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

Rongali Bihu Celebration.....Shillong 2010.

Hi friends --something at professional front is keeping me occupied because of which i am not as much regular visiting you all .I will be back to blogger by the end of this month .Here are few more pictures from Shillong Bihu celebration,which i would like to share with you .Bihu is one of the biggest festival of this part of India. This celebration reflects the rich cultural heritage of this beautiful region as the people from all the communities /tribes participate with equal enthusiasm .The spirit of Bihu binds all of them together irrespective of their caste,creed and religious beliefs.

The picture above is of famous Wangala Dance of Garos .Meghalaya, which means land of clouds, is mainly an agricultural and farming land. The inhabitants here therefore generally worship the Lord of farming and agriculture. The Wangala Festival which is also known as Hundred Drums festival is therefore a grand Carnival to celebrate the harvest season.It is a "Thanksgiving" ceremony to Misi Saljong, also known as Pattigipa Ra'rongipa (The Great Giver) for having blessed the human beings with rich harvest of the season.This dance was presented by the dancers of Meghalaya art n cultural group.If you are interested you can read more about this dance here .

Here in this picture the artist is playing Assamese Traditional musical instrument known as PEPA --it is an integral part of the folk music of Assam.It is usually with a very short stem made from small diameter bamboo/cane/reed with the end away from the mouth capped with the horn of a buffalo.
I clicked the above picture back stage where these beautiful dancers were waiting for their turn....i loved the way they smiled at the camera.

The same group later performed Bihu dance...it was an enthralling performance.Bihu’ performed by young men and women reflect youthful passions and joys during the spring season, accompanied by songs woven around the theme of love and physical yearning. The whole atmosphere comes alive with the rhythm of drums and flutes.

Here is Snow Lion-Dance being performed by the Tibetan community of Shillong.In Tibet the Snow-Lion symbolized the fearless and elegant quality of the enlightened mind.When a healthy and harmonious environment is established by the creative activities of human being such as through the performance of sacred purify and healing music,all living beings are represented by the snow lion..

This group presented Bagrumba-Dance.Bagrumba is one of the main dance forms of Bodos, the largest tribal community of Assam.The attire you see them wearing is completely hand woven.Holding the ends of colourful scarves hung round their necks, the dancers move forward and backward with alternate footsteps to the accompaniment of Kham (drum) and Sifung (flute). The special features of the dance like harmoniums jerks of the waist, graceful, forward and backward swinging of the body and wrist that makes it more fascinating.

Here comes another beautiful dance form of Assam...Jhumur -Dance. Assam is very famous for its tea gardens. The people residing in an working in the tea gardens of Assam are called “kulis”. The tea tribes have a synthesized form of dance called "Jhumur Nach", performed by girls and boys together, or, sometimes by the girls alone, with precision of footwork while clasping tightly each other's waist .The dance is performed to the rhythmic accompaniment of the Madal(dhol). The costume worn by the Jhumur dancers is different from the traditional costume worn for the Bihu dance.
This is Goalporia-Dance.Songs and dances are an integral part of the lives of the people in Goalpara district.The song on which these dancers performed is one of the most popular Goalporia song 'Kamola sundori nache'.
Buwari-Bihu (buwari means a daughter-in-law)....this bihu dance is performed mainly by the married ladies.
The members of the ladies club presented this beautiful chorus .As you can see all of them are wearing traditional Mekhela Chador.

Hope you liked the post,i will be back to you all in a week or two.Thanks for your constant support and encouragement.

information on few dances ...courtesy Culture of Assam(official website ).

A little bit of Shillong

Shillong is the capital of Meghalaya state of India .It was a part of undivided Assam , on 21 Jan 1972 it achieved its statehood.This beautiful state is the homeland of three of India's ancient hill tribes/communities Khasis,Garos and Jaintias.The state is called Meghalaya which means Abode Of Clouds as the hilltops are generally covered by dense and beautiful clouds making them almost indistinguishable and inseparable.It is a landlocked territory of lovely hills.Agriculture is the main source of livelihood here.The state has rich source of deposits of coal,limestone,sillimanite,fire clay,dolomite,feldspar,quartz.Its thick forest produce timber species like Sal,Teak,Titachapa,Gamari,Pine ,Birch etc.It is also rich in wildlife ,there are also some rare species of birds like the adjutant stork which can be seen here.It is also rich in orchids.The famous insect eating pitcher plant which is a botanical wonder is found abundantly in the hills of Meghalaya.Here in this picture above you see young girls and boys wearing traditional Khasi attire.....i clicked this picture back stage right after their dance performance during Rongali bihu cultural event at Shillong.

Bejeweled women  attired in traditional finery , silver clad men in colorful costumes dance along with the drummers and flutists. Male wear Jymphong which is a long sleeveless coat without collar, fastened by threads in front and a dhoti with an ornamental silver waist-band. The attire is complimented by a turban or a headgear. Ladies wear Jainsem a two piece unstitched wrap around garment woven from the mulberry silk cultivated in the local region and they too wear a beautiful silver crown on their head.

Here is another group of young ladies wearing traditional Khasi dress Jainsem. ...they were about to present a Christian devotional chorus in the same event . Meghalaya is one of the three states of India to have a Christian majority with approx.70%of the population following Christianity.The Khasis are believed to be the remnants of the first Mongoloids overflow into India.They have matrelineal society where the descent is traced through the mother .It is only the youngest daughter or Ka Khadduh who is eligible to inherit the ancestral property.If she dies without any daughter surviving her the property is inherited by the next surviving elder sister.Ka Khadduh needs to obtain an approval or consent from her uncle and brothers in case she wants to dispose the ancestral property.

As Shillong is known for its scenic beauty and cool climate ,it is considered one of the most favorite tourist destination of NE region of India.We were there on a short trip but still we managed to take the kids to Ward's Lake which is situated right at the heart of the town and is very near to our home there.
Feeding the fishes and pedal boating are the main attraction .....we did little bit of both.We were lucky to get a sunny weather through out our stay .

This is Lady Hydary Park ....not only it is beautiful but also it has a mini Zoo attached to it.

Elephant Falls

One of the main attraction of Shillong is Elephant Falls.

The main Falls :Elephant Falls

Originally the Khasi people named the falls Ka Ksaid Lai Pateng Khohsiew (three steps waterfall) because the water falls into three steps.When the British people came and found the water falls they named it Elephant Falls because on the left side of the falls there was a rock resembled the Elephant but this rock was destroyed by the earth quake in the year 1897.

view of Shillong