Agricultural Landscapes
41 Results
The Wild Beside Us: Golden Jackals of Kalapur
In the bamboo groves beyond the rice fields of Kalapur, West Bengal, a golden jackal mother is hiding in the wilderness with her cubs. As the villagers sleep, the nocturnal jackals set out to hunt and scavenge, playing a crucial role in maintaining the balance of the ecosystem.
Video
Tortoise Beetles: Facts, Lifecycle and Distribution
All you need to know about the tiny, armoured, jewel-like marvels that inhabit forests, grasslands, agricultural fields and gardens.
Infographic
Bar-Headed Geese: The Migrant Crisis
Every winter, the bar headed geese fly thousands of kilometres from Central Asia to spend their days in the Indian subcontinent. As several wetlands in North India are being taken over by agricultural farms, these glorious vistors are no longer welcomed. Watch the film to find out why.
Video
Checkered Keelback
Meet the only keelback in India that’s adapted to stay and hunt under water. With distinctive yellow and black checks all over its body, the checkered keelback is one of India’s most common snakes. Although venomous, checkered keelbacks aren’t really harmful to humans.
Video
Three’s No Longer a Crowd for Sarus Cranes
According to a new study, these formerly monogamous birds are now forming trios to raise their chicks
Wild Vault
A Lemon a Day Keeps the Elephant Away
Lemon tree fences help farmers in Assam safeguard their crops and homes from elephants
Conservation
Shared Spaces: Life Within Blurred Lines
In this collaborative photo essay that emerged from #TheUncontest, we bring together images from across India to tell a compelling tale of the importance of the overlapping spaces that humans and nature share
Photo Story
Jungle Cat: From a Neighbourhood Ally to a Misunderstood Thief
In southern Bengal, the destruction of wetlands has severely depleted the jungle cat’s habitat, pushing it closer to villages in search of food!
Video
Not Just Desert: The Wild, Varied Habitats of Rajasthan
A mosaic of habitats rich in diversity make up India’s largest state. While the Thar is the more familiar part of its landscape, it also has grasslands, wetlands, and hills
Photo Story
Sindhudurg’s Cashew Nut Plantations Offer Refuge to Wild Mammals
Sambar, porcupine, boar, gaur, hare, mongoose, leopard, and civets among the animals recorded in a study
Conservation
Economy or Ecology? Eucalyptus Plantations in Coastal Andhra Raises Concern
Farmers in Vizianagaram district turn to ‘controversial’ water guzzling crop as they struggle with water scarcity and groundwater salinity
Conservation
Delhi’s Unlikely Stopover: Finding Everything in the Middle of Nothing
Agricultural farms on the edge of Delhi may not look like picture perfect sanctuaries, but during winters they turn into essential stopovers for long-distance fliers
Wild Vault
Kole’s waterman: Protecting a wetland through paddy cultivation
Agriculturist Kochu Muhammed who coordinates over 130 clusters of farmers is a living encyclopaedia on these wetlands
Hero
Disappearing Predators: Wolves of the Deccan
Indian grey wolves have a long history of living in human-dominated landscapes, but their survival is now challenged by the rapid, unsustainable change taking place in these traditional habitats
Conservation
Swarmageddon: How Lonely Grasshoppers Turn Into an Army of Locusts
Locusts and grasshoppers are two forms of the same creature, but a series of chemical reactions turn these lonely hoppers into giant swarms of invasive insects
Column
Lesser Florican: Hope in Rajasthan, but on the Brink in Madhya Pradesh
While lesser floricans are learning to live with farmers in Shokaliya, Rajasthan, their numbers continue to plummet in the central Indian state
Conservation
Growing With the Flow: The River Pamba and I
How childhood swimming lessons in Thalavady’s Pamba river revealed secrets of Kerala’s backwaters, and introduced the writer to wonders of the wild
Wild Vault
Fish Discovered in Kerala may have Lived with the Last Dinosaurs
Genetically distinct from other snakehead fish worldwide, the Gollum snakehead is a living fossil, say scientists
Wild Vault
Love thy Neighbour: The Villagers of Paddapukur and the Fishing Cat
In Paddapukur, a small village in West Bengal, fishermen and farmers are finding harmonious ways of living with their fellow fish-loving neighbour — the endangered fishing cat
Video
Nest Negotiations: Why Owls Groom Siblings for Food
In a single nest, fights over food among siblings can get intense, but owls have figured out an effective barter system so everyone gets their share
Column
Songs of Love: Sarus Cranes’ Lifelong Romance
Sarus cranes are sentient beings — they pair for life, feel emotions like humans do, and express love with great tenderness
Video
Food First: A Hand for a Handout
Juvenile bonnet macaques in the Bandipur National Park, Karnataka, have developed an almost human way of communicating their request for food
Column
In Purulia, Villagers Plant Forests to Restore Lives
Villagers from Purulia in West Bengal were suffering from a groundwater crisis coupled with hot and humid weather conditions for two decades, until they realised that the solution lies growing forests around them
Hero
Breaking Bad: The Brotherhood of Bull Elephants
How young male elephants have changed their social behaviour and adopted a range of strategies and tactics that help them raid crops and survive the wrath of humans
Column
Problem Elephant or Elephantine Problem?
The words we use to label animals involved in human-animal conflict situations can make a big difference to their conservation status
Conservation
When Danger Lurks: Toxic Beauties in Action
Butterflies have adopted numerous defence mechanisms to fool their predators, but how well do these tricks work?
Column
Crisis in Kodagu: Can Humans and Elephants co-exist?
Kodagu’s people live in constant fear of elephant encounters, but strengthening wildlife corridors and educating locals can mitigate the situation. This is the second story in a two-part series on human-elephant interactions in Kodagu
Conservation
Crisis in Kodagu: Reports from the Epicentre of Human-Elephant Conflict
Escalating human-elephant clashes in Kodagu are causing economic loss, and endangering lives of both, man and animal. This is the first story in a two-part series on human-elephant interactions in Kodagu
Conservation
Conflict and Coexistence: Leopards and the Residents of Valparai
How leopards adapt to human presence and communities learn to live in close proximity to the big cat, in the Anaimalai Hills of Tamil Nadu
Conservation
Is the Lesser Florican Jumping to Extinction?
The smallest member of the bustard family faces a peculiar conundrum: breed or be safe?
Conservation
Sundarbans: ‘Not a blade of grass grew…’
People in the Sundarbans of West Bengal, for long living on the edge, are now facing climate change – recurring cyclones, erratic rain, growing salinity, rising heat, depleting mangroves and more
News
Magadha Burrowing Frog: Resident of Farms
The Magadha burrowing frog, named after the ancient kingdom of Magadha in the southern Bihar, was discovered in farms, proving that we need more explorations of agro-ecosystems, not just forests.
News
The Indian Grey Wolf is in Need of Greater Protection
A recent study found that most habitats suited to the Indian grey wolf lie outside protected sanctuaries and national parks, putting its survival at great risk
News
In a Tight Corner: The Dwindling Elephant Herds of Assam
Massive habitat loss has pushed the elephants of Assam into fierce competition with humans over ever-shrinking resources
Conservation
‘Why is the climate changing like this?’
Coffee and pepper farmers in Wayanad, Kerala, are reeling under losses caused by a rise in temperatures and erratic rainfall in a district whose residents once boasted of its ‘air-conditioned climate’
Conservation
Forced to Join the Boys’ Club: Male Elephants Adapt to Change
Known to lead solitary lives once they reach adolescence, male elephants in South India are now responding to habitat changes by altering their behaviour and hanging out in all-male groups
News
The Guest in My Paddy Field: The Return of the Sarus Crane
The population of the sarus crane has registered a growth in Uttar Pradesh, thanks to the efforts of local communities, state government and non-profit organisations
Conservation
Buffaloed by the Climate in Kolhapur
Human-wildlife conflict is escalating in Radhanagari, Kolhapur, where the gaur buffalo are raiding nearby farms. This is spurred by deforestation, cropping changes, drought and fluctuating weather patterns
Conservation
Global Insect Apocalypse: Why India Must Worry
According to scientists, 4O per cent of insect species are likely to become extinct globally in the coming years
Conservation
Life in Lakhipur, on the Fringe of the Forest
Animals know no borders. When you live on the edge of the forest, the animals will sometimes come a visiting
Wild Vault
Kokkare Bellur: The Blessed Bird Village of Karnataka
In A Tigress Called Machhli, Supriya Sehgal shares fascinating stories of various animals that inhabit our forests, cities, and backyards — including a curious tale of a village in Karnataka that is taken over by cackling storks
Book