Andaman and Nicobar Islands
54 Results
The Unseen World of Corals
The Andamans and Nicobar islands host 89 per cent of India's coral diversity. But what exactly are corals? Underwater plants? Vibrant, lively rocks? Or a fascinating fusion of multiple animals? We dive deep into the hidden world
Video
Narcondam Hornbill: Tale of a Rescue
Memories of a chance encounter with the endemic Narcondam hornbill in a dense forest of an isolated tropical island in the southern Bay of Bengal
Wild Vault
Parrotfish: Rainbows in the Reef
Colourful, sex-changing, sand-pooping fish that feed on algae and keep coral reefs healthy
Species
Hope and Biodiversity on the Andaman Islands
Exciting biological discoveries from the Andaman Islands reveal new species, new behaviours, and new threats to be wary of. In all likelihood, many more secrets wait to be uncovered
Wild Vault
Great Nicobar: Exploring a Biodiverse Island in Peril
This remote island’s diversity of habitats and micro-environments are a wonderland of rare and endemic species of plants, animals, insects, crustaceans, and marine life
Habitat
Dwindling Dugongs: Meandering Trails in Seagrass Meadows
Exploring the world and habits of the tiny population of dugongs remaining in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Species
Threatened Endemic Birds of Andaman & Nicobar
On these biodiversity-rich islands, you’ll find numerous birds that exist nowhere else on Earth. Their uniqueness is fascinating to biologists and conservationists who want to ensure their populations stay stable
Habitat
An Andaman Day Gecko Trying to Get Through the Week
Cartoons and illustrations on wildlife, environment and conservation
Green Humour
Bird Quest: In Search of the Last Nicobar Megapodes
In March 2021, a team from Roundglass Sustain travelled to the tip of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago to document a stocky brown bird found only on few of its islands. But why did the quest mean so much? Watch the film to find out.
Video
Bamboo Fishing Traps: Keeping Forest Streams Alive
As forest-dependent communities transition towards more contemporary ways of living, the phasing out of age-old, sustainable fishing practices destroys the once wild forest streams of the Andaman Islands
Photo Story
Andaman Teal: Call, Habitat, Status
All you need to know about this dabbling duck found only on some islands of the Indian Ocean
Infographic
Great Nicobar: Rare Creatures of a Remote Island
Great Nicobar is the last of the Andaman and Nicobar group of islands. On most of these isolated, faraway islands, species have evolved differently from their cousins on the mainland. Simply put, some of its residents are found only here and nowhere else in the world.
Video
Sippighat Wetland: A Bird Haven Created by the Tsunami
A number of wetlands emerged after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami battered the coasts of the Andamans. They are now home to resident and migratory waterbirds — including the vulnerable and endemic Andaman teal
Conservation
Edible-nest Swiftlet: Little Bird with an Expensive Nest
In deep caves on Interview Island in the Andamans, a tiny bird survives the long arm of poachers and others hungry for its nest
Species
Struggle for the Land: Nicobar Long-tailed Macaques in a Bind
The habitat of this fruit-loving primate has changed on Great Nicobar. How can they carve out a life of coexistence with humans on this isolated island?
Conservation
Frightened by A Fish
A marine biologist and diver recounts the times she’s been scared out of the ocean by unnerving encounters with different fish
Wild Vault
Trouble in Paradise: The Changing World of the Nicobar Megapode
Endemic to the Nicobar group of islands, this ground-dwelling bird that barely survived a devastating tsunami now faces multiple threats to its existence
Conservation
Andaman Day Gecko: Facts, Diet, Habitat
All you need to know about this island inhabitant
Infographic
Playing Hide and Seek with the Nicobar Megapode
It took three weeks, thirteen attempts, eight hides, and trips to three different coasts of the Nicobar Islands to catch a fleeting glimpse of the elusive Nicobar megapode
Species
Nicobar Treeshrew: Facts, Habitat, Threats
All you need to know about this mammal found only on the Nicobar Islands
Infographic
Night Shift: Chasing Endemic Island Owls and Other Adventures
After-dark explorations in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands reveal native owls and a cast of interesting characters
Photo Story
Galathea Bay: Will the World's Largest Sea Turtle Return to Nest in India?
Isolated from the mainland, the world’s largest turtles, the leatherbacks have nested along Galathea bay's pristine coast for millions of years. However, in January 2021 the protected status of the sanctuary was canceled for the construction of a transshipment port. If the development of the port goes through, will the turtles return?
Video
Tiny But Tenacious: Micro Life on the Andaman Reef
Capturing coral reefs and their inhabitants with a macro lens reveals their diversity and the complexity of intertwined reef relationships
Photo Story
Nicobar Megapode: Facts, Diet, Threats
All you need to know about this bird endemic to the Nicobar Islands
Infographic
Twilight Zone: A Tale Between Two Tides
When the tide heads out, the shallow watery plains come alive with many surprises from fuzzy little hairy crabs to the nervous blennies, and algal patches host various creatures from gastropods to a league of hunters like octopuses and eels
Wild Vault
Life After Dark: The Night Shift on a Coral Reef
Diving once the sun has set reveals a star-studded canvas of nocturnal life that rivals what you might imagine lives in outer space
Wild Vault
Leatherback Sea Turtles: Giants of Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Recent monitoring and scientific data from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands on these remarkable reptiles give us hope and must deepen our resolve to continue to protect this very critical habitat
Conservation
Leatherback Turtle: Facts, Habitat, Migration
All you need to know about the largest turtle in the world
Infographic
Written in the Stars: A Night with the Leatherback Turtle
When the sun sets along Great Nicobar’s Galathea coast, the world’s largest turtle emerges from the waters to build a nest on its silver shore
Photo Story
Secrets of Survival: Struggle and Strife Between the Tides
When the tide recedes along the coast of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, an array of marine creatures step out of their hideouts for some time in the sun
Photo Story
Galathea: A Threatened Paradise at the Edge of the World
Far away from all civilisation, at the southernmost tip of Indian territory, leatherback turtles have a huge nesting site. Will plans for a new port transform this pristine landscape forever?
Habitat
Nicobar Long-tailed Macaque: Facts, Habitat, Diet, Threats
Everything you need to know about this endemic primate from the Nicobar islands
Infographic
Andaman Day Gecko: Fleet-footed Flecks of Green
Endemic to the Andaman Islands this gecko has learnt to adapt and thrive on banana plantations
Species
Narcondam Hornbill: Facts, Habitat, and Call
All you need to know about these enigmatic seed dispersers
Infographic
Foraging Food: Eating Wild in the Andaman Islands
Eating from the forest, opens up the palate, but also brings up questions of how modern cultures have lost the knowledge of ancient foods that connect people and the land
Wild Vault
The Zen of Diving
Age is no bar for falling in love with the meditative, magical underwater landscapes of India’s Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands
Column
Eel Hunter: The Amphibious Life of Sea Kraits
With a specialised taste for eels, these venomous sea snakes hold their breath underwater for up to thirty minutes when on their perpetual hunting excursions
Species
Narcondam Hornbills: Gardeners of their Island Eden
These enigmatic seed dispersers have inadvertently modified their island home over the years to suit their needs
Species
Cracking the Schooling Fish Code: The Andaman story
Fishes swimming in schools strategise, make decisions and use navigation and communication systems
Photo Story
A Robin and a Warbler: Migrants on a Volcanic Island
The appearance of two unrecognisable birds on Narcondam Island in the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago sets off a chain of investigation
Wild Vault
Coral Reefs: True Treasures of the Andaman Islands
This emerald archipelago is an underwater paradise teeming with marine life, from schools of fish to magnificent coralline formations
Photo Story
A Rare View: Dhritiman Mukherjee Photographs the Narcondam Hornbill
In 2013, Dhritiman Mukherjee traveled to the remote island of Narcondam in Andamans and Nicobar, to photograph a bird found nowhere else in the world — the canopy-dwelling Narcondam hornbill. Watch what it is like to photograph from atop a 40-foot tall tree
Video
Narcondam Hornbills: Birds in Exile
There are just about 1,000 Narcondam hornbills on the planet — and they all live on a tiny island, less than seven square kilometres in size
Photo Story
Narcondam: Wild Island in the Indian Ocean
Isolated from the world by miles of water, the remote volcanic island of Narcondam in the Andaman archipelago may be tiny, but it is a sanctuary for many noteworthy species
Photo Story
Island Fever: A Lifelong Obsession with the Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Something romantic and primeval about islands makes us innately drawn to them. And though we may check out any time we like, we never really leave.
Column
Inhaling the Scents of a Forest
Smells and fragrances of the natural world change with the seasons, some trigger old memories, others create new ones
Wild Vault
Island Shenanigans: Nicobar Long-tailed Macaques in a Tropical World by the Sea
Straight from Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the life of a unique nonhuman primate species that is adaptable, intelligent, and highly social
Species
The Mangroves of Andaman Islands and Tamil Nadu
In times of rapid climate change, protecting the mangroves of India is more crucial than ever before
Habitat
Life of Corals: Witnessing an Ecosystem in Collapse
As oceans warm up the symbiotic relationship between corals and microscopic algae breaks down. Corals get bleached, making them susceptible to disease and eventually leading to the death of reef ecosystems
Conservation
Life of Corals: The Reef Assembly
Within the magical world of coral reefs is an unimaginable marine diversity dense with life forms, and interwoven with unique symbiotic relationships and partnerships between critters
Habitat
A Half Century of Sea Turtle Conservation
Contrary to popular belief, sea turtles are doing better than they have in decades, and we may need to rethink how to conserve them
Column
Seagrass Meadows on the Ocean Floor
Primary food of the dugong, sea grasses cover thousands of kilometres of ocean floor, and are massive oxygen generators too
Habitat
A Wild Life: Rauf Ali’s Forest Adventures
Following leatherback sea turtles, tree shrews, and crab-eating macaques — in Running Away From Elephants readers get a rare glimpse into celebrated wildlife biologist Rauf Ali’s wild adventures
Book
Nicobar Pigeon: Birds of the Paradise Isles
DNA evidence establishes that the ground-dwelling Nicobar pigeon, with its glistening mantle, is a country cousin of the extinct dodo
Species