OK, so you already knew this, but having been at Madras Croc Bank now for 7 nights, I can honestly say, my love for crocs is doing nothing but growing!
Each day I get to walk around the enclosures and look at 18 of the 23 species still alive today. Sometimes they're hiding and I don't seem them, sometimes they are all out basking so I see several.
There are always 100's of muggers (Crocodylus palustris) to be seen so no matte what, I get to watch them everyday. There are a couple of muggers of note. One I have seen every day I have been here. She sits where she built her nest and guards it with great maternal responsibility. She doesn't know there are no eggs in her nest though. There are too many muggers here so they cannot allow more to hatch at this point.
The other mugger of note, is a tiny wee thing about 2 years old. It was probably missed when egg collections were done a couple of seasons ago so the lucky little blighter hatched and has survived to this point. A year of so back there were 6 apparently. Now there are probably only 2 left - the other one lives in a pipe and sits there basking with only his head out. They are at high risk here with such large numbers of adult muggers in the enclosure and also with the nesting water birds living above. But somehow this little fellow has beaten the odds so far and I see it basking at the end of the day in a spot near some tree roots. This determined little croc deserves an award for bravery and canniness!
I have fallen in love with the gharials (Gavialis gangeticus). They are so incredibly unique - there is nothing in the world like them. They are extremely shy and very wary of humans especially, which is a very good thing for such an endangered species. There are many reasons this croc hasn't increased in numbers in the wild with al the support it gets, but too complicated to go into here. Some political, some local communities, some logistical…
Feeding the gharials in the nursery is a highlight of my week. I love to go in and throw the little fish to them. I aim for the side of their snout and if my aim and their preparedness work right, they snap their head sideways and voila! a fish ends up in their teeth. They manoeuvre the fish so it is head first (so the fins etc don't get stuck in their throat) and down it goes.
The little gharials are even shyer then the bigger ones - they are used to being pushed out when it comes to food especially so it's vital to ensure they get a good feed too. They take a fish and climb back onto the land and eat it, then climb in again. Very cute wee things.
Each day I get to walk around the enclosures and look at 18 of the 23 species still alive today. Sometimes they're hiding and I don't seem them, sometimes they are all out basking so I see several.
There are always 100's of muggers (Crocodylus palustris) to be seen so no matte what, I get to watch them everyday. There are a couple of muggers of note. One I have seen every day I have been here. She sits where she built her nest and guards it with great maternal responsibility. She doesn't know there are no eggs in her nest though. There are too many muggers here so they cannot allow more to hatch at this point.
The other mugger of note, is a tiny wee thing about 2 years old. It was probably missed when egg collections were done a couple of seasons ago so the lucky little blighter hatched and has survived to this point. A year of so back there were 6 apparently. Now there are probably only 2 left - the other one lives in a pipe and sits there basking with only his head out. They are at high risk here with such large numbers of adult muggers in the enclosure and also with the nesting water birds living above. But somehow this little fellow has beaten the odds so far and I see it basking at the end of the day in a spot near some tree roots. This determined little croc deserves an award for bravery and canniness!
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| Brave little mugger |
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| Male gharial underwater |
The little gharials are even shyer then the bigger ones - they are used to being pushed out when it comes to food especially so it's vital to ensure they get a good feed too. They take a fish and climb back onto the land and eat it, then climb in again. Very cute wee things.
1 comment:
Glad to see it working out so well, love the photography!!! You should link your blog to facebook -when you write a post so we know to come and read! Love you lots Lucy
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