The
Little Rann is an astonishing testament to how something so seemingly
inhospitable can sustain so much life, in so many forms. I went there as a novice birder a few years
ago and a chance invitation by ace birder Sudheer Puttur gave me another
opportunity to return, still as a novice, but a slightly more informed one. And
this time, in January, it would still be in ‘season’
Sriram
and I set off from Mumbai on a night train (and we were really lucky to get on
the train) to Ahmedabad. A quick breakfast of jalebi and fafda later, we were
enroute to the Little Rann and made it in time for a late safari! First up,
Akshay, our 18 year old guide led us to the Bajana Grasslands and driving by a
clump of bushes, he pointed to a bird in the shade and said “Merlin”. A lifer
within 10 minutes of entering! It was too far for any good pictures, even with
a 500mm, but any closer and we would scare her off. So we settled for some
record shots.
Merlin |
Soon
after that, we saw another lifer – A Peregrine Falcon. We watched this
magnificent hunter on his perch, again a bit far, before he flew off to roost
in some shade. Akshay then quickly followed that up with a hat-trick of lifers
– Short Eared Owls. And just for good measure, there were three of them in one
clump of thorny bush that adorn the Rann. Even as we had the owls pose, we got
a bonus lifer – a Greater Whitethroat. Four lifers, what more could we expect?
Peregrine Falcon |
A
lot more, as it turned out. As we drive past a duck kill (made by a Peregrine)
we saw a Greater Spotted Eagle hovering above and he came and settled himself, not very
far from the kill. He seemed quite content to rest and didn’t make any moves on
the kill, but the Peregrine apparently wasn’t too thrilled. Out of nowhere, he
swooped on the Eagle and kept harassing the much bigger raptor until it flew
away. Mission accomplished, we thought the Falcon would settled down to feed.
But strangely enough, he too flew away and settled far away from the kill. Go
figure!
Eagle and Peregrine Falcon |
We
were still not done with the lifers though. A Gull Billed Tern and Paddyfield
Pipit for me and these plus an Imperial Eagle, Open Billed Stork and Woolly
Necked Stork for Sriram. Throw in some Lesser and Greater Flamingos and our
work for the morning was complete. Time to head back and await Sudheer and
Nissim who had set out from Pune by bus, only to encounter a 7 hour traffic jam
enroute. They arrived just in time for a quick shower, lunch and then a trip
back for the afternoon safari.
Short eared Owl |
The
afternoon was not as exciting as the morning, in terms of lifers (the merlin
and peregrine also didn't show) but we still clocked Pallid, Marsh and Montagu
Harriers, a long legged buzzard flying above, shikras and pelicans. A herd of
Asiatic Wild Ass made for a lovely show, but the species we were after proved
elusive – Desert Fox. We passed by a couple of burrows (at respectful distance)
but they proved empty. Seeing tyre tracks head directly to the burrow made us
wonder if it had been irresponsible tourists that had led the fox to abandon
its burrow. If that indeed were to be the case,
it only aids the cause of those who believe that wildlife tourism is a
curse and not a boon for our wildlife. These musings spoilt a safari that ended with a magnificent
sunset, for which LRK is rightfully famous.
Gull Billed Tern |
The
next morning started with a beautiful male Pallid Harrier right as we entered,
but he flew off immediately. It was quickly followed by a Greater Spotted Eagle
(another lifer for me) but he too settled down too far away for any quality
pictures. We got the Owls again for a
bit, but the Merlin was elusive. While driving along, we saw a Peregrine
perched in the open in beautiful light. And we took a long detour around and
slowly approached the bird. I was licking my lips at some close up pictures,
when a bunch of feral dogs appeared out of nowhere and ran straight towards the
Peregrine. The startled bird flew off into a far away perch and we were left
cursing the dogs. While interrupting a photo shoot is not really of
consequence, these creatures can cause serious damage to the bird species, especially flamingos.
Lesser Flamingos |
These
beautiful pink birds gave us our highlight pictures of the morning as they came
down to feed. Both Lesser and Greater flamingos were the cynosure of many eyes
that morning, being a Sunday the Rann was playing host to a surprising number
of people. Akshay, wise beyond his 18 years, sagely advised us to avoid Sundays
if we wanted to see elusive species, like Merlins or Lesser Kestrels. And we
headed back with one more bite of the cherry left in the afternoon safari.
Lesser Kestrel |
On
our way out we saw another magnificent spectacle. As we waited next to the
waterbody to take some sunset pictures, we saw a pink swarm suddenly appear
from the far side. A large flock of flamingos painted the sky pink as they
approached for their evening feed. It was such an energizing sight to see these
beautiful, graceful ballet dancers of the avian world put on a superb show for
us as they landed in groups in the shallow waters. May god bless these
wonderful birds and keep them in good shape for many more generations to enjoy!
And
that was the end for Nissim and me, we headed out to Ahmedabad to get the night
train. But Sriram and Sudheer still had another day and on that Monday Sriram
got yet another precious lifer – A Desert Cat! Lucky Devil.
So
there it was, a short, sweet and extremely productive trip to LRK. If I were to
sum this place up in two words, it would be ‘Deceptively Hospitable.
Greater Whitethroat |
Paddyfield Pipit |
Steppe Eagle |
Thicknee |
Wild Ass |
LRK Trip Guide
The
Little Rann of Kutch is set in Gujarat’s Dhrangadhra district, with Viramgam (30kms)
as the nearest town. Nearest Metro is Ahmedabad (a little more than 100kms)
Getting there
Ahmedabad
is the nearest airport and major rail head. Viramgam is the nearst railway
station with decent connectivity with Mumbai and Delhi. The best way is to fly
or take a train into Ahmedabad and drive from there. Lalitbhai (+91 9712171516) is an excellent
driver and very reliable as well.
Where to stay
Rann
Riders in Dasada offers the ‘Resort’ option. They have their own open top
Mahindra Thars and some excellent ‘driver guides’. They are the only ones in
the area to have open top vehicles, so as a photographer, you might want to
keep this in mind.
We
stayed in Patdi, a few kilometres from the Park Office in Bajana.
The only stay option there is Hotel Ashirwad, a very basic but clean hotel. He
also has a restaurant downstairs with a passable Gujarati Thali.
The
food highlight was a dhaba down the highway who served us Bajri Rotli with Dal
and Gur. It was absolutely spectacular food and a meal I will remember for a
long long time.
Guide
If
you’re not going with Rann Riders, then you will need your own vehicle and
guide. You can contact Pratap (he’s an expert guide and young Akshay’s father)
on + 91 9714190990) and he will help you with a jeep as well. The only bummer
is that it will be a closed jeep (a Qualis or Tavera most likely)
Wild Ass |
Pallid Harrier |
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