Santosh Rajus
20 years back Velachery was rich in life; I still remember growing as a child looking at Cobras, Rat Snakes, fishes and a lot of birds. There were hardly a few houses and the Pallikaranai marshland, which stretched to about 14,000 acres, was also part of it. During the laying of the metro railway tracks,…
One of the rare bird species to be spotted in south India, the Grey-headed Lapwing (Vanellus cinereus) has arrived in Chennai. Since 2003 these birds have been visiting the Pallikarani Marshlands and this year, they arrived in great numbers. Over 220 Grey-headed Lapwings have gathered along the Pallikaranai marshland, feeding and flying around in flocks…
It was late evening and I was hiding behind a bush and observing the Yellow-Wattled Lapwing (Vanellus malabaricus) nest in the grasslands. All of a sudden I could hear a Lapwing calling out loudly and in a few seconds I could hear the sounds of wings flapping and more Lapwings calling out. Hence, out of…
As I was driving my bike along the East Coast Road, a sudden flash of bright blue caught my attention and my eyes rolled to follow the blue flash of light. If you’re wondering what it was,it was the Common Indian Roller, such a beautiful bird which is calm, shy and when approached flashes its…
It was past ten and the rainforest was filled with silence with the mist covering it completely and making visibility to only few meters. I was walking along the path of the grassland to see the great gathering of the Common Indian Toad but I was taken aback as there was very little visibility. Venturing…
The sight of a Pit Viper moving actively on the ground caught my eyes. The Malabar Pit Viper (Trimeresurus Malabaricus) is an ambush hunter and I was surprised to see it on the ground foraging and hence I decided to follow it closely to see in which direction it is heading. The pit viper slowly…
The stage had been already set by the Pit Viper in a small well where the Malabar Gliding Frog (Rhacophorus malabaricus) descends and call out to find his mate. The Pit Viper had taken his place on a stick lying inside the well, with which the female Malabar Gliding Frog descended to the calling males…
