The largest of all estuarine mangrove is
Sundarbans National Park, which is situated at the southern most coast of West Bengal, India and it is the house of the most lucrative of all big cat species that inhibit in the entire world, Royal Bengal Tiger. Now, the question that comes in our mind why they have the nomenclature as "Royal Bengal Tiger"? To get the answer we have to see the history of the area first.
The vast planes of India came under British rule from Mughal emperor-ship; Bengal Presidency officially formed in the year of 1765. During company rule, Calcutta, a city beside river Ganges at today's West Bengal, was the major trading center and during British Raj, the capital of India became Calcutta. Britishers and that time Maharajas always had an affinity towards killing the magnificent beast, the Tiger. A burgeon culture in and around Calcutta grew to showcase the tiger skin along with taxidermied skull. From that affinity, the tigers from all over India were known as Royal Bengal Tiger or just the Bengal Tiger. Later the Maharajas of other presidency became accustomed to this culture and thousands and lakhs of them were killed for the sole purpose of trophy hunting.
When the Britishers were gone, their habit came through the Indian blood line of Poachers, who in turn declined the entire population of tigers across India into thousands.
The presence of super predator in any national park depends on many major factors amongst which "a sophisticated prey base" is the most important one. Tiger population at its height were estimated as many as one lakh at the start of 20th century. Main cause of decline in population is the increase in urbanization; since the entire national park falls under the estuaries, thus practically urbanization were never been a threat for this mangrove forest, though some confirmed and unconfirmed report of human animal conflicts are common at the forest edge villages.
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A typical estuarine fauna habitat. High tide level is up to the naked tree roots
(Click on the image to see it in full screen) |
During our visit to Sunderbans in the month of August '14, our team of six photographers managed to frame and record the presence of mammals like Spotted Deer, Rhesus Macaque, Irrawady Dolphin etc. On the other hand we were lucky in terms of birding too. Two of the rarest avian visitors in India had been photographed too. First one is
Ruddy Kingfisher and another one is
Buffy Fish Owl.
Beside Buffy Fish Owl and Ruddy Kingfisher one can also find find the some extreme mammals like
Irrawady Dolphin. These
euryhaline species are categorized as Vulnerable, according to IUCN red data. National level efforts are there to protect these elusive specie. Efforts from Forest Department, researchers, wildlife photographers and wildlife enthusiasts can prevent the upcoming Holocene extinction of the species.
Another species, that is worth mentioning in this post, is none other than Changeable Hawk Eagle. Both morphs of changeable Hawk Eagles could be seen here. The elusive dark morph of
Changeable Hawk Eagle, that is found and seen here, are exclusive of all findings and spotting of the specie in general across Indian Subcontinent. The rarest of all, dark and crestless morph of the specie can be seen along the river side perched high in some of the tallest trees.
Other major key species that could be found and photographed here with ample opportunity are
Water Monitor (Varanus salvator salvator),
Collared Kingfisher (Todiramphus chloris humii), Spotted Deer (Axis axis) and
Rhesus Macaque (Macaca mulatta).
Below are some key species that had been photographed from the tiger denizen.
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| Ruddy Kingfisher |
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| Rhesus Macaque |
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| Spotted Deer |
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| Spotted Deer |
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| Water Monitor |
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| Bronzed Drongo |
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| Changeable Hawk Eagle; A rare dark morph and crestless |
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| Collared Kingfisher |
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| Irrawady Dolphin |
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Other Helpful Information:
• Where to Stay: Stay options are ample. To make a wildlife photography trip in the mangroves jungle cruise boats are most important thing. Specialized boats with lesser vibration, knowledgeable guides, reputed cruise pilot and naturalists, who know the place well beyond others are the most important parameter to make a successful wildlife photography trip at this Tiger Reserve. All these mentioned logistic supports are arranged for the enthusiasts by GoingWild.
• Best time to visit: Try to avoid this place in the months of April and May, otherwise for the rest ten months it is a premier location for rest eight months. Early November to late May is the best time for birding and bird photography.
• Point of Contact: Send a mail to
dibyendu@goingwild.in or
support@goingwild.in mentioning your interest for birding and wildlife photography related queries.
One can also reach to
+919681417974 (
Dibyendu Ash) or
+918017804277 (
Soumyajit Nandy) or
+919163631493 (
Tamanud Mitra) for guided birding cum bird photography cum wildlife photography here. Arrangement for clean and subtle mud huts / eco-camps / eco resorts, dedicated boat for entire birding trip along with a naturalist-cum-birder are done by GoingWild.
