March-May 2024, Terai region of Nepal is often described as grain basket of Nepal, that not only supports the agriculture but it also homes wide array of wild animals including charismatic species like : Sloth bear, Bengal Tiger, Asian Elephants, Greater One horned Rhinoceros, Common Leopards etc. I like to call it a Jungle Book for a reason because this region is rich in the species and diversity.
Terai Arc Landscape is a landscape conservation initiative located in Southern region of Nepal and Northern region of India, developed by Government of Nepal in 2001, this region extends from Bagmati River in Nepal to Yamuna River in India.
I was hired by Terai Arc Landscape (TAL) in Technical Consultant position, my work was to work in the Eastern region of Terai Arc Landscape in Chitwan and Nawalpur districts doing camera traps, sign survey and aid in wetland restoration through my reports.
Me and Prabesh around Lamichaur Bufferzone
March to June is considered to be the driest month of the year here in TAL along with forest fire being at peak, I had to access the restored wetlands inside the forest for wildlife, check for its status whether it is used by wildlife or not for that i had to deploy camera traps, search for signs that include footprints, scrapes or any other identification marks found there. During these months water source is minimized, all the wildlife are confined or attracted towards these waterholes making it perfect for carrying out opportunistic survey and understanding the status of wildlife.
We and Bengal Tiger using the same road
For camera trapping i was using Cuddyback digital X-change Color- Model 1279. This camera provided great pictures and videos. Some areas were hard to access and some were making us sweat because of the fresh big paws of Bengal Tiger on our trail. These regions are also known for the dense Rhino population which can charge at you behind the bushes and make you fly in the sky with its charismatic horn up in the sky.
Deploying Camera Traps around the wetlands
We used to check camera between the interval of 7 days after the deployment and the camera sits for around 3 weeks to help us gather enough pictures and videos for the evidences.
It was great to meet good people, forest guards were very helpful except one who was not interested in assisting us. Altogether the project made us sweat, hunger was on peak but we all completed it.
