With improved technology and a much greater appetite among the young for books to remind them of the wonderful biosphere in which they live, it is heartening to see how many new, high-quality publications are emerging from within India. Here are three books that Sanctuary believes should be in every public library and in the homes of all those whose hearts beat to nature’s drum.
Sugarcane Tigers of Amaria: Joining the Dots with Rahul Shukla
Edited by Dr. Rashmi Kant Shukla
Published by CBS Publishers & Distributors Pvt. Ltd.,
Hard cover, 252 pages,
Price: Rs. 2,500/-
The thought of successful coexistence is thrilling as well as terrifying – as dearly as one loves the wild world, the idea of living with a carnivorous big cat as a neighbour is not easy. Unlike most urban dwellers, this is a reality for various parts of rural India. Sugarcane Tigers of Amaria is a methodical documentation of this curious existence of tigers amidst densely populated fields, at a fair distance from Protected Areas, where both species are creating and living out a fascinating relationship.
Through this information-packed book of essays, Professor Rahul Shukla presents his personal scientific studies conducted in rural Tarai on the phenomenon of tigers that exist and thrive in sugarcane fields. Leopards and other smaller cats have been recorded more frequently to adapt to such coexistence but there are fewer instances of the striped predator doing so. The author argues that they are “a scheme of nature”, and have developed into an ecotype of their own. Sugarcane tigers, after all, are an anomaly, and are generally considered to be a vagrant population, while also being susceptible to poaching and understandable fear among locals. However, Dr. Shukla also shows that humans here have adjusted with the striped cat’s presence; both species focus on avoiding interactions, and have learned to respect each other’s rhythms. While crediting humans for enabling the tiger’s existence in their midst, the author also attributes this to the cat’s sophisticated thought process. As reassuring as this harmonious existence seems, he also highlights the dangers of living with tigers in the chapters detailing his unnerving experience of tracking the predators.
The book ties together years of Dr. Shukla’s granular research to truly understand Amaria’s sugarcane tigers and other biodiversity that also thrive in such fields including leopards, jackals, and prey species. With first-hand observations and images, Dr. Shukla candidly confesses about aspects he cannot understand, such as overlapping territories of the sugarcane tiger population, and hopes for further research by scientists to solve such mysteries, all with the ultimate aim of protecting tigers.
The text is punctuated with images from the field sourced from various photographers – including a striking one of tiger reflected in still water as it takes a drink; and thought-provoking ones of a juvenile tiger hiding in a field, cranes dead from pesticide poisoning, and a tigress with her cubs amidst stalks of sugarcane. They are an apt reflection of Dr. Shukla’s abiding love for wildlife, as he writes: “Wildlife is addictive. Whatever age you grow, its scenes are always fresh and enthralling.” Sugarcane Tigers of Amaria is a fascinating read for anyone interested in tiger behaviour and human-wildlife relationships, and an important piece for the species conservation puzzle in a country as diverse and unique as India.
By Shatakshi Gawade
