Urban Jungle
A spotlight on the wild world that thrives in cities
57 Urban Jungle
Be My Guest: Bugs in My Bedroom
Welcome and unwelcome guests, ranging from emerald-coloured beetles to moths and butterflies, are not uncommon in this big city bedroom
Dark Knights: Urban Encounters of the Bat Kind
In our cities, bats may roost anywhere — under window shades, overhangs, tree branches, buildings, temples, bridges, tunnels and even the undersides of tiled roofs
Remarkable Rodents: The Fighting-Fit Super Mammals
Extremely resourceful and intelligent, several rodent species live close to humans, often outsmarting efforts to get rid of them
Vetal Hill: A Natural Paradise in Peril
This hill in the heart of Pune city is a biodiversity spot and birders’ haven, but development plans threaten its existence
Longwood Shola, the Only Urban Shola Forest in the Nilgiris
Home to the threatened Nilgiri marten and other rare fauna and flora, the forest patch is rich in biodiversity
Urban Design Planning and the Birds of Kolkata
A study on the impact of urban development on the birds in Kolkata hopes to contribute towards protecting the diversity and numbers of birds through design strategies
Resident Predators: Living With Spiders
Step into the world of five spider families found in urban Indian homes, and learn a little about their complex tactics for catching a wide diversity of prey
Goodnight, Sleep Tight: Slumber in the Big City
Whether in a metro or the countryside, lizards, like humans, seek out comfortable and safe places to ensure a good night’s sleep
Sensory Trails on a Campus in Gujarat
The sheltered green spaces in educational campuses are hotspots of biodiversity and wilderness. Step off manicured lawns onto dirt tracks and learn to look at unpruned canopies — to let a world of wonder open up
Love and Let Live: Saving Puttenahalli Lake
A neighbourhood environmental group comes together to preserve a dying lake, providing a variety of birds and insects a place to thrive, and glimmer of hope for Bangalore city
Powai Lake: A Wild Wetland at the Heart of a Mumbai Suburb
Surrounded by rapidly developing residential complexes, industrial areas and educational campuses, few know that Mumbai’s Powai Lake hosts rich and diverse wildlife – including a small population of the marsh crocodile
Rich Birdlife Call Attention to Delhi’s Disappearing Wetlands
Around 170 bird species recorded in the capital’s ponds amidst housing colonies, inside parks, next to industry, and other urban sites
Forest Fugue: The Seasonal Sounds of Avalahalli
Always alive with natural melodies, Avalahalli State Forest is an ever-changing landscape marked by avian choruses and a tapestry of varied acoustics
Boxed In: The Urban Snakes of Bengaluru
Human and snake interactions increase in the city as natural habitats shrink
Aravallis: Love and Fresh Air
Enter the Ridge in Delhi, and the sound of the city drops. Gurgling streams, bird call, even a possible hyena — all testament to Nature’s ability to surprise us
Sharing Spaces with Wild Life on a University Campus
Plenty of wild creatures live in harmony alongside students and faculty in and around the IIT Kanpur campus
Urban Cacophony of the Heartening Kind
A safari of birds and animals can be seen and heard without stepping out of this apartment home set at the edge of the Avalahalli forest in a north Bangalore suburb
Delhi’s Secret Winter Guests: Small and Chirpy Forest Birds
We often equate migration with cranes, geese and waders in wetlands. But every year, Delhi welcomes smaller birds that fly long distances to visit the city’s woods
Surviving the Pandemic, One Tree at a Time
When the Covid 19 pandemic shut the world down, the author turned to the trees around her for hope
Delhi and Haryana’s Aravallis Home to Rare Wildlife
Survey finds species such as honey-badger, Indian fox, jungle cat, and ruddy mongoose in Gurugram, Faridabad, and Delhi
Life on the Vertical: Exploring Nature on City Walls
The ecology of urban walls includes a variety of life, from ferns and figs, to paper wasps, stingless bees, and two-tailed spiders
Bantam Force: Ambushed by the Termite Parade
Termites are tiny but they are super builders and play an integral role as decomposers and ecosystem engineers of the natural world. In human habited landscapes, however, they are known as the silent destroyers
Finding Nature Through the Gift of Our Attention
From observing bird behaviour in an urban garden to tracking butterfly lifecycles on a balcony, we can all build an enduring connection to the natural world
At Home with Herps: Living with Reptiles
How a herpetologist fell in love with the natural world by observing snakes, lizards, frogs and other reptiles around his home
Nature Underfoot: Wild Flora and Fauna on City Pavements and Waysides
A rich diversity of plant and animal life is hidden in the cracks and crevices of our streets, and a closer examination can reveal some incredible interactions
A Family Saga: To Bee or not to Bee
The author and her father are fascinated by the leaf cutter bee’s nest in their garden, while her mother remains unmoved
Unwelcome at Home: The Palm Civets of Kolkata
As Kolkata loses some of its heritage buildings to new development, the shifting landscape claims an unlikely victim — the nocturnal, shy palm civet
Garden of Earthly Delight: My Last Wild Place
A little terrace in Bengaluru glows with wildness and tranquillity, and brings home the lesson that your very own Zen garden does not have to be an immaculately tended space
Accidental Ecosystem: How a Rooftop Garden can be a Thriving Habitat
When a few potted plants were left to grow wild on a Delhi terrace, they attracted an entire ecosystem — from delicate butterflies to foot-long colour-changing lizards
Butterfly Highway: Delhi’s New Flyby Zones
A team of ecologists and citizens plan to build a series of butterfly parks across Delhi
The Private Lives of Kingfishers in My Urban Garden
Watching a white-throated kingfisher family breed and grow in an urban garden in Chennai
Building Nests to Save Delhi’s Sparrows
The house sparrow has been steadily disappearing from the capital, but Rakesh Khatri’s Eco-Roots Foundation is determined to change that. He raises awareness in neighbourhoods, and has built and placed about 1,OO,OOO nests and birdhouses to help them nest and roost in
Balcony Birding: Birds are Ruling the Roost this Lockdown
The stay-at-home directives are allowing people the chance to explore the urban biodiversity in their own backyard
Urban Ecosystems: Snakes and the City
Unbeknown to most of us, snakes are often permanent residents of urban environments. We have to find the happy balance of human-snake coexistence
Aarey: The Wild Heart of Mumbai
Few cities in the world have large swathes of jungles within their borders, even fewer have leopards living within. Unfortunately, the green cover of India’s maximum city is under grave threat
Hesaraghatta Lake and the Savannah of Silicon City
Are well-meaning birders, photographers, and visitors destroying the very lake and landscape they so love?
My Friends, the Trees
Falling in love with trees on a sprawling school campus, near the densely populated city of Varanasi
A Date with Mumbai’s Marine Wildlife
Mumbai’s Juhu Beach suddenly comes alive with crabs, anemones, shrimp, snails and other marine biodiversity that lives on city’s coastline
Pallikaranai Marshland: An Urban Wetland on the Brink
Besides hosting over 5,OOO resident birds, Chennai’s Pallikaranai marshland is a stopover point for over 4O,OOO migratory birds. It desperately needs to be saved from encroaching toxic waste
A Lost River and the Wetland Paradise of Hoskote Lake
Bengaluru’s Hoskote Lake and its surrounding marshlands host a wide variety of bird life and provide the city with a vital carbon dioxide sink. Efforts are on to revive the river system that once fed this vibrant water body.
In the Heart of Suburban Mumbai, an Oasis for Birds and Birders
Despite the concrete jungle around, Lokhandwala Lake in Mumbai’s crowded Andheri suburb hosts a healthy diversity of avian species
Unprotected Areas: Lalbagh Southern Bengaluru Charm
Every city needs a green lung where citizens can mingle with nature and relish a breath of fresh air. With several water bodies, over 1,OOO species of plants, and many gorgeous birds, Lalbagh is an oasis for Bengaluru’s citizens
There’s a Caterpillar on Your Palm Plant, Daddy
They are many a gardener’s bane, but with a little time, caterpillars can bring great benefits to their habitat
Cubbon Park: The Lungs of Central Bengaluru
In the heart of this bustling city, Cubbon Park is an oasis of biodiversity that provides citizens a respite and a place to unwind
The Green, Green Grass of Home
The case for allowing a little wild grass to grow in your garden and life
On a Wing: Dhanauri Wetland, a Birdwatcher’s Wonderland
Majestic birds, reptiles, and even some mammals inhabit this thriving ecosystem, just a short hop from anywhere in the national capital
A Reluctant Birder’s Guide to Birdwatching
The author hated birding for as long as she could remember, until she realised she doesn’t have to do it the way everyone else does
Branch Offices: The Working Trees of Delhi
A tree is home to birds, insects, and animals. It provides us clean air and shade, but few recognise that a large section of the city’s marginalised population leans on them for shelter, support and to set up shop
Mangar Bani: Delhi NCR’s Wild and Wonderful Neighbour
A beautiful forest with sharp-eyed eagles, vibrant butterflies, sneaky jackals, and monitor lizards thrives bang in the middle of our concrete-ridden capital
Basai Wetlands Thrive Just a Short Hop From Gurugram’s Glitzy Malls
It’s hard to believe that over 231 bird species can be seen in this wetland region so close to Delhi-NCR
Shine a Light: A Saturday Night Moth Party in Delhi
The moths of Delhi’s Asola-Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary have their own loyal fan base, and shutter-friendly paparazzi
How Sacred Sites in Bengaluru Safeguard Trees
As many as 121 species of plants thrive and protected by Bengaluru’s sacred sites such as temples and kattes, contributing to the city’s biodiversity
City Slickers: The Large Grey Babblers of Delhi
Tales of adaptation in the scrublands of the capital city
Kharghar’s Hills are Alive with the Sound of Birdsong
Remarkably beautiful throughout the year, these biodiverse hills in Navi Mumbai are the ideal escape for the curious, urban nature lover
Mumbai’s Mangroves: Forests of Breathing Roots
Not all shores are the same; Mumbai’s mangroves are the city’s green guards and they host an entire civilisation in their midst
Monsoon Miracles in Navi Mumbai’s Green Valley Park
Secret streams and colourful insects — the arrival of rain heralds the transformation of the Parsik Hills, close to the bustling business area of CBD Belapur
When Flamingos Frolic and Feed in the Talawe Wetlands
Hundreds of migrating flamingos and other wildlife can be seen just a stone’s throw away from a bustling Navi Mumbai residential complex