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Waterfall nature




























             A WiLdLiFE


             TRip TO nE indiA


             (AssAm)




                                                                                              Greater one-horned rhinoceros (Ds)
                   By Ron Searle, Photography by Merl & Marty Arnot, David Shackelford, Pallav Pranjal, Rockjumper Birding Tours and Ron Searle

             As part of the ancient landmass of Gondwanaland,                       also located in Assam, is 35km from
                                                                                    the nearest city, Tezpur, and is en route
             the Indian sub-continent possesses an impressive                       to Bhutan. It hosts a vast number (for
                                                                                    its size) of Asian Elephants, has a bird
             variety of wild mammals similar to much of those                       list of 374 species and is refuge for

                                                                                    the endangered White-winged Duck,
             that have evolved in Africa.                                           the only small remnant population
                                                                                    of this species in India (very sparsely
            B      hutan, a kingdom and         430km²) was established as a forest   Asia). The Nameri NP has about 94%
                                                                                    distributed also in Bangladesh and sE

                   birding hotspot, is located in
                                                reserve in 1908, a wildlife sanctuary
                                                                                    forest coverage – it has unfortunately
                   the foothills of the Eastern
                                                                                    continuous human/animal conflict.
                   Himalayas. To its south, it   in 1950, and awarded World Heritage   become an area of illegal logging and
                                                site status by uNsECO in 1985. The
             shares a border with Assam, a state of   Brahmaputra River forms the northern   3 000 head of forest-encroaching cattle
             NE India. I had booked a 20-day tour   boundary of the reserve. Its extensive   now graze in the reserve, resulting in
             of Bhutan and there was the offer of a   floodplain, surrounded by small   the inevitable conflict between the
             5-day pre-tour option to explore the   pockets of lowland evergreen forest,   elephants and the cattle owners. In
             wildlife and birds of the National Parks   stands of moist broadleaf woodland   2001 alone, 18 farmer deaths caused
             of kaziranga and Nameri in Assam – to   and expansive areas of grassland,   by elephants occurred. The future
             a birder, of course, this was irresistible.  attracts an impressive list of birds and   of this NP is accordingly threatened
                                                mammals, the latter including two   and therefore rather uncertain.
             It is perhaps surprising that, in   thirds of the world’s population of the
             India, with its human population   Greater One-horned Rhinoceros, Asian   KAZiRAnGA np
             of 1,3 billion, much of its wildlife   Elephant, Bengal Tiger, Leopard, Asian   My adventure commenced with an early
             survives in various National Parks (NP)   Wild Buffalo, rare swamp Deer, Hog Deer,   afternoon flight from OR Tambo Airport
             proclaimed specifically to conserve it.   sloth Bear, Hoolock Gibbon (primate),   to kolkata in India via Dubai and then a
                                                Wild Boar and Ganges River Dolphins.  connecting flight to Guwahati in Assam.
             In Assam, (formerly an independent                                     I arrived the following day at noon and
             country), the kaziranga NP (covering   The Nameri NP (covering 200km²),   was met at the airport by a very friendly

             28  Waterfall Issue 7   2020
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