Finally, after an entire year I made it back to Kabini. My usual collaborators were unavailable but when the office on Bangalore’s MG Road told me that a tent was available, I just had to grab the opportunity. And thus I left Bangalore at about 6.30 am and soon the Gypsy was screaming down the Mysore highway.
This was my first time in the tents and they are very nice. Unlike the Thattekad tents, these had a lockable door and a lockable chest of drawers.
There were some new faces at Jungle Lodges but most were familiar. Once the Gypsy was sorted out I quickly got down to doing some QTVR and HDR photography. It was good to be back, out of the city, and to smell the clean air.
The HDR images will be posted on my
Fisheye site, and the videos are in my
blogOff for the evening game drive accompanied by fellow enthusiasts, most also armed with cameras. On through Karapura village waving back at the village children whilst the driver avoided the sundry cows, chickens, goats, and dogs. We were soon in the forest and welcomed by that characteristic sound of Kabini, the one-more-bottle call of the Indian Cuckoo (Cuculus micropterus). In the back ground we could hear chital stags roaring challenges to rivals.
Light levels were fairly low but I managed fairly decent shots of our sightings, mainly elephants, in the forest and on the backwaters. The first lot of elephants were an excited group of females and a young tusker. I did shoot stock using the 28-70 mm L lens but here are some close ups with the 500f4 + 1.4 x converter.
We then chanced upon another nice tusker but he quickly moved off into the bushes. Our last sighting was of an old cross tusker. He would not emerge from the dip he was in, and here is an image that clearly shows the large hole in his right ear. He is a truly magnificent animal.
We also managed a pair of Stripe-necked mongooses. Lastly a small herd of gaur was sighted. A big bull was present but he hastened away into the undergrowth.
Later that evening when we left the forest we heard of a leopard sighting. We waited a bit but there were no alarm calls and so we moved on.
After downloading images and freshening up, I headed to the bar, a place I had not been since my first visit. After a couple of beers and some good chatter with my fellow enthusiasts, it was dinner and off to bed.
The next morning the bunch of us were up bright and early and were the first lot heading to the jungle. The first sighting was of a herd of gaur at a waterhole. There was a big bull present, but I went for tight portraits which you see below.
Later we heard of wild dogs that had made a chital kill near the backwaters. We drove there immediately but they had already polished off the kill. Here are the pictures of the pack which included juveniles.And now some images of langur, wild boar and a tusker before the excitement of the evening.
In the afternoon it started bucketing down and we merely had to enjoy the forest in the rain. I managed the shot of the myna bathing you see below at Tiger Tank.
And then it happened! At sixish we were parked near Tiger Tank and ‘Aaunghhh,’ we heard the roar of a tiger! We tensed and pulled out the cameras and he roared again closer to the tank. We also heard a sambar bell. We waited and he roared twice more, but alas he was moving away from us. But we continued to wait and we then heard him again ‘aaunghhhhhhhhh!’ He then stepped out onto the Power Line road roaring! He was on a patrol, calling out a challenge to any upstart male tigers who happened to trespass into his territory. He then flopped down in the middle of the road and shook his massive head shaking the water from it. He then got up, continued roaring and moved down the road.
Here is best of the pics, please understand that the shutter speed was 1/10 of a second at ISO 1600.
Oftentimes, after a rain, the sun will break out and all will be gorgeous and glistening in the jungle. Apparently the gods of the forest were smiling down upon us, for the next morning turned out to be one of those when everything comes together.
It was clear and at about 7.30 am the sun came out.
Our first encounter was with a herd of bison. Light levels were low and here is a shot of the massive bull which I managed with the 28-70 L-series lens that I had carried for stock imagery.
We then encountered one of the most beautiful birds to be found in Kabini, the White-bellied Woodpecker (Dryocopus javensis). There was a pair and we were able to photograph them at leisure. They are larger than most woodpeckers and handsomer too. Note the black jacket, the pied waistcoat, and the raffish red hat!
Then followed an encounter with a very co-operative Indian Roller which you see below. Photogs, be patient! You will find rollers with clear backgrounds.
News then came in of a pack of wild dogs and we drove to the area where they had last been sighted. Sure enough, we spotted them, again a pack with juveniles, and they were advancing upon our vehicle.
And now follows a harangue to naturalists, drivers, wildlife enthusiasts, and wildlife photographers. If a bird or animal goes into the undergrowth or past your vehicle, it does not mean that it has logged out for the day. Wildlife photography is about waiting, about being patient and waiting for the right shot. And constantly trying to get a better shot. And so, after the wild dogs ran past our vehicle, I noticed that they were gambolling in the jungle behind us and was even able to photograph a pair mating!
Another harangue: wildlife photographers must know their subjects. Wild dogs are social animals and you will get superb shots of social interaction if you are prepared to wait. The idea of moving away as soon as they settle down in the grass borders on the absurd.
In any event, I insisted that the vehicle be reversed, and then proceeded to get some of my best wild dog images ever which you see below.
I find the portrait below to be very poignant. This wonderful animal was once classed as vermin and if we lose our jungles we lose the wild dog as well.
We then drove on and parked near a herd of chital. I made a few portraits, one of which you see below but was happy to capture a stag marking his territory. Deer have several scent glands which they use to mark their territory, and a couple are located just below the eyes. Here the stag is rubbing his scent onto a bush to deter rivals.We then had an encounter was with a very handsome tusker.
Last but not the least, a Changeable Hawk Eagle (Spizaetus cirrhatus) and a peacock obliged us by posing nicely.One of my best trips, for a long time..
Posted by AB Apana , wildlife photographer and blogger from Bangalore. . His blog
Wanderings in Wild India is all about Land of Trumpet, Roar and Song.
To know more about Kabini, click
here.
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