When forest guard Bhera Ram Bishnoi began dabbling in camera trap photography in 2016, little did the 34-year-old know that his amateur interest in creating images would develop into an all-consuming passion a year later. Today, a Nikon DSLR camera is an essential part of his gear as he patrols the Desuri range of Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary, Rajasthan.
“I improved my camera trap photography skills through trial and error,” reveals the self-taught photographer over a phone conversation in August. Though the sanctuary was closed to tourists from July to September during the monsoon, and earlier due to the national lockdown imposed due to the coronavirus pandemic, it was business as usual for Bishnoi and his colleagues.
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Preventing cutting and illegal collection of firewood inside the sanctuary by livestock grazers is their main concern while patrolling the forest. Bishnoi carries his camera and manages to pursue his passion for wildlife photography during his patrols. Bishnoi’s encounters with wildlife are numerous.
“Once a young leopard (Panthera pardus) sitting on a tree sprang right in front of me,” he tells me. “It must have been less than five metres away from me, when I scared it away with the lathi in my hand.” Another time, “a sloth bear (Melursus ursinus) appeared out of nowhere as a colleague and I were inspecting a camera trap. It turned away after noticing that there were two of us there.”
Bishnoi happily shares a ringside view of the lives of the wild animals he is privileged to observe in Kumbalgarh in the course of his regular workday. My WhatsApp is constantly buzzing with photographs he sends. Here is an intimate glimpse of the rich and varied wildlife this 578-sq-km wildlife sanctuary harbours, from a forest guard’s point of view.
Often sighted soaring over valleys in Kumbhalgarh, the oriental honey-buzzard (Pernis ptilorhynchus) has an affinity towards trees with honeycombs. This raptor mainly feeds on the larvae of honeybees and wasps, as well as bits of comb and honey.Kumbhalgarh serves as the last distribution point in northwest India for the grey junglefowl (Gallus sonneratii). Bishnoi spotted this male from a vehicle on the Ranakpur jungle track. Found in sizeable numbers within the sanctuary, this skittish fowl prefers to stick to dense undergrowth and is rarely seen out in the open, as seen here.
Kumbhalgarh’s dry, deciduous brown forests transform into a magical green oasis during the monsoon and one can sight various birds. During the monsoon of 2020, Bishnoi photographed birds such as the Indian paradise flycatcher, Indian pitta (above right), and common hawk cuckoo (above left).
The rufous-coloured female Indian paradise flycatcher (Terpsiphone paradise) has a short tail, unlike the male, which can be white or rufous. It dives from its perch in the dense canopy to catch insects mid-air.An extremely shy bird, the Indian pitta (Pitta brachyura) lingers in the undergrowth or on the forest floor, foraging worms.The common hawk-cuckoo (Hierococcyx varius) is popularly known as the brain-fever bird for the incessant calls males produce during the breeding season.Bishnoi ran into this Indian star tortoise (Geochelone elegans) during his routine patrolling in the park. An inhabitant of dry, scrub forests across India, this tortoise is threatened with extinction due to a demand for it from the illegal wildlife pet trade.Marsh crocodiles (Crocodylus palustris) can be seen around reservoirs of dams and anicuts within the sanctuary. In the winter of 2018 Bishnoi counted around 50 near the Seli dam, where they were basking in the warm sunshine along the banks of the reservoir.Muggers (marsh crocodiles) primarily feed on fish found in the reservoir but, if necessary, can survive for months without eating. Once water levels in the reservoir recede, they disperse to other waterbodies nearby.
Anirudh Nair is a feature writer with RoundGlass Sustain. He enjoys walking through the wilderness and is constantly in awe of wild nature.
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Bhera Ram Bishnoi is a forest guard with the Rajasthan Forest Department posted at the Desuri range of Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary. You can follow Bishnoi on Instagram where he posts as bheru bishnoi.
First published in RoundGlass Sustain, a treasure trove of stories on India’s wildlife, habitats and their conservation.