Recently, in Bangalore, in south India, the police rescued an Indian chameleon who was being kept as a pet. Like other wild animals, Indian chameleons are protected by the Wildlife Protection Act of India, and it’s illegal to keep them as pets. They are meant to lead their natural lives free in the wild.
The chameleon was brought to the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (WRRC), where Dr. Roopa Satish, the licensed wildlife rehabilitator there, examined her. She weighed 60 grams. She was rehydrated, placed under observation, and given insects to eat, which are her natural diet. Often, in captivity, chameleons are fed inappropriate food which can cause digestive upsets.
Very shy creatures, chameleons belong in the wild where they can live among wild plants and rocks and find plenty of places to hide so that they feel comfortable and secure.
Being around people and having little cover causes them great stress and, sadly, they often don’t survive being in captivity. People who don’t really intend to harm them, often don’t understand their natural shyness and their need for a quiet life in the wild.
Fascinating reptiles, chameleons have many distinct features like a flattened body shape, and a prehensile tail, which means that they can grasp and hold objects with their tail. Like other lizards, they have a long tongue that can dart out to catch insects from a distance. They walk with a swaying movement. Some of their toes point forwards and some backwards so they can hold on to tree branches. Each of their eyes can move independently, giving them depth of vision, which comes in handy when catching insects. And, of course, the color of their skin changes, sometimes to match their background, sometimes to reflect other circumstances or to send a signal.
Thanks to the expert care and dedication of Dr. Roopa and the caregivers at WRRC, the chameleon did very well.
Dr. Roopa writes, “After 48 hours of observation, the chameleon was active and ate the insects so she was released inside a protected forest on a tree branch where she slowly but surely held the branch and moved into the foliage and disappeared from our vision due to excellent camouflage.”
Our best wishes to the chameleon for a long and happy life, roaming freely in the forest.
The more we can all respect nature and appreciate and value the lives of wild animals, the happier and healthier life on our planet will be.
Kangaroo wouldn’t pose for a photo, so this is another bonnet macaque. Shantanu Kuveskar, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
First, Kangaroo isn’t really a kangaroo (because this is India, not Australia). Actually, he is a bonnet macaque, a monkey, who weighs seven and a half pounds (3.39 kilos). On November 3 of last year, he had an accident. Some very kind people rescued him and he was transported from a southern suburb of Bangalore to the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre. Monkeys, of course, climb to get from place to place, and he had been swinging along on the electric wires over the main road in order to get across it when he was electrocuted.
For any birds or animals, electrocutions tend to be really serious, and his prognosis for survival was indeed grave. For three months, he received lots of treatments and then had to have three of his limbs amputated. (The photo is of a different bonnet macaque, not Kangaroo.)
Amazingly, he was a cheerful monkey through everything. He recovered and nothing seemed to dampen his spirits.
When he was moved into the large monkey enclosure which had special platforms for easy movement, he was with other young, orphaned monkeys. Dr. Roopa writes that “Kangaroo immediately took charge of them all, in spite of his handicaps, and he could be seen, grooming them, playing, and enjoying their company.”
With just one leg, he used his tail to help him balance, and he hopped with great ease just like a kangaroo, hence his name. With his handicaps, he wouldn’t be able to be released and the plan was for him to live permanently at the center. Being a clever monkey, Kangaroo made his own plans. He watched and observed the routine at the center, and one day, while the keeper was in the enclosure doing cleaning, he managed to slip right past him and out the door.
Of course, he wasn’t going far. Now he still lives at the center, but he’s free to move anywhere and can be found hopping from tree to tree, having the time of his life, just as if he had all four limbs.
He gets a delicious dinner – a plate of his favorite food like shelled ground nuts, banana, cucumber, corn, sweet potato, pomegranate, carrots, and beans is placed up on the roof for him, which he polishes off. He has a good friend and companion now – another resident monkey, Taatha, which means grandfather, who is there for lifetime care and is also free to move about the center.
Thanks to Dr. Roopa’s expertise and the good efforts of his caregivers, Kangaroo is strong and feels well.
Despite all he has gone through, he is an amazing monkey, with an indomitable spirit. He’s made new friends and has done very well for himself – now living out his life in a great place – with no electric wires, no cars, or pollution – just an idyllic, beautiful green forest, with people to feed him.
In December 2020, the police rescued two Eurasian collared doves (Streptopelia decaocto) from illegal pet traders and brought them to the WRRC (Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre) in Bangalore, India.
First they were temporarily put into a cage, then moved to an aviary.
Fortunately, their feathers had not been clipped by the pet traders. If their feathers had been clipped, the recovery time would have taken much longer and been more difficult since the birds would have had to molt and then regrow their feathers.
In this case, since the feathers were intact, both had good flight, were active, and flew about with ease in the large aviary in which they were housed.
This lovely pair of doves had narrowly escaped having to spend their whole lives in captivity. Thanks to quick action by the police and the excellent care they received at the WRRC, their lives will be happy ones, spent in freedom in the wild.
After two months both were released together at the center since their species can be found in the forests nearby. They can still be heard, not far away, with their distinct vocalizations.
An adult Indian Peafowl (Pavo cristatus) was rescued and brought from the village adjoining the forest, close to the WRRC center.
Somehow his leg had been broken. Some of the villagers tried their best for quite some time to catch him, but he always managed to slip away from them. Unfortunately, by the time they were able to catch him and bring him in for treatment, the leg had deteriorated so much that it had to be amputated, which was done by Dr. Roopa Satish and her team. He soon recovered and was able to get around well with just one leg.
His flying ability was good, and he was doing really well. However, he was still a handicapped bird, and it wouldn’t be safe for him to be released deep in the forest. So, he was released at the WRRC center itself where he can choose to make little forays into the nearby forest or spend his days in the area of the center itself. This is a much safer life for him. He is very comfortable there, sleeping in any one of the treetops, or watching the activities of the center from a front row perch on a roof – or, as Dr. Roopa writes, “occasionally coming down to earth to grace us with his beautiful plumage.”
In September of 2020, a juvenile spot-billed pelican (Pelicanus phillipensis) was rescued from a home in the city of Bangalore and brought to the WRRC (the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre, in Bangalore, India).
When she arrived, she was shy around people and also aggressive, as a wild bird would normally be. She wasn’t yet able to fly. She wasn’t feeling well, was not eating, and seemed to have an infection, so she was treated for this and was handfed.
Dr. Roopa Satish and the caregivers realized that, probably, the pelican was from one of the city lakes and had been kidnapped, possibly to be used for meat. Fortunately, she had been rescued by a good Samaritan, who understood just where to take her and brought her to the WRRC so she could receive expert care.
Learning to fly
Before long, she was able to eat on her own and was beginning to flap her wings, lift herself into the air, and exercise her flight muscles. Soon, she was put into a larger aviary where she had a wonderful time learning to fly. After a few months though, she could fly so well that the aviary became too small for her. She was brushing her wings against the sides in flight and risking hurting herself, so she really needed to be released right away.
This was a dilemma though because there were no pelicans flying in the immediate vicinity in the Bannerghatta Forest and the city lakes were not pleasant or safe release sites due to the high volume of human activity – fishing, boating, strolling, and bird watching. They weren’t a good place for a wild bird to be.
A place of refuge
In February, 2021, the pelican was driven 180 kilometers (50 miles) to a very special village, Kokkrebelluru, which is filled with birds. The people there love the birds and even sing songs to welcome them back after their migration. Nearby there are large, clean, beautiful lakes – good places for pelicans to catch fish. There are many other species of birds, such as painted storks, ibis, and Brahminy kites. The local villagers protect the birds, so they feel at home there, and they build hundreds of nests in the surrounding trees.
This was the perfect place for the pelican. She was released there at a research center for pelicans set up by the Forest Department and overseen by a pelican researcher.
They will keep an eye on her as she learns to fish for herself and will give some supplemental feeding if it is needed. When she’s fully ready, she’ll be able to live her life free in the wild, in a beautiful, safe, protected spot of great beauty. She’ll make new friends and will be able to migrate and return again to this idyllic place, living her life in freedom as nature intended.
Thanks to thoughtful person who rescued her, the expert care given by the WRRC team, and the help of the research center and the kind villagers of Kokkrebelluru, the pelican who very nearly became dinner is now all set to have a bright and happy future.
The two-week old chicks were found on the ground by a kind person. They must have tumbled out of their nest, which was too high up for them to be returned to it.
Last May, right in the middle of the pandemic, they were brought from the city of Bangalore in south India to the nearby Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre.
In spite of it being summer, the little Indian mynas needed to be kept very warm, because small chicks cannot regulate their own temperature. They are dependent on the warmth of their parents, so when they have been orphaned, they need extra warmth. They were put into a very cozy basket so they could cuddle together and were monitored carefully. In the beginning they were handfed. Nestlings need to be fed much more frequently and much greater quantities of food than anyone could imagine. In the wild, this keeps both their parents very busy. Slowly, these chicks started to learn to feed on their own. And, after a while, when they were self-feeding and had grown a bit bigger so they could regulate their own temperature and stay warm enough, they were moved into a slightly larger cage.
Three months later they were moved into an aviary which had double mesh protection to guard against wild predators who might visit at night. Here they began to get practice flying, preparing for their next stage of life and their journey to freedom.
A few months later, they were moved again into a big aviary much like their natural habitat – filled with trees and branches, mud, and there were lots of insects there that they could catch, since insects are their natural diet.
Mynas are native to several Asian countries, including India. Unfortunately, they have been often been captured for the pet trade and subsequently released into the wild into habitats where they do not belong, in countries where they do not naturally exist. Of course, this is not the birds’ fault. Birds should never be captured and taken from the wild, unless they are orphaned or injured and in need of rehabilitation by a trained wildlife rehabilitator, followed by release back to the wild.
After nine months, these beautiful mynas, now strong and healthy, were released at the WRRC center where they are free to come and go as they please at the center itself or in the adjoining woodlands. Now they can live their lives happily in the natural habitat where they are meant to be. Dr. Roopa Satish, the WRRC licensed wildlife rehabilitator, writes, “They love to check up on us from time to time.”
*****
Forest Voices of India
– conducts charitable fundraising services for environmental charities, especially in India.
WRRC – The Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre,
Bangalore, India
– is licensed to treat and release back to the wild – birds, deer, monkeys, and other orphaned or injured wildlife.
– provides education and greater understanding that benefits forests, wildlife, and wildlife habitat.
How you can help
Click on the donate button and choose WRRC. Another great way to help is to send this link to a friend.
Bless you! Thank you for helping our wild friends!
Last year police officers in Karnataka, in south India, learned that ten terrapins and two turtles were being kept at a temple where they were being fed by devotees. It was kind of people to feed them, but sadly, they weren’t being given the right food. To make matters worse, they could never quite relax, because, like any shy wild creature in the presence of humans, they felt constantly on guard, so they were always stressed and never felt at home.
This past December, 2020, as soon as the officers learned that these animals were being kept at the temple, they stopped by to see firsthand what the situation was. They found ten Indian pond terrapins and two flapshell turtles that were living in cramped conditions, all in the same tank in the temple.
Normally, turtles and terrapins really love basking on top of rocks, where they can stretch out in the sun, but these animals had no rocks for basking. The temple authorities meant well, but they hadn’t realized that these animals really needed to be back in the wild. Both terrapins and turtles like to spend some time out of the water, terrapins even more than turtles. Both belong to the order chelonia.
Needing proper care
When the officers talked with the temple authorities, pointing out all the things that the terrapins and turtles actually needed to be happy, the authorities were very responsive. They immediately agreed with the officers that the turtles and terrapins should go to a facility where they could be rehabilitated and then released to live back in the wild.
On December 23 the officers took the animals to the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre in Karnataka. The veterinarian there, Dr. Roopa Satish, carried out a thorough physical examination as soon as the animals arrived. Then they were put into an enclosure with clean water, a basking area, sunlight, and given a lovely dinner of fresh food.
Soon, with good care, their demeanor changed dramatically. They became very active, swimming about happily, feeding ravenously, and basking away to their heart’s content. Just being given the few things that they needed made a huge difference.
They were kept under observation for three weeks to be sure they were doing well, then government permission was obtained for their release, and they were all sent off together to live in a clean pond inside a protected forest where no fishing or any other human activity is carried out. At last, they could feel safe in their new home.
Back free in the wild
Thanks to the kind efforts of the police officers and the quick understanding of the temple authorities, the terrapins and turtles were able to get a new start in life.
And thanks to the good care and expertise of Dr. Roopa and the caregivers at WRRC, these innocent animals will be able to enjoy the rest of their lives living in the forest in peace, free, and glad to be back in the wild once again.
A python too
Also on the same day, on December 23, 2020, an adult Indian rock python was brought in to the WRRC. In the U.S., unfortunately, we often think of the python as an invasive species which is causing havoc with the local wildlife in the Everglades. Through no fault of their own, pythons have been imported into the U.S. to be sold as pets and then, when they get too big, are released in the wrong place, where they don’t belong. Of course, they’re not meant to be pets, and they’re not meant to be living out in the wild in the U.S. either. It’s good to remind ourselves that the python is really a natural animal that should be left in the wild – in its native habitat in India or in other parts of south Asia.
Fishing nets can be a big problem
This adult Indian rock python that was brought in December to the WRRC was in a lot of distress. She’d gotten caught up in a net, with her head and jaw all tightly wrapped up so she couldn’t move. Fishing nets can cause a lot of harm to wildlife. It’s easy to get tangled up in them.
Dr. Roopa, with the help of one of the caregivers, restrained and sedated her, and, working really carefully, she cut away the fishing net. Eventually, the python was completely free of the net, which must have been a great relief to her. She wasn’t injured, just really stressed. She was rehydrated because they were not sure how long she had been stuck in the net and hence unable to feed. Once she was free of the net, she was able to move around easily. Pain killer injections were given to her, and she was left to recover in a quiet, secluded enclosure.
Captivity itself is stressful for wild creatures. The python didn’t really feel much like eating, and so she refused to eat any food. After three weeks of observation to be sure she was all right, she was taken back out to the forest, to a lovely peaceful spot where there is no human activity like fishing or washing. Immediately, she felt a lot livelier. She curled herself around a tree – looking out through the leaves at her surroundings with curiosity, all ready to take up her life again in a safe wilderness, in the beauty of the forest.
All wild animals have an important role to play ensuring the balance of nature. They all need protection from human activity that can cause them harm and a chance to live out their lives in the wild, as nature intends.
It takes special training and knowledge to rehabilitate wildlife, and it’s an essential activity — not just for the animals themselves, but also for the whole ecosystem – and for the wellbeing of the earth herself.
Forest Voices of India
– conducts charitable fundraising services for environmental charities, especially in India.
WRRC – The Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre,
Bangalore, India
– is licensed to treat and release back to the wild – birds, deer, monkeys, and other orphaned or injured wildlife.
– provides education and greater understanding that benefits forests, wildlife, and wildlife habitat.
How you can help
Click on the donate button and choose WRRC. Another great way to help is to send this link to a friend.
Bless you! Thank you for helping our wild friends!
When the kind people in the village of Kokkrebelluru in south India took a look at the two fledgling young birds who had fallen from their home in the trees, they knew right away that serious help was needed. It wasn’t going to be enough to just feed them and take care of them until they recovered. The right wing of each of the little birds was drooping, had broken in their fall, and just wasn’t going to get better by itself.
Soon they were able to organize a car to take the fledglings on the two-hour drive to the Bannerghatta Rehabilitation Centre, the WRRC, near Bangalore, for some expert veterinary care.
When they arrived, the little ones were looking tired and not too well. Falling from one’s home is traumatic – after all, it is losing one’s home and one’s family, plus sustaining an injury. And the road during parts of the drive was a bit bumpy too.
One of the spot-billed pelicans was a bit bigger than the other and had fallen earlier, he weighed 10 pounds (5 kilos). The smaller one weighed 6 pounds (2.89 kilos). Dr. Roopa Satish gave them pain killers, antibiotics, and fluids to rehydrate them, along with some antibiotics and anti-parasite treatment. Their wings were bandaged so that they would heal in the correct position.
Looking a bit brighter
By the next morning, they looked quite a lot brighter and were able to hold their heads up and look around. At first they were handfed, then after a week when they were a bit stronger, they began to eat on their own. Thanks to the doctor’s expertise, the kindness of their rescuers, and the excellent care given by the WRRC caregivers, they were soon full of energy again. They enjoyed their stay at WRRC where they gained a lot of strength and had time for their wings to heal.
They were in a big aviary, but it wasn’t quite big enough to practice flying, since pelicans are huge birds. After three weeks, their wings were unwrapped, and they began to use them again – at first just running and flapping. Day by day, they grew stronger, but they needed a place big enough to regain their full flying strength.
Getting ready for life back in the wild
It’s really essential that birds being rehabilitated be able to get enough exercise to fly perfectly. Life in the wild can be tough; flying requires a huge level of energy, and a bird has to be in perfect shape to be able to find food, escape predators, and be able to migrate. Because spot-billed pelicans are very large birds, the very best way for these two birds to get the exercise needed would be for them to go back to Kokkrebelluru village. There they’d be among other pelicans and would have room to stretch their wings, gain strength, and fly up into trees.
Kokkrebelluru isn’t just any village; it’s a very special village, in the Indian state of Karnataka, where the people have a remarkable affinity for the birds. The village is known for many miles around for the special relationship that the people have with the both storks and pelicans. The people care for them, make sure they are safe, and even sing songs to them to welcome them back after their migration.
So, the two fledgling pelicans were given a ride back to Kokkrebelluru to rejoin their flock and to spend some time gaining very strong flight skills. Thanks to expert care, they’ll be able to spend their lives in freedom back in the wild again.
The WRRC is licensed to rehabilitate wild birds and other wildlife. Whatever country you live in, if you should ever come across an injured or orphaned wild bird, you can get help for the bird by contacting a center that does wildlife rehabilitation; they will know how to care for the bird.
Forest Voices of India
– conducts charitable fundraising services for environmental charities, especially in India.
WRRC – The Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre,
Bangalore, India
– is licensed to treat and release back to the wild – birds, deer, monkeys, and other orphaned or injured wildlife.
– provides education and greater understanding that benefits forests, wildlife, and wildlife habitat.
How you can help
Click on the donate button and choose WRRC. Another great way to help is to send this link to a friend.
Bless you! Thank you for helping our wild friends!
Photo credits:
These two photos are different spot-billed pelicans in India, not the same birds as those that were rehabilitated at WRRC.
Six months ago when they first arrived, the four birds looked bedraggled and had many missing feathers.
The four peafowl had been rescued from a farm and brought to the WRRC by a kind Forest Officer.
Among beautiful hills in south India, Byrakuru Village is part of the town of Mulbagal, the most eastern town in the state of Karnataka. There, the Range Forest Officer of the Karnataka Forest Department came across the four adult peafowl on a farm. They were being kept illegally, eventually to use for meat. In the meantime, their spectacular, beautiful feathers were being plucked out for use in decorations.
The Range Forest Officer drove for a couple of hours to bring them all the way to the WRRC, the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre, near Bangalore, beside the Bannerghatta Forest.
In India, of course, peafowl are native wild birds – not meant to be kept in captivity or on farms. They ought to be living free, happy lives in the wild. Instead, these four birds arrived greatly in need of some special care and rehabilitation. In the beginning, they could barely fly at all, and, to make matters worse, they’d become habituated to people and were way too tame to be releasable. If they were released before they were ready, they might be captured again by people, or become prey for wild animals.
Fortunately, they were brought to just the right place and they’re in very capable hands. At the WRRC, which is licensed to rehabilitate wildlife, they are given the excellent care that they need to be able to fly free once again.
They have been placed in a large aviary together, where there’s lots of space. With plenty of room for exercise, they’re regaining their strength and growing back their flight feathers. At the same time, being kept away from people will make them shy, elusive and wild again. This is achieved by not interacting with them at all and keeping visitors away.
Every evening, though, they do receive amazing wild visitors — wild peafowl from the adjoining forest drop by to say hello, and they can watch each other, though separated by the enclosure. Naturally, these visits from their wild friends greatly help the peafowl to be wilder and to once again see themselves as wild birds.
They are fed a good, healthy diet – a wide variety of seeds, fruits, vegetables and insects to acclimatize them to the food sources that will be available to them in the forest. Day by day, they are growing less and less dependent on human beings.
After six months at the WRRC, their flight feathers have grown in well, and their flight has greatly improved. However, they are still curious about people and don’t shy away from visitors. Hence, some more rehabilitation time is required. They still have a way to go before they’re wild enough to be released.
But that time will come. Soon, they’ll be back in the wild where they’ll join their new-found friends – once again to fly wild and free and live in the beautiful forest where they belong.
Photos: WRRC
WRRC – The Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre,
Bangalore, India
– is licensed to treat and release back to the wild – birds, deer, monkeys, and other orphaned or injured wildlife.
– provides education and greater understanding that benefits forests, wildlife, and wildlife habitat.
How you can help
Click on the donate button and choose WRRC. Another great way to help is to send this link to a friend.
Bless you! Thank you for helping our wild friends!
On her first day of eating grass all by herself, the young elephant Masini, was living as a happy baby in the elephant camp in Mudumalai Forest.
After having been accidentally left behind by her wandering herd in the Kargudi Forest Range, she’d been picked up by the Forest Service and taken to the Mudumalai elephant camp, where she was doted on by all the elephant keepers there, as well as the whole herd.
At the elephant camp, the elephants do work in the forest, but they are much loved and well cared for. They are together and surrounded by the natural forest habitat. At night they sleep among the trees and the peaceful sounds all around them.
After several years of this calm existence, one day, completely out of the blue, in 2016, Masisni found herself being taken away from the forest. Unknown to her, she had been “donated” by a public official to a temple, where she would live separated from her friends, and, surrounded by temple walls, would be forced to spend her days, in the heat, standing on a hard floor, greeting temple worshippers.
Most temple worshippers have only ever seen elephants in the temple, and they have no understanding that this is not a good life for the elephants. They assume that it is natural for elephants to be kept in temples, but of course, it is not.
Masini soon fell into a state of depression and anger, sometimes behaving violently. Severely beaten by her unscrupulous keepers, she was badly injured.
Janani Krishnamurthi of Kodaikanal SPCA took great interest in the case of Masini and engaged a lawyer who gave his services pro bono. They all worked with great diligence to save Masini from the fate that had befallen her.
A petition was drawn up to ask the court to release her back into the forest where she had so happily spent the first years of her life. The Animal Welfare Board of India found she was under great mental stress and recommended her immediate removal back to the forest camp.
Following a court order, she was to be moved in November, 2018; however this had to be delayed when cyclone Gaia struck, pummeling Tamil Nadu with heavy rains. On December 19, officials got together again to plan her transfer. Finally, on January 4, she was actually moved, relocated back to the Theppakadu Camp where she had spent the happy times of her life.
Janani has written, “There has been tremendous progress from the day she arrived until January18, when I went and met her … the natural environment and her place of familiarity is helping her heal … her swelling has reduced and her wounds are healing. She’s loving her walks and mud baths and interacting with other elephants … the mahout is the same person who looked after her when she was an orphaned calf. And he says, jokingly, that she will influence other elephants to be as naughty as she is … and now Theppakadu Camp ever since Masini arrived has become very happy because all the elephants seem to be interacting and communicating with her.”
Janani is very optimistic that the final verdict for Masini will ensure her permanent place in her home back in Mudumalai forest.
She asks for prayers and positive energy for Masini and expresses confidence that, after the court’s final verdict, she will at last be safe and able to spend the rest of her life back in the forest with her friends.
This kind work is not a project sponsored by the Forest Voices of India – it is instead an inspirational story of compassion, caring, and the relentless determination of all those working to ensure Masini and other elephants a future of beauty, peace, and a natural life.
It’s not possible for the Kodaikanal SPCA to accept foreign donations. Have a look at their website though, and if you live in India, please consider helping with their work of compassion and kindness for animals.
