Is cheetah programme of Govt. of India sound?

Do we want the cheetah back? 
A recent assessment conducted by the MoEF, the Wildlife Institute of India and the Wildlife Trust of India has identified the Kuno-Palpur and Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuaries in Madhya Pradesh and the Shahgarh Landscape in Jaisalmer for the introduction of cheetah.
An estimated 300 crore will be spent initially on the project and potential sources for the animals are also being explored. It s quite likely that the cheetahs, if they come, will be either from Namibia or South Africa. 




Why is Cheetah to be back?

As per ministry it is to regain a part of the lost glory and
history of this country. The magnificent cheetah that was once a living, bounding part of this nation's reality must be brought back. The other, as has been pointed by some wildlife experts, is that the cheetah, like the tiger, is the apex species of the grassland habitat and it s presence would, both, indicate and ensure the health of this badly abused ecosystem.
M K Ranjitsinh, doyen of Indian wildlife conservation and a prime mover of the cheetah reintroduction project has argued that, The cheetah restoration will be part of a prototype for restoration of original cheetah habitats and their biodiversity, helping to stem the degradation and rapid loss of biodiversity. He also noted that re-introducing the cheetah will help to save other threatened grassland-scrub-open woodland species such as the caracal, Indian wolf, the desert cat, the Great Indian Bustard and the Lesser Florican.  Prima facie the arguments seem valid, but if looked at carefully, both have
serious problems.

What is the reality?

It seems that introducing the Chettah from Africa is meaning less and sheer waste of time and money. The African species is different from the Asian Chettah which became extinct in
1948. 
And therefore this will be a foreign element in our ecosystem.
It is like introducing Eucalyptus tree from Australia in our country.
It is a bad project.
To protect grasslands, we don't need Chettah.
These projects are just to displace more people from their homelands and nothing else. 
Why spend so much money on introducing a foreign animal in our ecosystem? 
What has the forest department done to our grasslands? 
Just see Ranebennur Black Buck Sanctuary in Karnataka which has some of the remaining Great Indian Bustard left. 

This bird is like a aeroplane, it needs to run to take off. Introducing Eucalyptus on these grasslands has resulted in these birds not able to run to take off. They often hit the trees and die or fall prey to wolves. Now Chettah also needs huge grasslands to run, we dont have such big grasslands like the African Savannah forests. 
The Indian Chettah lived in the scrubs and grasslands and was
more adapted to this region. This African Chettah will not be able to do so,eventually it will die, but in the process the government will successfully relocate poor people from their homelands and grab those lands in this era of Climate change. 
Introducing Lion from Gir to other forests in India however is not a bad idea. Since we had Lions all over the country once upon a time. And in Gir we have hardly 200-300 Lions which are the last of Asian Lions. THis can adapt since it belongs to our region. That could be tried in other forest regions in the country. Not this Cheetah. 

It amazed me with its charming chime!!!!

Malabar Whistling Thrush 

The Malabar Whistling  Thrush   (Myophonus horsfieldii) is a Whistling Thrush in the thrush family Turdidae. They are also known locally by the name of 'Whistling Schoolboy' for the whistling  calls that they make at dawn with a very human quality. The species is a resident in the Western Ghats and associated hills of peninsular India including central India and parts of the Eastern Ghats. This is a bold species and is often found close to human habitation. 

The male sings its varied and melodious whistling song from trees during summer. They may sing for long early at dawn but at other times of the day they often utter sharp single or two note whistles. They were once popular as cage birds, because of their ability to learn entire tunes. They bathe frequently in water usually in the morning and evening but at mid day during hot weather.

People often mistake it as 'kuyil' (koel). Koel or Cuckoos are in the family of Cuculidae, but Malabar Whistling Thrush belongs to Turdidae. Also it shows parental care which is lacked by Cuckoos. To see the parental care of Malabar Whistling Thrush visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdVLnef6lHU&feature=fvw 

Importance of wild life conservation

What is meant by wild life and what is its importance?

Wild life refers to all living organisms in their natural habitat other than cultivated plants and domesticated animals.

Due to indiscriminate deforestation, nature lovers are becoming alert to protect the endangered species of wildlife as well as those that are on the verge of extinction and thus save the world from running out its green heritage and natural balance.

The wild life is important in view of following facts:

Wild life maintains ecological 'balance of nature' and continuity of food chain and nature cycles. It helps in maintaining the balanced living systems of earth, which consequently ensures survival of life.

Wild life has got economic value in terms of natural products like gum, honey, dead wood timber and medicinal plants.

Water bodies, the 'elixir of life' originate from forests and flow down hill to support the life of all living organisms.

Wild life offers large gene pool for the scientists to carry out breeding programmes in agriculture, animal husbandry and fishery.

It provides aesthetic value to man. By their unique way of existence, wild creatures exaggerate the natural beauty of the earth.

Wild life of a country is its heritage and cultural asset.