Crocodile, Crocodile…….!!!!

The Corbett Tiger Reserve in Uttarakhand is really famous for its tigers…..well, surveys conducted by myself here in 2008 threw up a real big surprise…..The Corbett Tiger Reserve was also home to a crocodile on the verge of extinction…….and there were over a hundred of them here…..!!!!

What made this discovery really exciting was that these crocodiles were none other than the Gharial…...who are known to prefer fast, free flowing rivers. Well, in Corbett Tiger Reserve they live in a lake…..and even breed here! Guess that this is one unique population…….of gharial!!!

Surveys conducted on the Gharial in Corbett National Park in 1974 showed only a few gharials surviving here…...about five and no adult males. The Ramganga River which flowed through the park was being dammed then and the researchers wondered if the gharial would survive the changes that would take place when a reservoir would be formed in place of the river…...I found out over three decades later in 2008 that the gharial had indeed adapted to a lake—like environment.

The gharial in Corbett had a number of friends which included mugger crocodiles and freshwater turtles…...and to protect them were the brave officers and staff of Corbett Tiger Reserve and the Uttarakhand Forest Department.

When you visit Corbett Tiger Reserve do look out for the gharial…..its easy to find. It has a long, narrow snout and adult males have a bulb like structure at the tip of their snouts called a …. “Ghara” . In hindi this means Earthern Pot...and that’s where the gharial gets its name from.

We really need to find out more about the gharial in Corbett and its friends, the mugger crocodile and the freshwater turtles. The Uttarakhand Forest Department has given me permission to study these species for an initial period of five years….so watch this space for the latest happenings, anecdotes and photographs as we try to understand more about these wonderful creatures of Corbett.

Gharial Nesting confirmed in Boksar

Late March to mid April is known nesting time for gharial and I was able to conduct a few preliminary surveys in Corbett Tiger Reserve to search for gharial nests. Boksar where nesting was recorded in 2008 for the first time in over 30 years was of particular interest. 


Was the nesting in Boksar in 2008 a fluke occurrence???? Or has nesting been occurring in Boksar over the years prior to 2008 but was never observed or recorded????? 


Setting out in the Park's inflatable with one of its tubes punctured I was a bit apprehensive at first of having a successful survey. However, Mr. Harish Dhyani, the boat operator for the day was as cool as a cat and swore by his inflatable and his boat operating skills, assuring me that all would be well.......with a little filling of air into the tube with the boat's foot pump......and that if anything untoward happened I was not to think about the Mugger Crocodiles in the water......not that I would have much to think about if the boat went under and I was grabbed by one of those muggers.....

The punctured inflatable gave me some anxious moments

The monsoons in 2010 were quite heavy and as we streamed towards Boksar, I, wondered what effect it would have on the gharial nesting sites there. On approaching Boksar, it was easy to see that much of the area was still submerged under reservoir waters and was similar to what it looked like in February 2008  obviously due the heavy monsoon rains in 2010........

Gharial Nesting Habitat in Boksar

As we surveyed Boksar gharial climbing activity was evident on sand embankments formed between mountain folds formed as dam waters receded.  This was surprising as heavy April showers had washed off all signs of trial nesting and climbing activity suggesting that though well past the nesting season, nesting in Boksar may extend over a longer period as compared to other places where gharial are found........ 

Gharial climbing activity on sand embankments in Boksar well past the known nesting season

    

As we continued our surveys in Boksar  we came across  a sand embankment in the general area where we found a predated gharial nest in 2008. Well, this time round there was no difference.........we were to again find a predated gharial nest in Boksar  and the tiny tail drag marks at the site suggested that a monitor lizard had been hard at work.......

Predated Gharial egg in Boksar

Gharial nest in Boksar predated by a monitor lizard

The finding confirmed that nesting does occur in Boksar and the area is of vital importance to the regeneration of the gharial in Corbett. Predation is a worrying factor and with the gharial on the verge of extinction protecting as many gharial nests as possible in Corbett is the need of the hour........

     

A Gharial Papa on patrol......

This interesting video was filmed by myself during the nesting surveys in Buksar in 2008. Before the Kalagarh Dam was built in 1974, Buksar was known for being breeding grounds for the gharial.......after its submergence in 1974 it was expected that breeding would never occur here due to lack of sand banks for nesting.....however, in summer as the reservoir water levels decrease in a horizontal and vertical manner.....many areas in Buksar were exposed with sand being deposited between the rock folds of the Shivalik mountains....these mini sandbanks were used by gharial for nesting and I did find a gharial nest here in 2008........Well, while passing Buksar to visit other areas for the nesting surveys, I often stopped at this nest site to see if all was well.

  
One day I noted an adult gharial male patrolling this area keeping a watch on me obviously displaying its protective nature towards it's nest.......this is often called Parental Care and I was fortunate to see it for real......This gharial papa and me often watched each other many a times when I visited the nest he was protecting in Buksar.........This short rare field video is a treat for all those who have heard about gharial parents patrolling their nest sites but have never been fortunate enough to see it in the wild.......