DANDELI: Every day, for a brief while, the historic timber yard in Dandeli town comes alive with the sounds of exclamations and gasps from groups as they get to see hornbills and scores of other colourful birds, all thanks to former school teacher-turned birding guide Rajani Rao.
While whitewater rafting may still be Dandeli’s main attraction, bird watching is slowly becoming popular too. Thanks mostly to the efforts of Rajani, who is generating a lot of interest in the activity in Dandeli and Joida. Rajani is probably the first woman naturalist or birding guide in Karnataka. Rajani began her career as a teacher at a private school in Ramanagar. Two years ago she started conducted small birding trips for her students which led to her decision to take up the job full time. Once she made up her mind, she resigned from her teacher’s job and took the plunge into full-time birding. Since June she has been conducting bird trips for guests visiting Dandeli.
The timber yard, located right next to the Kali river is the right place for spotting birds and Rajani’s bird tour also includes short lessons on conservation of habitat for birds and the importance of flagship species of birds that are endemic to the Western Ghats. The bird tour of around 2 km is completed in one-and-half hours during which time the guests are taught how to spot different birds and their behaviour.
“I worked as a teacher for 9 years. When I took an interest in bird watching, I thought I can teach and guide people and show them birds. When I took up bird watching trips in June there were fewer guests. But soon many tourists started showing interest. Many homestays and lodges attached to the forest department send their guests to these birding trips,” Rajani says.
And she’s not just an amateur hobbyist. “I was trained by forest staff and bird experts in Joida and Dandeli. I am also planning to pursue naturalist training and continue to do guide work for bird watching enthusiasts. With my work in Dandeli I have proved that one can make a career guiding tourists interested in birding. I must thank my family for the support I receive from them as well as the forest staff and owners of homestays,” she says.
Talking about her future plans, Rajani says, “Today, there are hardly any women naturalists and I dream of building a team of young women naturalists. I attend several seminars related to wildlife in colleges where I request girl students to take up naturalist jobs. I have a plan to set up my own bird watching area where I can train young naturalists and organise bird watching trips in the future.”
Rajani’s trips have also thrown up new theories on how the birds breed and protect their young ones. In a rare video shot by her during one of her birding tours, a common grey hornbill is seen taking a live chick of an Indian Robin to feed its young one.
Several documentary makers and ornithologists have shown interest in watching and learning about this behaviour. The hornbills are usually seen feeding smaller insects and fruits to their young ones, but the video taken by Rajani proves that the birds even take live birds home to feed their chicks.
Helping her in her quest, the Forest Department has been quite encouraging, she says. They have allowed her to conduct birding trips at the Timber Yard. “Bird watching is the first step for many to take up conservation. The love towards nature is increased through learning about wildlife and bird watching is the best activity to introduce many to nature,” says a forest officer from Dandeli division.
And the homestay owners are happy too. Narasimha Bhat, owner of Kadumane homestay in Joida, says that birdwatching trips from Rajani have given visitors an added attraction to visit Dandeli. “Guests who have completed the birding trips have expressed happiness. It’s a welcome move that the forest department is encouraging a woman naturalist. The department must provide some honorarium to encourage women naturalists in other parts of Karnataka too,” he suggests.
