Friends of Bandipur: Karnataka wildlife camp packs tigers, birds and all that's beautiful

Not just the cicada.

At night, it was a profusion of sounds that kept the forest alive. Outside the room where we stayed, everything otherwise appeared placid, with a herd of over 100 deer gearing up for a long slumber after a crepuscular (yes, they are active at dawn/dusk) feast. In torchlight flash, their eyes glowed as if a swarm of fireflies had lit up the jungle landscape.

A breeze wafted through the door, and there then was a sudden rustle in the thicket. In the forest, it’s not always what you see, it’s also what you hear.

The flock of deer clambered up, ears twitching in fear, and sent out a shrieking cry. A jungle has its own language — it’s an alarm call. There was a predator somewhere on the prowl. Langurs on the treetop too joined the squeal.

As luck would have it, she emerged from the foliage. Her stripes, a vibrant orange against the deep green of the forest, seemed to glow in the dappled sunlight. She was walking with a languorous grace, almost oblivious of our presence. A snub? Perhaps.

Tiger or leopard, that seemed to be the only concern (for the deer) or interest (for us). The cries turned shriller. In faint light, what we saw was a breathtaking sight: two leopards trotted in in fleeting seconds. All this unfolded around 200 m from where we stood, and stayed. Clearly, there was bloodshed in the darkness.

A young girl among us was shivering, cuddled inside her windcheater, while some celebrated our first Big Cat sighting as a group of strangers, from diverse places. If you are wondering where we were or what we were up to, we were cocooned at the core zone of the pristine Bandipur forest as part of a wildlife camp organised by the Karnataka Forest Department.

It was Day 1

'Friends of Bandipur'

Evocatively named ‘Friends of Bandipur’, it is a one-of-a-kind programme where you can stay in the middle of the forest for three days, interspersed with multiple safaris, wildlife classes, group activities, and a wind-blowing ride to the Himavad Gopalaswamy Temple, the highest peak (almost 5,000 feet high) of Bandipur Reserve Forest.

The programme is headed by the mercurial Mohana Kumar, Education Officer, ably supported by naturalists Dharmendra Swamy aka Dharma (what a birder, he is!), and Yogi, picked from the neighbouring Jakkahalli village. The camp is held every week, from Saturday to Monday.

What began as an experiment just a year ago is now a runaway hit, gearing up for its 36th batch, exceeding all expectations.

Beyond tourism

Going by the response, there is an overwhelming demand from Karnataka for Kannada-only sessions, while only five programmes have been conducted in English so far. More English programmes are in the offing, though.

Wait, there is a catch here: it’s not a typical tourist programme, but ‘’an initiative aimed at making people aware of the forest, its essence, and conservation’’.

‘’First of all, we don’t want anyone to sign up as a mere tourist. This is more of an effort to sensitise people about forest, and the work we do. As far as I know, no other reserve or national park is conducting such a programme. The idea is to keep it as a basic, introductory programme so that everyone can understand what we try to convey. The response has been overwhelming. Our own staff have been bringing families. We are also planning to update the programme,'' S Prabhakaran, (a Vijay Sethupathi look-alike) Field Director, Bandipur Tiger Reserve, told The Federal.

Bandipur is a spot that never palls. The story goes that the Mysore King went to hunt, and came back as a naturalist, sowing early seeds to make this stretch one of India’s first Tiger Reserves. It’s not hard to guess why he walked out smitten by what he must have witnessed.

It’s not a typical tourist programme, but an initiative aimed at making people aware of the forest, its essence, and conservation.

Home to over 1,000 elephants, nearly 200 tigers, and more than 300 species of birds, a wide array of trees, insects, reptiles, and amphibians, it is one of the best places to watch or shoot wildlife in the country. The Mysore-Ooty highway (where night traffic is banned) that criss-crosses through the forest is again one of the finest, must-take scenic road trips in South India.

Rustle here, crackle there

Day 2 began with another leopard sighting on the lawns, and last night's kill. At 6:20 am, our safari bus pierced through a gossamer veil of mist in search of wilderness.

Our driver, Shyamanna, barely spoke, always looking out for cues. A rustle here, a crackle there, he was all ears and eyes. Even with the patchy BSNL network, safari drivers stayed in constant communication about rare animal sightings, often leading to a hurried dash and crowding at the spot.

Elephants, gaur, sloth bear, king vultures, kites, endemic birds, every possible sighting tick was ticked in the last few hours or so, but one thing remained elusive: The Royal Bengal Tiger. There was a buzz about the possible sighting of a female tiger named ‘Moorkkere’ (named after the lake where it was often seen) and her four cubs. But it’s all happenstance.

Listen for alarm calls

The July evening sun was getting ready to slide into the woods, and hopes began to fade. Only 40 minutes left for our last safari to end. Then, something happened.

"Alarm call," someone whispered, pointing towards a nervous trio of Sambar deer (what a sight!) which tigers relish. Their sharp, distinct barks cut through the stillness. Deer and langurs are the first to send out what is ‘call’ in wildlife parlance when a predator is spotted.

Shyamanna stopped the vehicle midway, at a three-way intersection, a fire line, with a majestic open view of the jungle. Our hearts pounded. That was it. In a hushed tone, someone said, ‘’It’s there, dozing off in the bush.’’

A momentary hush gave way to a frenzy: some people readied their cameras, others rushed to the front cabin for an elusive glimpse, and some burst into excited chatter. Mohana had to intervene and calm everyone down. After all, we are in its territory as trespassers. What most could see through the shrubbery was the tiger’s head. Or tail? Whatever, it’s the tiger.

Unlike in zoos, no one tried to poke or taunt the tiger up. We waited what seemed like an eternity. Worry: tigers, sometimes, can sleep up to 16 hours.

Star in stripes

As luck would have it, it emerged from the foliage. Its stripes, a vibrant orange against the deep green of the forest, seemed to glow in the dappled sunlight. Amid a flurry of trespassers and vehicles, she was in no way inquisitive or provocative, walking with a languorous grace, almost oblivious of our (alien) presence. A snub? Perhaps.

The contiguous Bandipur, Mudumalai (in Tamil Nadu), and Nagarhole stretch — the tiger trifecta, so to say — in the Nilgiris Biosphere together has over 400 tigers in its abode. You get the complete picture when you realise that tigers are found in only 13 countries worldwide.

There was more drama to come. The tiger started ambling towards the other side. Ever alert, Shyamanna quickly reversed the mini-bus, driving two km to another spot before halting. Thirty to forty minutes passed by, and some of us wondered whether the tiger could walk all the way to the exact spot. A fiery gaur walked in, but few cared or bothered. Ah, there come alarm calls again.

In minutes, there emerged the tiger, in full grandeur. It was as if Shyamanna knew the tiger’s spoor. For nearly 3 minutes, the tiger lurked around, offering a bounty for the photographers among us, before slinking into the woods.

Moorkkere tiger arrives

It was the same Moorkkere tiger, the toast of Bandipur. There was no trace of the cubs, though.

‘’Tiger gives the ultimate kick,’’ someone quipped. India’s tiger count may be rising, yet the feline remains the most coveted sighting for wildlife photographers and enthusiasts. Tiger spottings are sheer chance encounters, with some waiting for days, if not months. In fact, Prime Minister Narendra Modi could not spot a tiger or a leopard when he took the Bandipur Safari in 2023. For the record, Bandipur has the second-highest number of tigers (191) in India, after the famed Jim Corbett National Park (250+).

The contiguous Bandipur, Mudumalai (in Tamil Nadu), and Nagarhole stretch — the tiger trifecta, so to say — in the Nilgiris Biosphere together has over 400 tigers in its abode. You get the complete picture only when you realise that tigers are found in just 13 countries worldwide.

Tiger as important as toad

Such exclusivity aside, the story is not about the tiger alone; it’s also about other creatures.

‘’People in cities have no clue about forests and wildlife. Even a frog has a big role to play in our eco-system and we don’t care about anything. As a race, we humans have no concern for any other species in the jungle or elsewhere. For Nature, it’s all the same. That is why a tiger is as important as a toad. Our initiative is to create that extra awareness about conservation,'' said Mohana, who leads the innovative Friends of Bandipur programme.

Illuminating and often humorous, Mohan's sessions — especially the ones on snakes and frogs — were telling.

Another revealing experience was a visit to the Anti-Poaching Camp (APC) on the forest fringes where we met a frail 50-year-old man with oodles of energy, sharing stories about his close encounters with sloth bear, tigers, gaurs, snakes and even the late forest brigand Veerappan. Trekking in forest is romantic, but not when you need to traverse 15-20 km through rugged paths every single day, braving weather and carnivores. Yet, he seemed proud and happy.

Small joys of life

Not everyone comes scouring for the tiger though. Some come for the elephant, some for the gaur, some for the trees, some for the insects and many for birds. There's nothing quite like the small joys, like when our safari bus came to a delightful halt for almost 20 minutes, captivated by the playful antics of a rare kingfisher pair. When was the last time your vehicle stopped, and you simply watched birds playing?

As Mohana Kumar said at the session, it’s all about slowing down, pausing, and noticing every tiny thing. Tiger or toad, you observe and absorb. In the jungle, what you see is what you get.

(The three-day camp is priced at Rs 9,500, including food, safari and shared dormitory accommodation. For updates and booking, check out the Instagram page bandipur_tr. The writer paid for the programme.)

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