Pictorial guide on insects released for Kalakkad – Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve

The Kalakkad – Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (KMTR) , which is the natural habitat for rare species of insect, now has its population of butterflies and moths documented for the first time. 

A comprehensive pictorial guide on these insects is available for the benefit of visitors, adding to the data that already exists on the birds and animals found in the reserve. 

Retired biology teacher Geetha Iyer helped bring out the guide, replete with striking photographs of butterflies and moths she spotted around Thalaiyanai near Kalakkad, Sengaltheri, Nambi Temple, Maanjolai, Kuthiraivetti, Upper Gothaiyaar, Kannikatti and Kodamaadi. 

“I could see (butterflies and moths) right from the Tiny Green Blue (a tiny butterfly with a wingspan of 12 mm) to the Southern Bird Wing (having a wingspan of 190 mm) during my stay inside this sanctuary. Much more needs to be explored and documented,” Dr. Geetha says. 

The giant Atlas moth (with a wingspan of 210 mm) is also a denizen of the reserve, she points out. 

Though the butterflies and moths face no serious threat from predatory creatures, their habitat is at risk, she warns. 

“Several small species of animals and plants help create habitats in forests and maintain them. Many of them are unknown to humans,” Dr. Geetha observes. 

“This (documenting butterflies and moths) is one step towards the goal of holistic conservation of the sanctuary,” said Field Director (in-charge), KMTR, Rakesh Dogra, while releasing the guide in the presence of C. Gurusamy, Deputy Director, KMTR’s Mundanthurai Division and K. Sekar, Deputy Director, KMTR’s Kalakkad Division. 


‘Though the butterflies and moths face no serious threat from predatory creatures, their habitat is at risk’ 

‘Small species of animals and plants help create habitats in forests and maintain them’ 

Original Story

Furious Finning

Reuters (From Outlook, August 15, 2011)

Market abroad Much of the shark caught in India is for export

Burdensome Catch...

• India has been ranked second on the top-20 list of shark-fishing nations of the world
• With little local consumption, most of the catch is exported
• Around 18 species, such as the Tiger Shark and the Smooth Hammerhead, are fished in India
• Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands are important shark-fishing centres
• A national plan for sustainable shark-fishing is being drafted

***

The word ‘shark’ may well be used to describe a rapacious person, but the fate of the real shark seems quite pitiable. Much of India’s conservation efforts focus on the tiger; meanwhile, indiscriminate shark-fishing in Indian waters to feed markets abroad may be driving the shark to extinction. Compiling international data, TRAFFIC (a global wildlife trade monitor) and the Pew Environment Group have ranked India second on a list of the top 20 shark-catching nations. With an annual average yield of over 74,000 tonnes, India accounts for nine per cent of the global catch. It is surpassed only by Indonesia (13 per cent) and followed by Spain (7.3 per cent) in the ranking, announced early this year. A 2008 report had placed India third; to conservationists, the improvement is really nothing to be proud of.
While most people associate sharks with the ferocious kind of the film Jaws, few realise there are over 400 species of shark, many of them critically endangered. In fact, the Union ministry of environment & forests (MoEF) had even banned shark-fishing. However, the ban was revoked in 2004 on pressure from groups representing fisherfolk.

Full story on Outlook