The Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve
A good day to you, readers!
Today, I want to tell you about my trip to the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve. I went there in the summer of 2013, which, if you think about it, is a long time ago. However, I was really amazed with the kind of wildlife there. I saw tigers and bears up-close, I saw birds I’d never heard about, I got to observe some natural behaviour of all these animals, and it was just a great treat for me.
First of all, let me tell you about the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve(TATR). TATR is the first national park to be established in the state of Maharashtra, India. It is also part of ‘Project Tiger’, an initiative taken to preserve tiger life in India. TATR is in the Chandrapur district of Maharashtra.
I had been to Tadoba for a four-day Wildlife Photography Workshop by Vineye Photo School. We got there by taking a flight to the Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport at Nagpur, and rented a car to take us to Chandrapur. The ride was around 2 hours and 30 minutes long. At Chandrapur, we stayed at the MTDC(Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation) Resort. Just a heads-up, this resort wasn’t very good when we were there, but it is really close to TATR.
At TATR, we took six safaris by jeep; my teacher had gotten special bamboo beams attached to the open jeeps, so that we could place our cameras on them and take photos of animals more easily. He had also arranged for the best guides there to assist us. Now, I don’t want to describe my entire experience to you, since there are some things you just have to experience for yourself. I will, however, tell you some anecdotes based on some of the photos I took.
The forest was thin enough for sunlight to reach the floor, but thick enough for the langurs to move about on the trees with ease.
The ‘Indian Roller’, or as it is commonly known, the ‘Blue Jay’, is quite a common sight at Tadoba. I saw a lot of them flying around in the forest. They always seemed to be looking for food to eat. I was fortunate enough to get a shot of one while it had caught some prey.
I came across the ‘Pied Kingfisher’ in my very first safari. I didn’t know then that black-and-white kingfishers existed. When my group and I came across it, it was trying to catch some small fish to eat. Aquatic birds are known to dive into the ocean or sea to catch fish, and the pied kingfisher did the same thing in a nearby lake. It kept hovering above the lake, looking for fish near the surface of the water, diving down when it saw an opportunity for a catch, and resurfacing a couple of seconds later. Sadly, it didn’t catch a single fish for the time we were there. It eventually gave up, and perched on a small, dead tree’s branch. At that point, I was lucky enough to get a shot of its tongue.
There’s no use in being at a tiger reserve if you don’t find tigers there. We came across two of them in the very first safari, taking a stroll along the cement road. Although the tigers passed right next to our stationary jeep, they did not react to our presence. My group and I didn’t feel threatened at all. We just enjoyed the moment. Two healthy tigers, right next to us, who knew that we meant no harm, and we knew that they didn’t either. We spent two minutes in harmony with untamed animals. I wish every person would understand the concept of living in harmony, and not kill tigers for their hide.
We saw two tiger cubs at Lake Teliya, which is a drinking ground for many animals of Tadoba. The cubs were just four months old, but looked really adult-like. My group and I observed them for nearly half an hour, as they enjoyed their time, playing in the water. Their mother kept a watchful eye over them from across the lake.
During another safari, we saw a herd of spotted deer at the lake, drinking water to quench their elevated thirst. Summers are very hot and dry in Tadoba.
Tigers and deer are the animals that you commonly see near the lake, but look a little longer, and you might see something like this:
TATR is a paradise for bird lovers like myself. I got to see a great variety of birds, but was able to get shots of just a handful of them. One of the most notable birds was the Indian Pitta, or as it is called in Hindi, ‘Satrangi’ (meaning ‘seven-coloured’). The seven colours it has are red, blue, green, yellow, black, white and pink. The Indian Pitta is a passerine(perching) bird. It was really easy to spot due to its bright and appealing colours.
A complete contrast to it with respect to drawing attention is the Nightjar. It is a small bird, known for its natural camouflageing trait. It lives on the forest floor, because its colour makes it hard to notice there. My group almost drove past it, and would’ve missed it, had our guide not spotted it with a quick glance. Although I knew where the bird was, I found it hard to find its exact position. My telephoto lens is the only reason I saw it and could take a good click of it. Our guide told us that a team of photographers from National Geographic had been trying to locate a nightjar for almost a week, but to no avail.
We saw this attractive, tiny bird called the ‘Green Bea Eater’. I don’t know much about it; just that it’s got great colours!
We also saw an owl sleeping on a tree during the afternoon. It was a first for me.
We saw a pretty motherly sight while driving back to the resort one day, which reminds me that today is Mother’s Day. So, I wish all you wonderful moms a Happy Mother’s Day!
Here’s just a few more sights I saw during my workshop:
As you have seen, Tadoba is a wonderful place to spend time at if you’re a wildlife or nature lover. Its sheer variety and natural beauty makes you feel like visiting it again and again.
You can view this trip on HopBucket:
https://hopbucket.com/embed/wSo3uFHWnx
Hope you enjoyed this virtual tour of Tadoba! Happy Travelling, and have a great day ahead!
