the room after a good night’s sleep.

During the entire duration of its stay in the bathroom, the mouse did not damage a single thing. This is something that struck me. I was also left wondering about the number of mice that were getting trapped due the ignorance of mankind – all only because it looked like any other typical rodent. It may be worthwhile mentioning here that rodents, due to their constantly growing incisors, have an urge to constantly use them and hence, considered serious pests.

In the time that has elapsed since this incident, the Long-tailed Tree Mouse has visited my room on a few occasions. Each time, waking up to the sounds made by it when it was exploring my room. I have always promptly gone back to sleep since I knew, from experience, that there is nothing to worry about.

On many an occasion, I have wondered how a little time spent in understanding the creatures that co-exist with us in the urban landscape can prevent wanton killings. And, supporting and nurturing the biodiversity in our cities.