More animals die so that we can ride in comfort

In more sad news from Yala, the body of a female leopard was found on Friday inside Yala National Park itself, on the verge of the Jamburagala road. The body had no apparent scars but the postmortem revealed the leopard died due to a broken neck (spinal code). There was evidence that some elephants had passed through the area in which the leopard was lying but it was unlikely that the death could have been due to an attack by elephants as adult leopards never confront elephants.

It is probable that the leopard died after being hit by a speeding vehicle, Wildlife Conservation Department (DWC) Director General H.D. Ratnayake said. No culprit has been nabbed yet but there will be an investigation about the death of this leopard, he said.

Yala is the busiest national park in Sri Lanka with its key attraction being the leopards. The safari jeep drivers and other visitors always want to see a leopard so any leopard sighting is swiftly communicated through mobile phones to other jeeps that then flock to the area for a glimpse of the prized big cat.

The park is closed every day at 6 p.m., so jeeps that go deep into the jungle without a sense of the time, speed their way toward the exit at closing time, and this could lead to accidents like this. This is not the first leopard killed by speeding vehicles inside Yala National Park. In 2011, a leopard was killed by a speeding vehicle and since then, several animals too has been reported killed by speeding vehicles.

Mobile phones are a big factor in these Mad Max-type situations in Yala as they are used to pass on the message of leopard sightings. Heeding requests from conservationists, the DWC, in collaboration with mobile phone operators, in experimenting with cutting off service inside the park, Mr. Ratnayake revealed.

The network was switched off on alternate weeks this month. The leopard death occurred during a time when phones were active, according to local sources, indicating that a total blackout could improve the situation to some extent. It is, however, the responsibility of visitors not to allow the jeep to speed up for the sighting of a leopard. Jeep drivers speed in order to give tourists a better sighting, which will mean a bigger tip, so ask them not to speed up, conservationists say.

Local sources say that as many as five leopards have died this year in Yala due to various causes. A leopard was killed a few months ago in the buffer zone in Dambewa after being caught in a wire trap. The remains of another leopard was found near Rathmalwewa in Yala about a month ago.

Earlier this week a tourist bus hit a herd of deer on the Kirinda-Yala road, reinforcing concerns that the road has become a death-trap for wildlife as its newly-carpeted surface allows motorists to speed. No carcasses or wounded deer could be seen on the road after Wednesday’s accident but blood on the road indicated that several animals could be badly injured.

It was dark at the time of the accident and the wounded animals sought refuge in the jungle. Conservationists worry that even if these deer do not die as a direct result of their injuries the wounds could become infected and make the animals less mobile,making them easy prey for predators.

On August 21, a deer was hit and killed by a motorist who sped off without waiting to be identified, leaving the animal suffering by the side of the road. It was the ninth deer known to have been killed in the past three months since that stretch was resurfaced to provide a comfortable ride for park visitors, local resident Sampath Galappaththi said.

The fact that large animals like deer are being killed on the road indicates smaller animals and birds are being killed in larger numbers, unnoticed.

Mr. Galappaththi revealed that carcasses of nightjars, a nocturnal bird, have become a common sight on the road.
Mr. Ratnayake said he was aware of the problem. He said that as the road comes under the Road Development Authority, the DWC would hold talks with the authority to find a solution. In the meantime, he urged motorists to be careful when driving on roads bordering on or passing through through wilderness areas.

Drought break for wildlife
The Yala National Park will be closed for one month from September 7.
The Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) announced this week that Yala, the country’s mostly visited national park, is closing during the height of the drought to ease the pressure on the animals from visitors.
The break also gives an opportunity to repair infrastructure in the park.
The tradition of closing the park at this time started in colonial days when the park was a game reserve providing hunting opportunities.

Source: Sundaytimes

Protecting a memory and nature

An auditorium built by the parents of the late Dr.Ravindra Samarasinha, a conservationist and humanist, in the jungles of Yala that he loved so much, is sadly underutilised

When Derrick and Vivina Samarasinha remember their son Ravi’s funeral, they remember the number of total strangers who came. “We didn’t know who these people were, there were busloads,” says Mrs. Samarasinha. A rough count put them at over a 1000, including humble elderly villagers from Tissamaharama.

Dr. Ravi Samarasinha

Their presence and genuine sorrow that day comforted his grieving family and made it clear to them that Dr. Ravindra Samarasinha would be remembered not only as one of the country’s most genuinely dedicated and clever conservationists but a quiet and generous humanitarian. As the months passed, they realised they wanted to create a solid monument to him, and one park seemed the inevitable choice of location. “We wanted to do something in Yala after Ravi’s death because he more or less lived there, you see,” Mr. Samarasinha says. His mother wanted to put up a building in which people could live and conduct research in the park but they ended up building an auditorium designed by architect Ashley de Vos instead, along with new ticket counters – the first stop for visitors coming into the park.

The auditorium built in Ravi’s memory at Yala

On the table in front of us is a file Mr. Samarasinha filled with all the articles that were published to honour Ravi’s memory. Killed in a collision with a sand-filled lorry on a road close to his parents’ estate in 2007, Ravi was only 44 when he died. A quiet and thoughtful child, he grew up loving the outdoors, never happier than with his dogs or out exploring a new landscape. Eventually, he would study medicine and go to Kuliyapitiya for his internship before asking for a posting to Hambantota, just so he could be near the jungles he so loved.

It was during that time that he became involved in the BBC’s documentary ‘The Leopard Hunters’. The authorities only agreed to allow the team into the park after dark when Ravi assured them he would accompany the crew. “He was working in the hospital then and he couldn’t get leave,” says Mrs. Samarasinha. Ravi’s solution was to pull back-to-back shifts and then rush straight off for a night’s filming. So perhaps it didn’t come as such a surprise to his parents when he told them he wanted to dedicate all his time to his work in the wild.
“We weren’t so happy about him taking a break from medicine because I always felt he was a very good diagnostician,” confesses Mrs. Samarasinha, who only allowed herself to be convinced when her son said to her, “Let me take a break. Even if I have ten years of happiness in doing what I really like, then my life is well spent.”

Ravi was happiest in Yala. He would camp out for days, with only a tracker, a driver and his camera for company. “Sometimes it’s just the love of being there, it doesn’t matter if you don’t see anything, if all you hear is calls in the night. He was that kind of man, a genuine lover of nature and wildlife,” says Caryll Perera, a friend of Ravi’s parents and the person they credit with helping them get the work on the auditorium completed.

Having bought the best equipment he could afford from Singapore, Ravi took an estimated 10,000 images of leopards, elephants and deer; of birds in flight and reptiles in the undergrowth, he took pictures of insects and close ups of flowers and fruit. As with his other interests, Ravi applied a meticulous, exhaustive approach to mastering photography and it was through the lens of his camera that he first began to gather evidence for what would be a ground-breaking approach to identifying leopards – the pattern of their spots was unique to each, observed Ravi, and it was that insight that would help the authorities first count and them keep track of individual animals.

Ravi would co-author or author several books and his pictures would appear in numerous publications. (When she finally brought herself to open up his flat after a year, his mother found that he was working on another and had his content meticulously organised.) He also took a very pragmatic, hands on approach to conservation. When villagers complained of having their cattle taken by leopards, he worked with other likeminded people to design traps that could be used to capture the big cats without harming them. He also helped build and distribute solid cages in which villagers could pen their cattle up at night, safe from hungry predators. “Ravi listened to people,” says his mother, explaining that he would often visit villages with his medicine case, treating simple ailments, doling out medicines and directing the more serious cases toward local hospitals. “People knew he was genuine because he had given up a lucrative medical practice to be there.”

Whenever he could, Ravi liked to speak to children in the local schools, firmly convinced that it would take the young to carry the conservation message. It’s why the simple auditorium seems like the perfect tribute. His parents want the auditorium to be used to screen films, host lectures and display information about the leopard and the other inhabitants of the park. Caryll says it would be ideal if this became a compulsory stop for visitors to the park.

“We want to educate the young people that it’s not just a pleasure trip. If they don’t look after this, we’ll lose it,” says Mrs. Samarasinha. Their only great disappointment, says Mr. Samarasinha, is that despite being opened with some hoopla, the auditorium is not being put to its designated use. His entreaties to the authorities have been ignored and they seem uncertain of the way forward. The one thing the Samarasinhas know is that Ravi would have wanted them to continue trying to inspire young people. “It’s important to teach children to love animals, they are the ones that will have wonderful new ideas, ideas for conservation that we haven’t even thought off,” says Mrs. Samarasinha. She knows if Ravi were alive, he would be in the forefront of the fight to save the nation’s parks. “He would be doing, not just talking.”

As we get ready to leave, Mr. Samarasinha urges us to read something Ravi once wrote in a book he was gifting to a young girl. He feels it sums up his son perfectly. “It is a gift to have a beautiful mind that can admire nature,” Ravi wrote, “but it is a greater gift to have a heart that wants to protect it.”

Leopards: The FutureBy Ravi Samarasinha In Sri Lanka, the greatest threat to the leopard comes from the habitat loss and fragmentation, as land requirements grow with the demands of an ever increasing population. Despite legal protection, leopards are still killed for their skin, poisoned when they kill domestic cattle and accidentally ensnared in wire traps meant for deer and other ‘game.’ The large-scale trade in game meat reduces prey densities in reserves and parks, forcing leopards to prey on dogs and cattle outside protected areas, leading to an increased confrontation with man, a conflict in which the leopard is the ultimate loser. Long-term successful conservation of the leopard requires a multi-pronged approach. The national parks, the last future stronghold of the leopard, need to be linked by corridors, ensuring genetic flow, while laws protecting the leopard and its habitat need to be strengthened and revised. The Department of Wildlife Conservation, which has been entrusted with the solemn duty of protecting the wildlife of this country, badly needs more funds and staff, but more importantly, new vision and commitment when fulfilling its duties. The leopard is a keystone species; its well being is an indication that the ecosystem that we live and depend on is thriving. We, therefore, must strive hard to conserve the leopard. If we fail, the forests and jungles of Sri Lanka will surely be the poorer for the loss of this most perfect of big cats, beautiful in appearance and graceful in its movement. (From Wilds of Lanka, by Ravi Samarasinha and Chitral Jayatilake)

Source:http://www.sundaytimes.lk/130317/plus/protecting-a-memory-and-nature-36704.html

Chief vet arrested for animal skulls stolen from Sri Lanka's national zoo

Jun 10, Colombo: Sri Lanka police have arrested two people in suspicion of stealing several animal skulls from Sri Lanka's National Zoological Gardens.

The Dehiwala Police have arrested the Chief Veterinary Surgeon of the zoo and a veterinary assistant in connection with the three missing skulls, the Daily Mirror reported.

According to the police the arrested veterinary assistant had provide information that led to the arrest of the Chief Veterinary Surgeon.

The suspects have been produced before the Mt. Lavinia Chief Magistrate who had remanded them till June 12.

The skulls of a lion, a tiger and a jaguar that were stored in a deep freezer had gone missing. The animals have died of natural causes, according to the Zoo officials.

Dehiwala police are conducting further inquiries to recover the skulls.

Source:http://www.colombopage.com/archive_12/Jun10_1339343837CH.php

Call A Friend If You See A Leopard. Actually, Call Them All.

Yala has been described as a natural and national resource, a National Park with a world wide repute. But it is now increasingly  getting a bad reputation – the reason, according to Conservationist  and trustee of the Leopard Trust Sri Lanka, Rukshan Jayawardena, is because of the lack of discipline and flouting of rules within the National Park.

It is now a common practice that when a leopard is spotted, the drivers call a friend, or two, or five, and all the vehicles race to catch the sighting. “It is a really bad situation. The drivers are rushing around, responding to information about sightings. They are extremely reckless as they try to get there before the crowd. It creates  a huge leopard traffic jam. Around 30- 40 vehicles on a 10 feet wide road, all speeding. It gets really chaotic, and some of them even go off the road,” Jayawardena said. “You cannot simply get down, have tea and drive off the road as you wish at a National Park.”

According to Jayawardena however, despite  the responsibility resting with the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC), they are poorly funded, and find it difficult to even patrol the borders as they do not have adequate funds for vehicles. They are underpaid too, and with such “disgruntled foot soldiers” the impact on the wilderness and wildlife is huge.

“Ultimately, the Government has to make decisions about the resources. This is what brings in revenue  and it should be fed back to build infrastructure and pay staff  better salaries. The nature of the job is such that it is not a 9 – 5 job, but they are expected to respond 24 hours. If you starve the department and expect to make a revenue too, how do you hope to sustain this in the future?” he asked.
This issue however, doesn’t just concern one party or group: it is actually something that everyone, from the drivers and rangers to the park visitors, to the tourist  board and telecommunication service providers, should look into. As Jayawardena said, the short term gain is “unsustainable.”
“It is an abuse of modern technology. Very few people look for leopards, the other simply call. It is a pathetic state, the drivers are more dexterous with the phone than with tracking the animals. If there is a signal blockage, say, during the peak hours of park visits, then people will have to look out  for leopards the old fashioned way. They then can’t call in all four directions and hit 70 – 90 kmph on a narrow, straight forest road. If an animal jumps across, then there will be a collision.”

He added that there were two reported  leopard deaths last year in Yala, and the investigations on the matter were swept under the rug. “There should have been a fine, an investigation. But there was nothing. The only way we got to know was because visitors to the park had seen the dead animals. It was then the DWC did a postmortem. But nothing happened beyond that, no action was taken and the incidents are repeated.”

These road kills are actually a cost to the country as a whole. National Parks have a unique eco-system, where everything is naturally  interdependent and connected. As Jayawardena explained, if something is tampered with, it wi ll collapse, and this, according to him, has to a certain extent occurred at Yala. Bear sightings for instance, he says, are getting rarer. “Yala is particularly bad. Other National Parks are similar.”

Although Yala rakes in revenue for the country, and despite being a National Park accorded with  the highest protected status, poachers have a field day. “A lot of violations take place, from logging  to poaching. Anti-poaching is not happening,” he said, adding that for an anti-poaching patrol to go on duty, there is a long procedure, which is counter-productive at the end of the day.
“The overall attitude is bad, this is not a blanket statement, but people get off with bribes or influence and this happens increasingly. The big companies need to move to better practices too, and we should slowly start untangling, lobbying  and putting pressure to bring these practices to an end,” he said.
In a similar vein, other environmentalists too have spoken extensively about the issue. Environmental lawyer, Jagath Gunewardena for instance spoke about the phot o frenzy, and how everyone just wants a close up shot of a leopard. According to him, disturbing an animal in itself is an offence under the law. This most certainly includes chasing. “Yala is severely understaffed and over visited. When the two come together, it is difficult to even guard the boundaries. There are too many thrill seekers visiting Yala, many who just want to take a close up shot of a leopard.”

Recently I came across an interesting  blog post mentioning a passenger who had in fact sustained an injury in a speeding vehicle at Yala. To quote the blog jestforkicks.blogspot.com: “The jeep drivers, eager to earn money are hell bent on trying to show their clients as many animals as possible, so as soon as word is received of a  sighting everyone races to the spot. Quite apart from the dangers to passengers, the roar of engines must surely be disturbing the wildlife, not to mention wildlife being run over by vehicles .”

But even for that perfect shot, the thrill of seeing an animal, it is a far cry from seeing them in their natural habitat, which is actually the point of a National Park, if there are so many vehicles racing around, and people openly disregarding the rules of the park. The price of thrill seeking is far too steep it seems. We are steadily trading away our natural resources, what makes us unique, at the hands of careless commercialism. Despite the attention this issue is gaining, the question  remains, will the relevant authorities take this into careful consideration and remedy  the situation before it is too late?


Source:http://www.thesundayleader.lk/2012/02/19/call-a-friend-if-you-see-a-leopard-actually-call-them-all/

One arrested for selling leopard meat

COLOMBO - A Sri Lankan man was caught red handed by police trying to sell the meat and skin of a leopard, an animal listed in the country’s endangered species list.

After having hunted the animal in the forest reserve adjoining the Adam’s Peak, the man was tring to sell the meat and skin of the animal, said police.

The Bogawanthalawa area, where the Adam’s Peak is located, was declared as a World Heritage Site in 2010. The Sri Lankan leopard is classified as Endangered by International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Police sources confirmed that the full grown leopard was a six-foot long. The offender was selling the meat for less than $ 3 per kilogramme. 


news@khaleejtimes.com

Man and animal under cover of darkness

A documentary done for the National Geographic channel focuses on the behaviour of Yala leopards at night. Here Chitral Jayatilaka discusses the experience of being present during the shooting of ‘Night Stalkers’

They drove through Yala in the still of the night experiencing a strange silent world so different to the dusty scrub jungle by day. “47 days of filming at night brought its rewards: 106 leopard sightings in 46 nights, 11 of sloth bears, five of rusty spotted cats, 14 of cobras and seven of pythons along with countless elephants arriving to water at Gonagala and Heenwewa tanks.”The mission was a film to bring Yala’s amazing wildlife, to the spotlight. But unlike the many wildlife films done before, this one made for the National Geographic Channel, titled ‘Night Stalkers’ would focus on Yala’s top predator, the leopard and its behaviour under cover of darkness.

For Chitral Jayatilaka, head of Eco-tourism and Special Projects at John Keells, accustomed as he is to the wild, it was a rare privilege. Ten years ago, the BBC film ‘The Leopard Hunters’ done with the late Dr. Ravi Samarasinghe and Jehan Kumara had brought Yala’s leopards to a world audience and to help make such a film on the big cats’ behaviour at night, was for Chitral, a dream realised, another step in the larger mission to conserve this awesome wealth through knowledge and awareness.

It all began in May 2010 when Chitral was contacted by Thomas Stephens, a young producer at Ammonite, UK, about making a leopard documentary at Yala focusing on the big cat’s behaviour at night.
“I invited Tom to visit Sri Lanka in early June for a recce and drove him to Yala. Enroute, we met the Director General of the Department of Wildlife Conservation and presented our plans of filming these elusive cats at night. The three-day recce was a great success, with many leopards seen, and the experiment of staying out at the park one night after closing time with the kind assistance of the DWC worked well in spotting several large males at night. Tom was convinced that Yala was indeed the place to make his movie designed for Nat Geo Wild,” says Chitral.

Four weeks of meticulous planning followed, custom-designing filming doors fabricated in Tissa, seats removed to house two thermal cameras and modified desktop computers on board the jeeps. The Nature Trails team at Chaaya Wild awaited the arrival of the Ammonite crew led by Martin Dhorn.
“On July 7, we were all set for our first night of filming. Kalu, our faithful driver carefully selected for the filming jeep, needed reassurance in driving through night vision. I took on the wheel of the Tata myself; driving up to the main gate was easy, but negotiating the jeep through the narrow gates certainly tested my night vision driving skills,” says Chitral.

“We headed straight up towards the Yala junction when the spotter jeep picked up one of the ‘Suduwelimulla Cubs’ ahead. I gently manoeuvred the jeep into position and spotted the cub seated on the drain by the road, relaxed though watching the jeep.

“Thirty minutes later, to our total surprise, the cub stood up, stretched and began walking straight up to the filming jeep. Tom whispered to me, “Back up CJ, he’s too close…” and I did, looking through Yukon night vision goggles; another first – reversing a jeep through Infra Red vision.”

Over the weeks that followed, they had numerous sightings and were able to capture remarkable images of the big cats as they moved freely at night —a leopard family, father, mother and two cubs, leopards mating by the roadside and a young leopard’s chase for prey up a tree- unsuccessful as it turned out and much more of the interaction too between the leopards and other animals at Yala including a rare sequence of a female leopard’s battle to protect her kill from wild boar, buffalo and crocodile .

Adds Chitral, “I felt as if I sat on the top of the world when we drove into the ‘Buttuwa’ plains one September night for a final still image of the crew that completed this amazing task. A 30-second long exposure, we stood motionless until Tom said he was happy with the symbolic image that marked the completion of Night Stalkers.”

Fourteen months later, the completed documentary aired in the US and UK has had rave reviews. Yala’s leopards’ cover of darkness had been broken with the aid of state of the art technology and a team of men determined to observe, document and share the secret lives of leopards at night.

The film was shown last week to a group of conservationists and journalists and hopefully will be aired on local TV soon.

Source:http://www.sundaytimes.lk/120115/Plus/plus_18.html

Leave the animals their territory

The recent fatal leopard attack on a pilgrim of the annual Pada Yatra, raises questions about the ‘goings on’ inside the Yala National Park.

Kumudini Hettiarachchi reports

The anguished shriek of "Appah" rent the early morning stillness, sending the bleary-eyed Pada Yatra devotees running to the bank of the Menik Ganga in the Yala National Park. It was dawn on Sunday, July 10, and the scene that met the devotees who rushed to the scrub jungle on the river-bank sent chilling fear up their spine. Right before their eyes, a leopard with its jaws clamped over the bloodied neck of 31-year-old Krishnapulle Chandrakumari was dragging her into the jungle. It was only a frenzy of shouting that made the leopard ease its vice-like grip, the Sunday Times understands, but even while they were carrying her to the place where they had laid down their weary heads the previous night on the dried up riverbed the predator had been slinking about in the vicinity, growling in anger, having to be warded off with firebrands. On the move: Pada Yatra pilgrims (file pic) Chandrakumari, a mother of a six-month-old baby and six-year-old boy, was dead. A Samurdhi Officer from Thirukkovil in the east, she had joined the Pada Yatra with a heavy heart - to fulfil a vow taken on her husband's behalf. For, he was paralysed below the waist after being involved in an accident. She and the members of the 'nade' had come the previous night (July 9) to the Menik Ganga, lit a fire, had a scrap dinner and slept on the sandy river-bed. The Menik Ganga has dried up and there is only a sliver of a stream flowing sadly. In the early morn having boilt and eaten a meagre meal of bada iringu, Chandrakumari had gone about 25 metres from the river-bed to the river bank on the side of Block 1 for her morning ablutions when she met with an agonizing death far away from home, many sources said, quoting witnesses. Behind this unfortunate leopard attack lies a horde of issues, stressed conservationists, howling in protest at the "goings on" inside the Yala National Park. Reconstructing the tragic scene in detail, Sajeewa Chamikara of the Nature Forum underlines the fact that the attack took place about 500 metres from Negeniyangastota, one of four camping sites allowed by the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) in Block 1. There seems to be a connection with the campsite as there are serious concerns that a particular group that camps here, enticing foreigners and their big bucks with assurances of "sure sightings of leopards" lure the big cats here by feeding them beef regularly, said Mr. Sajeewa (See box). Previous attacks by leopards and other animals 2006 - A Pada Yatra devotee had been mauled and killed by a bear in Block 2 while a woman had been killed by a tusker at Katagamuwa in Block 1 2005 - Another woman on the Pada Yatra had been killed once again at Katagamuwa by a tusker. About 25 years ago a leopard had attacked and injured a tracker at the Heenwewa bungalow staff quarters. The same leopard had attacked about three others, but no one was killed. 1924 - The man-eater of Punani killed many people. 1910 - A Pada Yatra devotee had been killed close to the Poththana wells and the same leopard is believed to have killed around six more people. What can you expect of leopards when humans dangle beef before them as bait, he asked, critical of those who would do anything for money, not caring a tuppence for the consequences. Poor Chandrakumari may have paid with her life because of the greed of others, he said, a view echoed by many conservationists. Check out their Facebook promotions, Mr. Sanjeewa said, adding that it shows clearly a photograph of a leopard near the campsite, with a large bonfire burning merrily. Usually leopards would move away from such areas, but what is the attraction, he argued, answering, isn't it obvious it is food. Feeding of wild animals to get them for viewing at close quarters was one of the dangers that conservationists pointed out when expressing grave concern over proposed moves to build hotels in the buffer zones of Protected Areas as reported in the Sunday Times of July 3. However, a spokesman for the campsite operator vehemently denied the allegations which he claimed were baseless and asked whether anyone had seen them feeding the leopards. He pointed out that DWC officials were with them and would prohibit them from such actions. This is not the only allegation against this particular campsite operator, according to Mr. Sajeewa. When the waters of the Menik Ganga inundate the campsite during the rainy season, the operator allegedly clears the forest and moves the site further inland, he said, pointing out that this was against all the laws governing the Yala National Park which is a Protected Area. After Sunday's attack, there had also been alleged military comments that the leopard will be shot, said Mr. Sajeewa, questioning how anyone could shoot any animal in a National Park let alone one of a handful of the top predators, a leopard. The National Park is the designated home of these animals and how can humans who intrude on their territory come up with such threats which are a clear breach of the law. The other question is: How will anyone distinguish the problem leopard from the others, or will they take the liberty of killing all leopards on sight. Another conservationist pointed out that though the Pada Yatra has traditionally gone through the Yala National Park, in the last two years the number of devotees has swelled. This year, a crowd of about 28,000 has passed through while last year it was close to 26,000. Some of these groups don't behave like devotees, they sing, they make a huge noise, they set up wadi all along the river and they litter the park with polythene and the remnants of ganja, turning the National Park into one big camping ground. This affects the life of the animals, he said, especially their home range, corridors and access to water. This is the dry season and when humans are roaming along the river, they cannot get to water. ouldn't aggression come about naturally? The other major concern was expressed with regard to the army putting up four boutiques along the Pada Yatra route - Warahana, Kosgasmankada, Katupila- ara and Pallepoththana -- within the Yala National Park in clear violation of the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance. A conservationist pointed out that not only were they supplying kadala along the route but they were also selling fizzy drinks, packets of biscuits and water bottles. Not just a few hundred but thousands of bottles, he alleged, asking where these devotees dumped used bottles and polythene packets, except in the park itself. The tragic attack on Chandra-kumari should be a forewarning. Limit Pada Yatra crowds through the National Park, with DWC officials around them to advise and provide guidance, according to conservationists. Or why not have the Pada Yatra re-routed along existing roads around the Park, asked another. The warning is timely. Leave the animals their territory, for each and every one of these animals, from the smallest worm to the largest elephant, is needed in the eco-system, for the very survival of humans. Many attempts to contact the Director General of the DWC failed as he was said to be abroad. Attack an anomaly: Leopard Researcher Last Sunday's attack at Yala is "very strange" for Sri Lankan leopards, points out conservationist and leopard researcher Rukshan Jayewardene. "It is an anomaly." Explaining the "normal behaviour" of Sri Lankan leopards, he says whenever human beings move in and out of forests for various reasons such as collecting firewood they never get menaced or attacked by these big cats. Leopards will cautiously and warily watch from a distance or evade and slink into deeper forest. This is because the leopards have plentiful prey, "their kind of food", such as deer, buffalo and wild boar and they don't see humans as what they eat naturally, he stresses. In the case of cubs who have seen humans from the time they were born, even when they grow up they would ignore humans. That's how you have "close encounters" with them at Yala and see them crossing between vehicles. Humans are not the food of Sri Lankan leopards, he explains, adding that in India, leopard behaviour is different because their usual food sources are not abundant. Sometimes in marginal areas in Sri Lanka, if their food sources are scarce they would attack dogs and goats and in the process get snared, poisoned or shot. Delving into the leopards' psyche why they keep a good distance from humans, Mr. Jayewardene says their perception is that we are bigger than what we really are because they are not at our eye level. If they can look into our eyes, they feel we are a smaller animal that they can attack and subdue. That's why most leopard attacks are on people squatting or kneeling, which gives the creature the impression that we are like a medium-sized animal. They make a correct assessment of our size only when they see us at that level, otherwise their perception of us is that we are larger and heavier creatures than what we actually are. So they leave us alone. Of course, according to Mr. Jayewardene, the exception to the rule of the natural inhibition leopards have against attacking humans is the seasoned man-eater. Something has happened to make the man-eater cross that inhibitive barrier between animal and human. It could be that it accidentally attacked a human and at th same time being hungry got the taste of flesh and blood, tempting it to turn to this easy food source. With such a first attack the leopard also realizes that humans are easy to kill and not very heavy to drag. Taking the attack on Chandrakumari, he says, "it's ominous", with the danger of the same leopard attacking again. There are all indications that it was not an accidental attack, on being suddenly surprised in the undergrowth, because then it would have pounced, killed and left her. The aggression, focused attention and predation factor, as opposed to an accidental killing, could be established by reports that it attempted to drag her into the jungle and even when thwarted and her body was carried to the river-bed with lots of people moving around, it lingered menacingly. The question which arises is whether he has preyed on humans before, maybe a poacher or gem miner, the killing of which would have gone unreported because they would have been in the National Park illegally. When asked about reports that a leopard had been seen close to an army-run shop at Yala, he warns that the danger seems imminent and the DWC needs to shut down the campsites in the vicinity of the attack temporarily to avoid another attack and take urgent action to check out the cause. "One quick way to make a harmless leopard or any wild animal a problem is to make it associate humans with food," warns Mr. Jayewardene categorically, when the Sunday Times queried about the allegations made that one particular group running a campsite at Yala (incidentally close to where Sunday's attack took place) was feeding leopards with beef to get them to be around the area, so that they could boast of "assured sightings" to foreigners and make a quick buck, without thinking of the consequences. When the leopards are denied such throw-downs of food, they may very well resort to aggression, he said. Source:Sundaytimes

Kilinochchi leopard caught in snare rescued by wildlife officers

Snares are the worst death traps for Sri Lankan leopards and their latest would-have-been victim is from Kilinochchi. This leopard was lucky to survive due to the timely and brave action by the wildlife officers of Vavuniya. As soon they received the message, the officers had rushed to the site in Kilinochchi.
They found the leopard in an exhausted state after trying to free itself from the snare. Usually when a leopard gets caught in a snare, the wire tightens around its crotch area damaging the vital internal organs such as the kidneys.
A leopard has to be usually sedated before anyone can get close to it, however, the wildlife veterinarian of the region was engaged in another duty, so there was nobody to tranquilize this trapped leopard.
However the officials realizing that there was no time to be wasted and since the animal appeared to be exhausted they thought of a new tactic to get close enough to it to cut the wire of the snare.
They secured themselves inside a steel cage and got close to the leopard. Holding the exhausted leopard to the ground by using a few sticks, they succeeded in cutting the wire by using a long handled tool. The leopard slowly made its way back to the jungle and although it was exhausted, the officers believed it would survive.
It is believed that a local cattle breeder has setup the snare to trap a leopard which had killed several of his cattle.
Source:http://www.sundaytimes.lk/110501/News/nws_01103.html

Leopard succumbs to gunshot wound

Another full-grown young leopard, about 7 feet from head to tail, died an agonizing death in Balangoda last week. Estate workers of Dethangolla off Balangoda saw the wounded leopard lying near a small stream.
The leopard was alive but could not move because its paralyzed hind legs were stuck under a fallen tree. The Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) was alerted, while estate workers stood watch over the exhausted leopard. The Elephant Transit Home (ETH) of Udawalawe was the closest medical facility belonging to DWC, and a team was immediately dispatched from the home in a bid to save the animal.

Helper holds in palm of his hand the bullet that had penetrated the leopard’s spine.

The leopard had six gunshot wounds, and one bullet had penetrated its spinal cord, paralysing the hind limbs, according to the ETH veterinary surgeon. As there were no signs of a struggle in the vicinity of the dead animal, it is believed that the leopard might have been shot at a distance, and that the animal had dragged itself a long way. The leopard’s underside showed signs of bruises and scratches.
Dr. W. D. L. Udaya Kumara, who oversaw the initial treatment after sedating the animal, said there were maggots in the wound, indicating that the animal might have been shot two or three days earlier.
The leopard was lying in a forested area and taking a vehicle to the spot was a problem. The team had to carry the animal 500 metres along a hill path. The heavy animal was carried to the vehicle with its legs tied to a pole. Although it was late evening, a large crowd had gathered around the DWC vehicle to get a glimpse of the big cat. Dr. Kumara heard from estate workers that the leopard had not been seen in the area before.
On arrival at the Elephant Transit Home, in Udawalawe, medical staff immediately set to attending to the leopard. The hind legs were completely paralyzed. It was found that the leopard had bitten its own legs and tail. The leopard’s condition deteriorated, despite the wildlife officers’ efforts, and the animal died the following day.
The carcass was sent to the Girithale wildlife facility, where Southern Region veterinary surgeon Dr. Vijitha Perera performed a post-mortem. Lead shots removed from the wounds suggested that they had come from a muzzle-loading gun. The vets believed the leopard had been shot sevral times at close range.
Reasons for the shooting remain a mystery. Leopards that live close to human habitats are careful to conceal themselves from humans. They usually do not attack humans and stealthily move away when they sense an encounter.
However villagers aware of the presence of a big cat may panic, fearing the animal might prey on domesticated dogs and cattle. The leopards are therefore hunted to protect livestock or pet animals. Leopards are also vulnerable to poachers who hunt the animals for their skins.
But if this leopard was targeted for its skin, the poacher or poachers would have had time to skin the crippled animal. It is also a known fact that some estate owners like to hunt leopards for the thrill of it, and use hunting dogs for the purpose.

Source:http://www.sundaytimes.lk/110501/News/nws_22.html

Straying leopard falls into troubled waters

The tragic death of a full grown hill country leopard caught in a snare on January 23 was reported in the Sunday Times. Now, come reports of more trouble for wild cats, who could accidentally stray into human settlements.

The most recent leopard incident was reported from Nawalapitiya on February 13. A villager from a Weralugolla, Nawalapitiya who had gone to his well in the morning had been surprised by the sight of a leopard in the well. He promptly informed Nawalapitiya Police and Wildlife officers. After observing the animal for some time the regional wildlife officers had called for more assistance, as the animal had to be tranquilized before it was lifted out to safety.

The rescue operation gets underway. Pic by Suranga Rajanayake

This proved to be an uphill task as the animal was exhausted and a large crowd had gathered around the well. The well was about 10 feet deep and the frightened animal had taken refuge in a cavity in the wall of the well. No sooner the leopard was tranquilized, it had fallen unconscious into the water, but the wildlife team had managed to put a rope around its neck and pull it to safety.

“Even four inches of water is enough to drown an unconscious leopard, so we had to act quickly,” explained the veterinarian Dr.Darmakeerthi who had earlier instructed the team to pump the water out of the well. The veterinary surgeon said the leopard was a young male about four and a half feet long, from nose to tail and may have been about one and a half years old.

The village is adjacent to a forest patch known as Rilagala. Leopard experts believe the leopard was a ‘dispersing’ young male, that is an animal on the move in search of a new jungle patch as its territory. When a young leopard matures, it separates from the mother looking for new territories. But the forests are fragmented in many areas forcing them to cross human settlements to reach another jungle patch which results in close encounters with humans.

Rukshan Jayawardene – a leopard conservationist says such infiltrations are more possible during the drought season, adding however, the lack of prey in their natural habitats too could push leopards close to human habitations. When food sources dwindle, the leopards stray into human habitats in search of easier prey, like cattle and dogs in villages. Rukshan Jayawardane also points out the importance of having a common action plan to handle cases of leopards being found in human settlements.

In India the human leopard conflict is worse than in Sri Lanka, but they have developed a plan on what to do when a leopard is spotted in a village, he said, adding that establishing a Task Force to handle Leopard matters under the Wildlife Department here would be helpful to manage the Human Leopard Conflict.

The Nawalapitiya leopard should have ideally been released into the adjacent Rilagala forest, but villagers had protested and wildlife officers were forced to release the animal into the Bomuruella Sanctuary , a closeby hill country habitation.

Experts have pointed out that like in the case of the Human Elephant conflict translocation is not the answer even in the case of the human leopard conflict. Leopard expert Anjali Watson, who studied the Sri Lankan leopard for more than a decade says the leapoard is a territorial predatory animal whose survival depended on knowledge of its habitat, prey species and competitors. Transferring such an animal from one habitat to an alien one resulted in the inability of the animal to adapt to new surroundings.

The Leopard is also a territorial animal which also does not tolerate a stranger in its territory. So if a leopard is relocated into an area where another leopard lives, a battle for supremacy is inevitable, which usually resulted in the death of the relocated animal.

There were several other reports of leopard incidents in the past few weeks. These included finding three leopard cubs in Norwood, the arrest of a Deniyaya planter for trapping and killing a leopard in January. However officials of the Leopard Project of The Wilderness & Wildlife Conservation Trust who investigated these incidents revealed that the animals were fishing cats and not leopard.

The villagers of Norwood had found three young cubs close to a flooding culvert and they were handed over to Norwood police. They were later handed over to the Wildlife Department, but they were too weak to survive. In a similar incident, Rusty Spotted Cat cubs were also handed over by villagers believing that the mother had abandoned the cubs, or being killed by poachers.

However Anjali believes the mother would have been close by and the villagers should have left the cubs where they were.

Source:http://sundaytimes.lk/110220/News/nws_16.html

Politician found with leopard skin given bail

Colombo chief magistrate Rashmi Singappuli today (Jan. 03) ordered bail for a member of the Horowpothana Pradeshiya Sabha, who has been charged under the Fauna and Flora Act. The accused, A.K. Mohamed Asvin, was released on two one million rupee personal bails.

He is charged with the possession of a leopard skin and other animal body parts, intended for sale.

The court ordered the CID to file a case, and fixed March 28 as the next day of hearing.

Source:http://www.srilankamirror.com/english/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1143:politician-found-with-leopard-skin-given-bail&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=50