If you are petrified of insects and fascinated by them at the same time, then Dr. Shubhalaxmi is the person to meet. She is the founder of iNature Foundation, which organised the walk as part of ‘International Day for Biological Diversity’. iNature deals with engaging citizens to be sensitive towards the environment through various programmes and online courses.
The trail attracted people of every age group, from curious kids to teachers and photography enthusiasts. So off we went on one such walk conducted by Shubhalaxmi and team at the Bannerghatta National Park.
She starts off by explaining about the different types of bugs and describes the characteristics and differences between butterflies and dragonflies. Her comment about, “the evolution of dragonflies from being as big as a crow to their current size,” was a shocker even to the teachers present there.
As we walked along the trail, we saw beautiful blue butterflies hovering around our heads.
Shubhalaxmi amazed us with her knowledge of quirky little facts about every kind of bug. Her facts about ants being the only insects to be able to select the gender of their antling caused a fit of giggles among the participants.
The further we walked into the park, we heard the cicada’s mating call that led her to narrate stories about how she had attempted to catch one herself.
She went on to explain how the Silent Valley is the only place where cicadas do not sing.
By now we were walking on damp ground and could hear the familiar buzz of the bees.
Shubhalaxmi quickly explains the reasons behind the assorted colours of honey produced.
Her explanation about the position of a queen in every honeycomb and her intolerance towards other females that could possibly steal her position made most participants grin.
During the one-and-a-half trail, we learnt about many insects and bugs. The blissful weather and her enthusiastic approach, interspersed with jokes about the creepy crawlies made for an interesting and informative morning.
