Sunday, June 6, 2010

Kashmira Kakati.... her extraordinary story of discovering wild cats

Just few days back i told Kashmira  that she is one of  those extraordinary women who  made Assam(India) very proud globally by her work.When i expressed my desire to write a post on her the initial response from her was this,'Thanks for saying such nice things about me, but it's really the animals and still-remaining forests that Assam should be proud of! My role has only been accidental in uncovering some facts about the forests. Please highlight the Jeypore-Dehing Forest to your blog readers.'

So friends here i am introducing you to Kashmira Kakoty a wildlife biologist who recently announced the discovery of seven species of wild cats in the little known JEYPORE-DEHING forests in Assam...the highest concentration of photo documented wild cats species anywhere in the world.

You can see her in the above picture-- as this is one of my most favorite picture of hers , i asked her permission to use it for the post.Just last night i received this mail where she wrote 'Happy Environment Day. Here is the photo - I kind of like it too. It is one of the very few of myself in the forest:) because most of the time I am the one with the camera.'


After completing her graduation in zoology from Assam she earned her master's degree at the Wildlife Institute of India Dehradun.Later she did her PhD at Cambridge University studying the impact of forest fragmentation on Hoolock Gibbons in Assam.From a period of the years 2002-2007 she took time off to raise her two adorable sons with her Elephant biologist husband Christie Williams.
During her Gibbon study she worked in the Jeypore-Dehing forests as it is one of the last remaining strongholds of the Gibbons (one of the 25 most endangered primates in the world).





Let me tell you little bit about Jeypore-Dehing forest of Assam.The forest here are of unique type called the Assam Valley wet evergreen forest and is amongst the last stretches remaining.This forest was not particularly known for their wild life .During last 100 years the area had been logged very heavily and also it is a lucrative crude oil catchment where production has been going on continuously .Until recently there also used to be coalmines.Deforestation,poaching,mega hydro electrical projects,extraction of crude oil and coal is a major threat to these forests.Kashmira thinks that these forests need a well regulated tourism and a heavy plantation and forest restoration plan.The evergreen forest is very important both in terms of being a watershed as well as in holding back floods — a scourge that afflicts most of Assam for months during the rainy season. Most experts agree that floods have become an intractable problem because we have been steadily destroying our original hill and valley forests — nearly three-quarters of the Assam Valley forests have disappeared within the last several decades. Forests also act as local climate regulators, a key factor for the agriculture in this region.
She used to see a lots of signs of the presence of other animals especially carnivores while she was following gibbons for her research.Even if she spent real long hours in the forest she never actually encountered any carnivores as they are nocturnal.To start and support her camera trap survey of the forest she received a small grant from CEPF(critical ecosystem partnership fund-it is a global initiative that provides assistance in safeguarding the Earth's biodiversity hotspots) and also a matching grant from the Rufford Small Grant Foundation U.K. around the same time-it helped her run the project for two whole years.Her research was also supported by the Forest Dept of Assam govt and the Wildlife Conservation Society of India.
As the pictures started coming in she herself was completely surprised as she had not expected to find so many mammal species still surviving-45 at last count,19 carnivores,7 of wild cats.The seven species caught on the camera are the rare and elusive -Cloded leopard(Neofelis Nebulosa),Marbled Cat(Pardofelis Marmoratee),Golden Cat (Captopuma Lemminckil)and four relatively widely distributed species tiger (Panthera Tigris),Leopard(Panthera Pardees),Leopard Cat(Prionailurus Bengaleniss)and Jungle Cat(Felis Chaus).

Jeypore-Dehing Forests now takes its place amongst India's Top Wildlife areas after proven to be holding one of the India's richest carnivore communities.The pictures of the seven species of cats in fact place it top in the world in terms of field diversity recorded in forest.Kashmira strongly feels that highlighting the carnivores is only one way of getting attention to these forests as the ecological security of the area depends on it... her efforts are surely going to succeed.'I hope my findings will convince the Forest Department of Assam to upgrade the protection status of this crucial wildlife habitat and watershed.'....says Kashmira

I thank Kashmira for providing me all these pictures and information .For Wildlife Enthusiasts who would want to know more about this ,here are few links...1.http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/03/photogalleries/100312-cat-species-rain-forest-pictures/.
2 caught on film..carnivores of India.
3
.world's highest number of wild cats recorded


62 comments:

  1. Kavitha is great, proud of her work. Thanks for sharing those pictures.

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  2. Nice Post. I hope you had put this up two days back!My daughter needed information and pics about animal lovers for her project!I will make sure she shares this with her class as well. Thank you.

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  3. good on kavita! thank you for sharing!

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  4. Thank you, Kavita, for introducing us to Kashmira.

    Nice pictures. I have never heard about this forest until now. Thank you.

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  5. very interesting, never knew you had such diversity in your country, although I remember seeing your mountain photos. thanks for sharing so much fascinating info and highlighting one woman's important work to save wildlife.

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  6. Please convey our heartfelt gratitude to her for doing this admirable work. The forests and the wild life in India are slowly disappearing due to our own callousness. It feels wonderful to see a woman of conviction to do her best to protect our environment.

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  7. nice pictures.. cool

    hey, i have got a bit busy with studies, so blog time restricted for sundays. so wont be able to comment much on ur blog.i read the blogs i follow on my phone when i take breaks at the library, but my phone ka internet doesn allow commenting. so plz don mind if u don't get a comment from me on ur blogs. im still readin it :) cheers

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  8. nice pictures.. cool

    hey, i have got a bit busy with studies, so blog time restricted for sundays. so wont be able to comment much on ur blog.i read the blogs i follow on my phone when i take breaks at the library, but my phone ka internet doesn allow commenting. so plz don mind if u don't get a comment from me on ur blogs. im still readin it :) cheers

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  9. What long tails some of those wild cats have! I wouldn't want to be caught with them in the wild. Don't they attack humans?

    Kashmira. Nice name for a smart woman. Keep up the good work!

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  10. Dear Kavita ba ,it was really informative to know abt the wild cats ...thanks a lot for sharing ,,,even the pictures are too good ..

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  11. Very nice work of Kavita. Also, very nice and informative article. I am happy to see that we have captured most of these cats in www.xobdo.org along with the Assamese names. Please indicate if something is missing.

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  12. your friend is a protector of wonders! Bless you both-




    Aloha from Waikiki

    Comfort Spiral

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  13. That's a great reassurance that so many have been filmed in the area. Hope Nature lovers like Kashmira and supporters like you create more awareness and give Nature a chance to protect herself.

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  14. Wow Kavita .. I ws nt aware of these regions too. I so wanna make a trip there soon :) Thanks so much for sharing :) Wil get bk to u if I need any help :)

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  15. Commendable work by Kashmira! Thanks for sharing info about the wildlife in the jungles of Assam.
    Cheers :)

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  16. @Suffix- Thanks a lot.

    @Jyothi...thanks,i had the draft prepared but was waiting for the pictures to come.I am sure your daughter and her classmates are going to like this one.

    @Magiceye..thank you.

    @Sandhya....thanks ,it was only from Kashmira's mouth that i came to know about these forests .I am glad you liked the post.

    @Lin Floyd...thanks .Its a privilege to know Kashmira ,i have always admired her as a person ,now i respect her even more .Biodiversity of India interests many,i hope to write a post on Deserts of India someday .Would love to show you some very beautiful beaches too.

    @Aparna..you are absolutely right,we are very callous towards our environment.We need more and more people like her before its too late.Thanks.

    @Dr.Chandana Shekar...thanks for visiting.Don't worry dear,please concentrate on your exams.Best Of Luck !

    @Gigihawaii..thanks.I think they don't attack human unless provoked but still i will ask this question to Kashmira and let you know.It is a beautiful name..kashmira...i like it too .

    @Boni..thanks dear :)

    @Bikram M Baruah...thanks.I will surely check the link you provided.

    @

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  17. @Cloudia...thanks a lot for your blessings :)

    @Holy Lama..thanks.I hope Kashmira's efforts show some very positive results very soon.

    @Swaram..thanks.How wonderful !Please do let me know in case you need any help.

    @Shilpa Garg..thanks a lot :)

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  18. I sincerely wish there were more people in the world like Kashmira. To dedicate her life to saving these precious animals!

    Thank you for sharing this information, these pictures, and for the introduction to these beautiful forest creatures and their protectors!

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  19. Wowow you know your articles are a must read for all the NRI's they tell so much about our country to us all.. Its really been awesome following your articles reading and knowing about all thiese exciting thigns going around...

    I am not sure what jungle it was in my NCC days we trekked through the jungle in assam and i am sure we were told elephants and other animals were there and to be safe at night ...

    But look ath pictures its a wow,, i wish the government did something to protect all this.. your friend is doing a wonderful job , Kudos to her ALL THE BEST ..

    and thanks for sharing these pics and the info THANK YOU

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  20. This is amazing feat. I have not seen so many variety before.

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  21. those are wonderful pictures and hats off to kavitha..for such an great work..par excellence! nice post

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  22. Seems like she's a lady that knows what she wants to do with her life and is good at doing it.

    Sorry I haven't been around for a while. It seems things get so hectic now and then. I've been thinking about stopping my blog for the summer, since there seems to be so much that has to be done in and around the house, yard and etc.

    But thank you for your visits.

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  23. Hi Kavita Di !!This is one of the Best Post !!I really learnt so much from this post !!Thanks for sharing !!Another destination i would love to go !!Unseen Rajasthan

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  24. Your friend is doing a great job, so are you...thanks for sharing this with all of us :)

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  25. Love all the pictures .Thanks for sharing.I love your blog.

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  26. These are remarkable photos of the diverse feline population you have there. How wonderful to have somebody like Kavitha who is documenting their existence and are trying to help protect our environment and the fauna. We need more people like her.

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  27. Good one, appreciate her work....

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  28. Amazing work! She is a hero. Please convey my regards to her. :-)

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  29. Thanks for sharing the pics and the research work.

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  30. I am always glad to see people taking an active part in our world and enlightening us of their findings. I congratulate Kashmira Kakoty on her findings and thank you for braining this story onto your post for us to read. You always have such an interesting posts. Thank you for coming by, have a nice day.

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  31. hats off for her work. great post.

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  32. buddy..gr8 post yar...reallly.plz pass on our pat to kashmira...gr8 pix also...hey dr..wish u and family were in mumbai..v all could have caught up...better luck next time..cheers and wishes always..

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  33. nice post
    pics are great

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  34. Hats Off to KAshmira...

    Feels proud of you

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  35. Very nice post Kavita. It is so full of interesting information. You did a wonderful job of presenting this for us. Thanks for sharing.

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  36. hey Dr u r a blessing for bloggers boss...cheers and best wishes to yr fmly:)

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  37. Fantastic post, Kavita! Amazing pics and I am so glad you sahred this with us. I hope Kashmira succeeds in her mission. Indians do not appreciate what they have. Lets hope she makes them more aware. Thank you for this wonderful post!

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  38. This is something very substantial. Thanks for bringing out the details on your blog.

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  39. WHat a fascinating story! And the pictures of the cats are breath taking. Great post!

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  40. Such people gives hope for life in this world.
    But for the vast majority and the ruling class are these unique wild felines any way a priority and of value than the booty that can be got by the destruction and exploitation of the forest lands?

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  41. It is so good to know you are in Assam. It brings back memories of my childhood spent there. I want to visit Assam once again as an adult. Maybe someday!

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  42. TRuly admirable work by her. And so thoughtful and lovely that you should put it up.

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  43. Great pictures! Sounds like quite a woman!

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  44. Dr
    Your words of consolation on loss of my brother helped me strengthen myself. I really appreciate it and pray for peace and good health to you and yr near ones. U have been a gr8 friend from the day v came across..Really lucky to have come across you.

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  45. Hi Dr..plz return to this blog..it has many wellwishers, inc me...

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  46. wonderful photographs and an incredible tale of Kavita- the photographer!

    Thanks for sharing!

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  47. very nice blog..........plz visit my blog if time permits......http://lets-cook-something.blogspot.com/

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  48. Great post,ur post always has something new.Today came to know about kashmira kakati and about her research on cats.Never thought there would be so many species of cat.

    U seems to be on a long blog break,do come back.Wil be waiting for ur post :)

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  49. Good night Kavita
    beautiful post, I loved the pictures, congratulations!

    Kisses,
    Ana Martins
    Ave Sem Asas

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  50. How r u Kavita? No posts for quite some time nw. Missing them :)

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  51. As a nature lover, I am impressed. And also ashamed that I hadn't visited your blog earlier or had heard of Kashmiri. Do convey my compliments to her. I am absolutely thrilled to read the post ( and a bit envious too!) :)

    I have a young friend, Prachi Mehta, who is doing yeoman service to nature like Kashmiri.

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  52. oops, sorry about the blooper - Kashmiri. I meant Kashmira. :(

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  53. while it is heartening to know such forests with such enormous bio-diversity do exist, what pains the most is the uber-callousness of our politicians to take any steps towards protecting these national treasures, and the lack of initiative from the people too! People like Kashmira are godsend to save these last patch of greens along with their treasures, lets just hope our government takes heed and turns the forest into a bio reserve or national park, to facilitate better protection.

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  54. Nice post...I like this kind of posts...one does not get to read about often

    Excellent.

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  55. I'm a big fan of Kash's so it was fun to see this post!

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  56. hats off to Kashmira! n Kavitha baidew for such good posts!

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