A Tale Of Tigers

Before we introduce you to the inspiration for Rudyard Kipling’s Jungle Book, I’ll relay how we arrived at this beautiful part of India. Travelling is not all beers and sunsets, regardless of what the brochures and Instagram highlights suggest. We set off from Hampi at 8 pm for another adventure on a night bus. Our spirits lifted as we climbed on board and found that our two person bunk did in fact allow for two people to lie down next to each other. Unsurprisingly, however, the rocking and rolling, stopping and starting meant that we had little sleep in our eight hour journey north-west from Hampi to the metropolis of Hyderabad. We arrived at about 3h30 am on the outskirts of the city, and were subsequently harassed by multiple taxi drivers and other creatures of the night. Opting out of a short rest in a local hotel to save some money, we headed straight for the airport. There we were told we could not go inside as our flight was only at 3pm that afternoon, and it was now just passed 4h30 in the morning. We fortunately found a café serving coffee and could huddle next to our bags and wait to be allowed into the airport. By this point we were nearing delirium and so opted to pay for a “lounge” (foregoing the previous savings) simply to find a comfortable chair to sleep on and a meal to tide us over. From Hyderabad we took a two hour flight further north-west to the town of Jabalpur. The tour company which had arranged our safari had suggested that rather than spend a night in town we head straight to the guesthouse near Kanha National Park. This was located a three hour drive, and the private taxi did not help stave off the nausea from 24 hours of travelling. We finally arrived at “Courtyard House” at about 1am, and were very fortunately welcomed by the most luxurious accommodation we had seen in our entire time abroad.

We had the next day to ourselves and Esti spent most of it sleeping off the previous 32 hours of travelling, whilst I did some yoga and some afternoon birding to familiarise myself with the local species. That evening we met some new friends, Claire and James, from England, and excitedly discussed the upcoming days of safaris in one of India’s most well-known “tiger parks”. Kanha National Park lies in Madhya Pradesh, a forested state in central India which includes many of the national parks well known for their tigers and other wildlife. On our first morning as we drove through the mist with the tall Sal trees all around scenes from the “Jungle Book” definitely came to mind. Whilst planning our safari trip in India I had applied some of my African experience. One cannot expect to see a lion during a one day trip into Kruger National Park. Thus I had selected the two national parks, and a decent enough time period, which gave us the greatest chance of viewing a wild Bengal Tiger. Or so I thought. The recent monsoon rains had left the grass tall and green, beautiful for photography, not so great for finding an incredibly secretive and elusive cat. But, being good naturalists, we reveled in everything the park had to offer. The first day provided sightings of the rare Red-headed Vulture and the cute Jungle Owlet, as well as a Ruddy Mongoose and various other wildlife, and we were satisfied with the sheer beauty of the landscape and the usual pensive excitement which accompanies any safari.

The safaris in India operate differently to back home. Firstly, you are not allowed to self-drive, probably to avoid the bad press of tigers eating tourists. The Parks are divided into large zones, with each zone further divided into specific routes along pre-determined tracks. Tourists are allocated a permit for a specific zone and route on either a morning or afternoon safari. No vehicles remain in the Park throughout the day, unless specially arranged. A government guide accompanies you on the back of an open Suzuki Jimny vehicle as you traverse the set routes. The advantage is this reduces disturbance in popular areas, a positive outcome for wildlife and tourists alike. That first morning we were also exposed to the primary modus operandi of the Indian naturalists seeking tiger and wildlife sightings for their guests…listening…carefully, whilst also looking for tracks or pug marks from the big cats along the sandy roads. The aptly named Barking Deer act as the primary assistant safari guide – revealing the potential location of predators as they call out in alarm. The guides then head for the general area of the alarm call, turn off the vehicle and wait patiently. This tactic obviously works, or perhaps it wouldn’t be quite so common. Over our five safaris in Kanha National Park we were treated to forays into most of the different zones and marvelled at the incredible vegetation and beautiful surroundings. A massive Gaur, a type of Bison, and the largest wild cattle species in the world, was stunning to behold as he crossed the road and revealed a body mass far larger than our tiny Jimny. We were also fortunately treated to incredible meals and nightly bonfires at the Courtyard House, which made the safari experience more reminiscent of home. And of course I scanned for birds and ticked off many new lifers each time the vehicle stopped to listen out for barking deer once again. After three days and five safaris however, it seemed that luck, or the numerous Indian deities, were not on our side. The tigers of Kanha had eluded us. We kept our spirits high however (at least on the outside) so as not to disappoint our excellent hosts, and said farewell to the hospitable staff of Courtyard House and boarded a taxi for our next destination – Bandavgarh National Park.

This Park has been made famous by numerous natural history documentaries, and for good reason. It contains the highest density of wild tigers of any area on the planet. Note that I mention wild tigers. As naturalists we are not interested in the caged, captive version of such a magical creature. And in fact are repulsed by even the thought (although that didn’t stop me from watching the full season of “Joe Exotic” – with accompanying equal measures of disbelief and disgust). The International Union for Conservation states that there are now more tigers in captivity than in the wild. A sad signal of humanity’s failing moral compass. These thoughts were far from my mind however, as we made our way into Bandavgarh on that first morning. We were once again entranced by the magnificent scenery and various species of birds and wildlife which we encountered. During that first morning we noticed that each time another vehicle passed our safari guide the other guide would dip their head in respect. We asked Pappu, our guide, why this was so, and he humbly told us that he had been working in the Park for more than 20 years, following in his father’s footsteps as a ranger and then guide in the famous Bandavgarh. We were clearly in very good hands. Our first morning produced some great sightings of Indian Vultures and a sleeping Indian Scops Owl, all enjoyed with the Bandavgarh mountain “fort” towering above us. This is a natural rampart of steep cliffs which resembles a natural fortress. We were told that the area was proclaimed as a religious site and holds deep spiritual significance for the local people. It has also always held significant populations of the large stripey cat and was proclaimed a historical “reserve” by the local elite to protect this stunning habitat (and perhaps discourage unsuspecting citizens from becoming cat food).

On that first afternoon it seemed our luck shifted a little as our government guide who accompanied Pappu pulled off arguably the most impressive wildlife sighting I have ever seen: spotting a juvenile Leopard hidden in the dense tangles of a rocky ravine. How he noticed the faint outline of the Leopard’s shape will forever remain a mystery – see if you can spot it in the below photo (which is zoomed in to make the game a little more fair). This species is the same Panthera pardus which occurs in Africa, illustrating the cosmopolitan nature of this wily cat. That night we thanked the gods for this great Leopard sighting and snuck in an extra little prayer that this luck remain. After our following morning drive however, my anxiety was beginning to show. We had only one day, two safaris, left. Rather than giving up hope I turned to the Hindu pantheon, surely one of them could help us?! We had the afternoon off and I spent the time birding around the lodge grounds and in the adjacent village farmlands. By now I had begun plotting delaying flights and re-routing the rest of our trip in India to take us past the other tiger parks. As I walked around through the farmland – half praying and half birding – I spotted a tiny nuthatch foraging its way up a tree trunk. This was a great lifer and for a second I felt as if the gods were listening. I mentioned as much to Esti when I got back to the lodge, who looked at me as if I had finally lost the remaining sanity to which I had been clinging. We had been fortunate to have sightings of Golden Jackal, Gaur, Sambar, Barking and Swamp deer, along with more than 100 different bird species, in some of the most incredible landscapes imaginable. Although we told ourselves and the guides that we appreciated all of this diversity and the entire experience, there remained a very large, tiger-shaped hole in our hearts.

The following morning was our last safari and it seemed that Pappu was as nervous as us. Upon entering the Park he hurtled off down the dirt track, determined to find us that elusive cat. At this point he may or may not have deviated from the government allocated route to one which he knew might provide us with a better opportunity. As we rounded a corner there was another vehicle of highly excited local tourists waving us down. We came to a stop as a massive juvenile male tiger stalked past us in the long grass, silently hunting the nearby Spotted deer. He then proceeded to turn and cross the road directly in front of the car, before slowly melting back into the thick forest. Esti, Pappu and I all breathed an immense sigh of relief, mixed with elation. The suspense of the past few days washed away and was replaced with pure exhilaration. The wild Bengal Tiger was more beautiful and more magical than we could ever have imagined.

But the day had only just begun. Pappu then made his way to another section of our allotted route, only to hear another alarm call from the adjacent thicket. This time a female tiger walked out onto the dirt track and slowly padded down the road directly in front of our vehicle, marking her territory and checking the air for the scent of her prey as we marvelled at her beauty. After she too had melted into the dense woodland we made a brief tea stop, at which Pappu confided to us that he had an almost sleepless night the evening before, pondering how he could ensure that we did not leave unrequited. He explained that to see the beauty of a wild tiger is such a powerful experience that he would have felt extremely disappointed for us to miss out. This seemed to be more than just satisfying his clients; there was a deep need to share this incredible experience with us.

We returned to the lodge, where the staff, all of whom by now knew of our plight, also breathed a collective sigh of relief upon seeing our huge smiles. Bandavgarh was not done yet, however. One of the treasures of this park is that it is dotted all over with small ancient Hindu temples and Lingas (statues), with many natural history documentaries featuring the magnificent tiger lounging on one of these religious relics. As we headed in for the afternoon drive we soon ran into a group of safari vehicles, one of which included a similar Nat Geo type camera set-up. A female tiger with four large cubs lay sprawled out in the road. The cubs played with one another, occasionally strolling up to take a curious look at these clearly edible mammals ensconced in their protective tin boxes. Eventually one of the larger cubs settled on a Shiva Linga for a nap. Pappu turned to us and whispered, ”This… is Bandavgarh”.