“I’m going with my college group, to protest and free the caged birds that are sold in the local market,” my daughter announced, triumphantly. I said, “Tell me, are you a naturalist or conservationist of wildlife?” She thought for a moment and asked, “Is there a difference? One can be both, right?” “Of course, as long as one knows the difference and decides to be so,” I said.
Youth is a fantastic phase in the human life cycle, full of energy, when you are brimming with new ideas. Many build their careers on such thoughts and work. But it is also the time when one could drift into areas unknown to them, mainly because they are not guided.
To be a nature lover and to study the flora and fauna of a place is a wonderful hobby. It is also good to be involved in protecting a species, but one should have the knowledge of what one is doing in the larger context of wildlife conservation. Dr. Theodore Baskaran in his book, Sprint of the Blackbuck , laments the ignorance of trying to save a particular species like the Japanese quail where in the first place, it is legal to sell these and secondly, if they are released in a different habitat, it will be hazardous for the species as well as for the local ecosystem.
Ramachandra Guha, in the same book, bemoans a society where people and government focus only on enhancing the economy; it suits them that the market-friendly media only looks at the pretty trees and tigers and call them the environment. When a particular species is to be protected, there has to be a proper study of the same along with the land and the community around it.
If well-informed about the situation, it’s not just the powerful who can start conservatory measures, but even the folks of a village. This is evident from the story of Kokkare Bellur ( kokkare in Telugu is stork) in Andhra Pradesh, where the villagers protect the painted storks and pelicans that flock to the tall trees there. The story goes, that a century ago, when the villagers had to move from another location to this area, to avoid a plague devastation, the birds followed them!
It is best to catch them young in this field; there is nothing more rewarding than to see youngsters introduced to wildlife conservation. I diverted my daughter’s attention to the plight of the Olive Ridley turtles. NGOs organise regular ‘night walks’, along the coast of Besant Nagar beach, Chennai and Gahirmatha beach, Orissa, to collect their eggs. They also divert the hatchlings towards the sea — sometimes the lights from the city mislead these hatchlings and they start walking in the wrong direction. Youngsters from different schools and colleges have also started cleaning the beaches and water bodies in the cities. Many a time, plastics, and the nets of fisherfolk end up in the stomach of unfortunate sea creatures, resulting in their untimely death.
A word of caution — never get involved in conservation work just for taking ‘selfies’ and posting them on Facebook. And definitely not with the wild animals in the background. If it is your calling to be a naturalist, well and good — you can study a particular species or related flora and fauna. If it is your desire to work towards the wildlife conservation in India, there is plenty to do and there are many to guide you, but stay focused to make your dreams come true.
You will be the force of progress tomorrow — may be guiding policy-makers to make the right move or, better still, you might become the policy-maker yourself and make the big changes that we need!
The author is passionately committed to preserving the wildlife and sanctuaries of India.
