12OntheTrail

Exploring a rugged, remote wilderness in Northern India in search of a near-

legendary, gigantic and severely endangeredcrocodilian, the fish-eating gharial

HEREGOOGLE EARTH COORDINATES HERE

Exploring a rugged, remote wilderness in Northern India in search of a near-

legendary, gigantic and severely endangeredcrocodilian, the fish-eating gharial

INDIA’S CHAMBAL RIVER SANCTUARY

SAURIANSTRONGHOLD

INDIA’S CHAMBAL RIVER SANCTUARY

SAURIANSTRONGHOLD

A huge female gharial Gavialis gangeticus basks on the

shores of the Chambal river, in theNational Chambal Gharial

Wildlife Sanctuary.

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Rocky escarpments along the Chambal river,

National Chambal Gharial Wildlife Sanctuary, Dholpur.

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ost visitors to India - ifinterested at all in the wonderfulwildlife of the subcontinent - hope tosee a tiger in the wild. Some will alsobe happy with elephants, birds and theoccasional cobra. But - gharials? Why,most people don’t even know what agharial actually is! In fact, gharials arepretty amazing creatures, and the stuffof legends - besides being highlyendangered, major biologicalindicators of river water quality. Sincebriefly glimpsing one almost forty yearsago in the swift waters on the Raptiriver in Nepal, we had long dreamedto see them again in the wild. And tosee gharials in the wild there is nobetter place in the whole world thanthe remote, romantic Chambal - arugged, desolate, spectacularwilderness where nature, history andculture intermingle as only in India theycan, and which we visited togetherwith our dear friend and wildlife

photographer Yuwaraj Gurjar, with thehelp of local biologist Rajeev Tomar.The National Chambal Sanctuary, alsocalled the National Chambal GharialWildlife Sanctuary, is a 5,400 squarekm (2,100 sq mi) tri-state protectedarea in northern India. Located on theChambal River near the tripoint ofRajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and UttarPradesh, it was first declared inMadhya Pradesh in 1978 and nowconstitutes a long narrow eco-reserveco-administered by the three States.Within the sanctuary the wide, pristineChambal River cuts through mazes ofrugged ravines and hills, fringed bylong, wide, deserted sandy beaches -the landscape itself is worth the trip.The critically endangered gharial andthe red-crowned roof turtle live here,and together with the endangeredGanges river dolphin they are thekeystone species of the sanctuary.Other large threatened inhabitants of

MTEXT BY ANDREA FERRARI

PHOTOS BY ANDREA & ANTONELLA FERRARI

continued on page 16 ›

Black-winged StiltHimantopus himantopus,

Chambal river.

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Young gharial Gavialis gangeticus basking on the

shores of the Chambal river in the National Chambal Gharial

Wildlife Sanctuary.

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the sanctuary include the muggercrocodile, the smooth-coated otter, thestriped hyena and the Indian wolf. TheChambal supports 8 of the 26 rareturtle species found in India, includingthe Indian narrow-headed softshellturtle, the three-striped roof turtle andthe crowned river turtle. Other reptilesinclude the Indian flapshell turtle, thesoft shell turtle, the Indian roofed turtle,the Indian tent turtle and the Bengal orland monitor lizard. Mammals includerhesus macaques, Hanuman langurs,golden jackals, Bengal foxes, commonpalm civets, Indian small mongooses,Indian grey mongooses, jungle cats,wild boars, sambar, nilgai, blackbuck,Indian gazelles (chinkara), northernpalm squirrels, porcupines, Indianhares, Indian flying foxes and

hedgehogs. The Chambal Sanctuary isalso listed as an important bird areaand is a proposed Ramsar site - at least320 species of resident and migratorybirds inhabit the sanctuary. Migratorybirds from Siberia form part of its richavian fauna. Vulnerable bird specieshere include the Indian skimmer, saruscrane, Pallas's fish eagle and Indiancourser; the pallid harrier and lesserflamingo are near threatened. Wintervisitors include black-bellied terns, red-crested pochard, ferruginous pochardand bar-headed goose. Other speciesinclude the great thick-knee, the greaterflamingo, the Indian darter and thebrown hawk owl. But the real star ofthe show - and the main reason forvisiting this stunning area - is of coursethe extraordinary gharial.

continued on page 18 ›

A mighty river flowingacross a rugged, parchedland of craggy ravines

An unusual sight: Egyptianvulture Neophron percnopterusmating on top of a rockyescarpment along theChambal river.

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Large Muggeror MarshCrocodileCrocodyluspalustris arecommonlyobserved on thesandy shores ofthe Chambalriver.

Gavialis gangeticus, also known as thegavial, is a gigantic crocodilianmember of the family Gavialidae,native to the Indian Subcontinent.Incredibly, the global gharialpopulation is estimated at fewer than235 individuals, which are threatenedby loss of riverine habitat, depletion offish resources and use of fishing nets.As the population has declineddrastically in the past 70 years, thegharial is listed as CriticallyEndangered by the IUCN. Gharialsonce inhabited all the major riversystems of the Indian Subcontinent,from the Irrawaddy River in the east tothe Indus River in the west, but theirdistribution is now limited to only 2% oftheir former range. They inhabitforemost flowing rivers with high sandbanks that they use for basking andbuilding nests. They usually mate in thecold season, and the young hatchbefore the onset of the monsoon. Thegharial is one of three crocodiliansnative to India, the other two being themugger crocodile Crocodylus palustrisand the saltwater crocodile Crocodylus

continued on page 21 ›

Deccan sawback orIndian Tent TerrapinKachuga tentoria.

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Left, immatureGharial Gavialisgangeticus;top right,Osprey Pandionhaliaetus;bottom right,IntermediateegretMesophoyxintermedia.

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A very largeMugger or MarshCrocodile Crocodyluspalustris takes to theChambal waters.

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porosus. Gharials once thrived in all themajor river systems of the IndianSubcontinent, spanning the rivers of itsnorthern part from the Indus River inPakistan across the Gangetic floodplainto the Irrawaddy River in Myanmar.Today, they are extinct in the IndusRiver, in the Brahmaputra of Bhutan andBangladesh, and in the IrrawaddyRiver. In India, small populations arepresent and increasing in the rivers ofthe National Chambal Sanctuary,Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary, SonRiver Sanctuary and the rainforestbiome of Mahanadi in Satkosia GorgeSanctuary, Odisha, where theyapparently do not breed; in Nepal,small populations are present andslowly recovering in tributaries of theGanges, such as the Narayani-Raptiriver system in Chitwan National Parkand the Karnali-Babai river system inBardia National Park. They aresympatric with the mugger crocodileCrocodylus palustris and formerly withthe saltwater crocodile Crocodylusporosus in the delta of Irrawaddy River.

continued on page 25 ›

Large gharialGavialisgangeticusmake anextremelyimpressive sight.

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Left,architecturaldetail of thesplendidMachkundcomplex, inDholpur;right,Ruddy Shelduckor BrahminyShelduckTadornaferruginea.

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Knob-billed DuckSarkidiornis melanotos,

Chambal river.

Noisy flocks of waterbirds along the cultivated riverbanks

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Far left, a very youngRhesus macaqueMacaca mulatta;left, the ubiquitousRose-ringedParakeet Psittaculakrameri, herenesting in a wallof the Machkundcomplex inDholpur.

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In 1977, four nests were recorded inthe Girwa River of KatarniaghatWildlife Sanctuary, where 909 gharialswere released until 2006. Twenty nestswere recorded in 2006, so 16 nestingfemales resulted from 30 years ofreintroductions, which is equivalent to2% of the total pre-2006 releases. In1978, twelve nests were recorded inthe Chambal River in the NationalChambal Sanctuary, where 3,776gharials were released until 2006. By2006, nesting had increased by over500% to 68 nests, but the recruitedmature, reproducing femalesconstituted only about 2% of the totalnumber released. The newly hatchedyoung are especially prone to beingflushed downstream out of the protectedareas during the annual monsoonalflooding. The gharial is characterisedby its extremely long, thin jaws,regarded as an adaptation to apredominantly fish diet. Males developa hollow bulbous nasal protuberance atsexual maturity. The name gharial isderived from the resemblance of thenasal growth to an earthen pot knownlocally as “ghara”. They use this growthto modify and amplify “hisses” snortedthrough the underlying nostrils. Theresulting sound can be heard for nearlya kilometer on a still day. Gharials are

continued on page 29 › Common but beautiful,the Indian Roller

Coracias benghalensis.

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Gentleendangered

giants of India’smighty rivers

A gigantic gharial Gavialisgangeticus female basking on

the shores of the Chambal river.

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Top left, Knob-billedDuck Sarkidiornis melanotos;top right, Red-wattled lapwing

Vanellus indicus; bottom left, White Browed

Wagtail Motacillamaderaspatensis;

bottom right, River LapwingVanellus duvaucelii.

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The lonely, hauntingly beautifulshores of the Chambal hostmultitudes of Bar-headed geeseAnser indicus.

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the only extant crocodilian with visiblesexual dimorphism. Although thefunction of the nasal boss is not wellunderstood, it is apparently used as avisual sex indicator, as a soundresonator, or for bubbling or otherassociated sexual behaviours. The average size of mature gharials is3.5 to 4.5 m (11 to 15 ft), with thelargest recorded length is 6.25 m (20.5ft), and a largest recorded weight of977 kg (2,154 lb). Hatchlingsapproximate 37 cm (15 in) and canreach a length of 1 m (3.3 ft) in 18months. The average body weightranges from 159 to 250 kg (351 to551 lb). Males commonly attain a totallength of 3 to 5 m (9.8 to 16.4 ft), whilefemales are smaller and reach a bodylength of up to 2.7 to 3.75 m (8.9 to12.3 ft). The elongated, narrow snout islined by 110 sharp interdigitated teeth,and becomes proportionally shorterand thicker as an animal ages. Thereare 27 to 29 upper and 25 or 26 lowerteeth on each side. The nuchal anddorsal scutes form a single continuousshield composed of 21 or 22 transverseseries. Gharials have an outer row ofsoft, smooth, or feebly keeled scutes inaddition to the bony dorsal scutes, andthey also have two small postoccipitalscutes. The toes are partially webbed.They also have a very distinct crest on

continued on page 31 ›

Indian skimmer or Indianscissors-bill Rynchopsalbicollis showing its typicalfishing tecnique - skimmingthe water surface.

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Top left, Great Thick-kneeEsacus recurvirostris;top right, breeding Greyheron Ardea cinerea. Bottom left, Indian Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia major; bottom right, Painted SandgrousePterocles indicus.

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the outer edge of the fore arm, leg, andfoot. Typically, adult gharials have adark olive colour tone, while youngones are pale olive, with dark brownspots or cross-bands. The well -developed, laterally flattened tail andwebbed rear feet provide tremendousmanoeuvrability in deepwater habitat,and the laterally compressed tail servesboth to propel the animal and as abase from which to strike at prey. Onland, however, an adult gharial canonly push itself forward and slide on itsbelly. The three largest examplesreported were a 6.5-m gharial killed inthe Gogra River of Faizabad in August1920, a 6.3-m individual shot in theCheko River of Jalpaiguri in 1934, anda giant of 7-m animal, which was shotin the Kosi River of northern Bihar inJanuary 1924. Though specimens ofover 6 m (20 ft) were not uncommon inthe past, such large individuals aresadly not known to exist today.According to IUCN, a population

continued on page 36 ›

A worrying sight with asubadult Gharial Gavialisgangeticus basking amongdomestic buffalo andgarbage on the shores of the Chambal river.

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A large group of adult GharialGavialis gangeticus, Chambal river.

33A Gharial Gavialis

gangeticus basking on theshores of the Chambal riveris disturbed by illegalminers in the background. Human-related disturbancesare a problem in theNational Chambal GharialWildlife Sanctuary.

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Large flocks of thebeautiful Bar-headedgeese Anser indicusare commonly seen along the Chambal river.

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Left, two Rhesusmacaque

Macaca mulatta by a dilapidated

royal huntingpavilion:

right, Black-winged Stilt

Himantopushimantopus,

Chambal river.

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decline of 96–98% has occurred overa three-generation period since1946, and the once-widespreadpopulation of an estimated 5,000 to10,000 individuals has been reducedto a very small number of widelyspaced subpopulations of fewer than235 individuals in 2006. The drasticdecline in the gharial population canbe attributed to a variety of causes,including overhunting for skins andtrophies, egg col lect ion forconsumption, killing for indigenousmedicine and killing by fishermen.Hunting is no longer considered to bea significant threat. However, the wildpopulation of gharials has declinedby about 58% between 1997 and2006 because of the increasingintensity of fishing and the use of gillnets throughout most of the presentgharial habitat, even in protected

The distinctiveIndian skimmer orIndian scissors-billRynchops albicollisis a common sightalong the shores ofthe Chambal river.

continued on page 41 ›

37Top left, royal buildingsnear Dholpur; top right,Andrea at the Sanctuaryoffice; bottom left, localwomen in traditionalsarees; bottom right, theballroom of the Raj NiwasPalace Hotel in Dholpur.

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Fascinating creaturesfrom a lost age stillsurviving in today’s world

A very largeMugger or Marsh

Crocodile Crocodyluspalustris on the shores

of the Chambal.

39Top left, River

Lapwing Vanellusduvaucelii; top right,

the Machkund complexat Dholpur; bottom

right, a large MarshCrocodile Crocodyluspalustris; bottom left, the beautiful dining

room of the Raj NiwasPalace Hotel in Dholpur.

Large numbers of theLesser whistling tealDendrocygna javanica arecommonly observed alongthe Chambal shores.

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areas, and the loss of riverine habitatto dams, barrages, irrigation canals,siltation, changes in river course,artificial embankments, sand-mining,riparian agriculture, and domesticand feral livestock. Thanks to theefforts of several organizations andindividuals - notably celebratedherpetologist Romulus Whitaker -conservation programs have beenenthusiastically and successfullyundertaken in India and Nepal, beingbased on the establishment ofprotected areas and restocking ofthese with animals born in captivity,but nowhere has restocking yet re-established viable populations.Gharials are being successfully bredin captivity in the National ChambalSanctuary and in the GharialBreeding Centre in Nepal's ChitwanNational Park, where they aregenerally grown for two to three yearsuntil they average about one metre inlength, when they are released.Reintroduction in their habitathowever is fraught with difficulties -largely due to growing anduncontrol led anthropogenicpressures, including depletion of fishresources - and the future of theharmless, beautiful gharial is still,sadly, very much in doubt. .

Two GharialGavialis gangeticus

basking on theshores of the

Chambal river; at right, the deep

ravines alongside theChambal river, which were the

unconquerable realmof dacoits in a nottoo distant past.

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Closelyapproached by our boat, a hugeMugger or MarshCrocodileCrocodyluspalustris launchesitself in the watersof the Chambalriver at lightningspeed.

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Gharial Gavialisgangeticus - notice

the numbered release tagaffixed on its tail.

A reptilian indicator of Indian rivers’ water quality

Slowly cruisingalong the Chambalriver and itssandbanks offersgreat opportunitiesto watch andphotograph theunmistakableIndian skimmer orIndian scissors-billRynchopsalbicollis.

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Top left, Knob-billedDuck Sarkidiornismelanotos; top right, Rhesusmacaque Macacamulatta. Bottom left, Indianskimmer or Indianscissors-bill Rynchopsalbicollis; bottom right, Grey heronArdea cinerea.

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Female gharial Gavialisgangeticus basking on theshores of the Chambal river,National Chambal GharialWildlife Sanctuary. Noticethe extremely elongated, thin snout, which is used tocatch fish with a suddensideway sweep.

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A quartet of Deccansawback or Indian Tent

Terrapin Kachuga tentoria.

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A specially arrangedvisit to the gharialhatching center inDholpur offers theopportunity to examineclosely captive-bredjuveniles and otherendangered speciessuch as the Deccansawback or Indian TentTerrapin Kachugatentoria (bottom right).

Lesser whistling tealDendrocygna javanica.

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An endless variety of waterbirds lining up along the river shores

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Left, waterreflections at theMachkundarchitecturalcomplex inDholpur;right, a White-breastedkingfisher Halcyonsmyrnensis huntingamong the pens at the gharialhatching center.

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A large female gharialGavialis gangeticus slides in the

waters of the Chambal river.Notice the unmistakable dorsal

scutes and the thin, greatlyelongated snout, specially evolved

for a diet exclusively based on fish.

Bar-headed geese Anser indicus in typical formation

as they fly over the shores of the Chambal.

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The Chambalriver area in thevicinity of Dholpuris rich in historicaland artisticevidence. Left,detail of thesculptures of theChropra Mandir at the ShivaTemple, Dholpur;right, a detail ofthe intricatelyornamented andsculpted staircaseof the same.

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A panoramic image of thedeep ravines alongside theChambal river, a barren andhostile environment of greatecological significance.

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Adult female gharial Gavialis gangeticus baskingon a shallow sandbank of the Chambal river.Despite their impressive size, gharials are very shyanimals and are not easily approached.

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Adult Marsh crocodiles Crocodylus palustriscan reach truly massive proportions in theChambal, and can be occasionally approachedquite close during boat trips on the river.

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A fragile environment precariouslybalanced between desert

and watercourse

Knob-billed DuckSarkidiornis melanotos.Slow boat trips along theChambal offer theopportunity to observe manywaterbird species.

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Peaceful, waryfish-eaters, gharialsGavialis gangeticus

are totally harmless tohumans and coexist

peacefully with manydifferent bird species

sharing theirenvironment.