Top slip – a rendezvous with wildlife

“The shade of each leaf,
The moisture on each grain of sand;
Every little hill fold that you see;
Gives to the river that flows to the landmasses;
Gives life to all our lands”
                                    – Conserve Nature

A touching phrase found on the roadside wall at Parambikulam reserved forest.

This trip to Top slip, Pollachi was utterly different from serious treks we do since it was formulated to implant the seeds of “conservation” in the minds of participating nature loving souls. This trip gave us few insights about animal behaviour, trekker’s conduct in wild life sensitive areas, inspiring true stories from a wildlife conservationist, observing the beautiful peacock’s dance, watching the spotted deer’s graze, understanding the pug marks of wild animals. It had so many varieties and different flavours that a nature enthusiast would have sought for.

Watching the deer’s graze on a peaceful morning:

A peaceful morning with the mountain birds breaking the silence in the air, the chill breeze kissing the early raisers, trees dancing to the tunes of the wind, the Anamalai peaks covered with thick fog and the sky becoming chilli reddish. We saw that spectacular herd of spotted deer’s along with their kith and kin grazing the grasses. A very rare sight for a city dweller like me, I enjoyed clicking pictures and watching them graze for almost 30 minutes before some noise came inside the bushes, which chased the deer’s into the woods.

The protector of deer’s:

This black little ancestor of human beings is considered as the protector of deer’s from predators. Nilgiri langur sitting on the top of trees alerts deer’s that unmindfully stands below grazing, unaware of the predators. It emits a unique sound and alerts the deer’s about the presence of strangers and predators in the vicinity. See the below photo carefully and check how the Nilgri Langur alerted the Sambar deer

The Great Kannimara Teak:

The great Kannimara teak tree honoured by the central government with ‘Mahavrisksha Ouraskar” award and around 450 years old stands tall in the Parambikulam wildlife sanctuary. Certainly the largest, tallest and most revered teak tree I have seen or heard so far. Hugging its trunk I realised how insignificant is mankind in front of nature, quite a unique feeling.

I had goose bumps watching the Peacocks dance:

It was 2nd day early morning we entered the Parambikulam reserved forest in the forest department’s vehicle. We were the early ones into the forest welcomed by herds and herds of deer’s on both the side of the road. Unable to believe my eyes and digest the happiness what I saw was absolute exquisiteness. Yes, I saw with my jaw opened the beautiful national bird opening its wings and dancing. It was a glee watching them dance to the tunes of nature. Wish I had all the time in this world to watch this magnificence unfolding before me.

Jumbo quenching its thirst:

Unable to come out of the beautiful sight of the peacock’s dancing we proceeded ahead just to watch a lonely elephant entering into the water, quenching its thirst and disappearing into the woods. With the bamboo trees at the background, huge mass of water body in the front, the jumbo seen drinking water was elegance personified.

Wild boars – the cleaner of forest:

Wild boars seen in great numbers act as a cleaner of the forest. I remember one incident that Mr. Anand recollected from his experience about how 10 wild boars cleaned the remains of a dead elephant within a week. Indeed, the forest and the other wild life should be indebted to wild boars for their assistance in keeping the forest clean.

Mr. Parambikulam of the wildlife Sanctuary:

The Indian Gaur or popularly called as Indian Bison seems to be one the most regular member of the Sanctuary gymnasium. With muscles projecting from every possible part of its body Mr. Bison is a pure vegetarian.

Since it is the human being who wants to venture inside wildlife territory and wish to watch them and take pictures. Whomsoever it may be, keep in mind we are basically trespassing into their territory and it is our duty to follow certain basic Do’s and Don’ts.

Do’s and Don’ts when you venture inside a wildlife territory:

1. Wear only green or brown coloured dress and avoid wearing any flashy colours. Elephants are colour blind and they may approach towards white colours.
2. Wear full-length dry-fit trousers and t-shirts as the same could minimise the effect of insect and reptiles.
3. Avoid using perfume or body or pain killer sprays since, they spread fast in the air and reaches the wildlife before you can spot them.
4. When you are in a wild life territories never leave the group and venture alone. Always obey the instructions of the guide.
5. Avoid shouting or screaming if you spot an animal and you can take as many photos one wants maintaining silence.
6. It is advisable to keep your eyes and ears alert and look out for animal movements while you venture inside animal territory.
7. Don’t litter or throw plastic anywhere, it may have serious consequence on the life of wildlife eating plastics.

For the love of Nature,
Durai Murugan