It is unbelievable that i didn’t think about this before!! A Critically Endangered Specie living few hours from Bangaluru was not in my list!. What a shame. Actually i had forgotten about this bird, i recall having discussion about this specie with foreigners in Bharatpur many years back. Few weeks back i had taken the pics of Jerdon’s Leaf bird and while i was going through the literature stumbled upon Jerdon’s Courser.
Jerdon’s Courser is the saddest story so far, they are now confined to small patch of scrubby forest in Kadapa (Andhra Pradesh). It was thought to be extinct until in 1986 there were reports of sighting in Lankamalai hill range now part of Sri Lankamaleswara WildLife Sanctuary. Last spotting was in 2009. I had few days to spare and first week of April is when summer sets in and Kadapa is known to be intensely hot belt, some reference to the weather on the Net (must say the weather reports in most Indian News channels are rather juvenile and it serves no purpose. BBC is good but CNN is exhaustive, unfortunately as is the case of everything American they are self obsessed and talk about American continent only) showed some unseasonal rain and so i decided to take the risk, if not now i would loose the opportunity and will have to wait for October. My plans were to go to Thirupati and from there to Kadapa. But when i reached the bus stand i saw a direct bus to Kadapa (7.30am) ready to leave. It took the shortest route through Madnapalle (that reminds I have stayed here for few days many years back at Rishi Valley school- founded by philosopher saint JR Krishnamurthi) and by 13.30 i was in Kadapa, must say it really was hot.
Hotel Blue diamond was within my range, the man at the counter was helpful he made few phone calls (surprisingly he had a memento on the table that had Jerdon’s Crouser- that made my job easy!). These birds are referred to as Kalvi Koli in Telugu, i thought Kalvi was a reference to its shy nature but later found out the bush under which these birds are seen is called kalvi! I was told to go to Sidavattam Fort and further few Kms from there is Sri Lankamaleswara Sanctuary. So early next morning i caught a bus and within an hour was at Sidavattam, talking to the locals (tried a mix of Hindi and Tamil...though i can get the drift of Telugu but sometimes it’s like entering dark alley!) though they have heard about Kalvi Koli (one fellow even told me that he caught one many years back and handed it over to the Forest Department, later found that nothing of that sort had happened!). They told me there isn’t any Sanctuary they know about in the near vicinity. Someone told me that about an hour further there is a possibility, so waited for the bus, it took ages to come, by that time i had few bottles of water and had started to drowse, the heat was unbearable. Next few hours i was 
moving from one place to another in hot sun without much success, at Condoor while i was sipping sweet bitter syrup- also referred as tea-someone gave me a phone no. It turned out to be that of Rahim (a driver, who later i found had an amazing knowledge about local flora and fauna) who gave me the number of guys from BNHS (Bombay Natural Historical Society) who were camping at Badvel. An hour later i was with Rahul Chavan and Samant Mally, both researchers with BNHS (picture herein) and have been trying to track Jerdon’s Courser for last two years. They told me about Jerdon’s Courser and their project. The habitat of these birds is becoming increasingly scarce and fragmented. The dependence of the settlers on the area for resources, and the increase in the number of settlers, poses a serious threat to habitat through fuel-wood collection, livestock grazing, quarrying, clearance for agriculture, and to the birds themselves through increased disturbance. Accidental trapping may also be an issue. Following the construction of the Somasilla Dam, villages were displaced and relocated within the Lankamalai, Palgonda and Seshachellam areas, which were previously inaccessible. Suitable habitat for the species lying outside Sri Lankamaleswara Wildlife Sanctuary was threatened by the proposed construction of the Telugu-Ganga Canal in Cuddapah District, however in 2008 the Supreme Court, having already halted construction work, approved a new route avoiding the remaining suitable habitat. Despite this, the remaining habitat is still under threat due to the expected increase of agriculture around the reserve as a result of the construction of the canal. I told them that the forest department need to make the people aware of the importance of Jerdon’s Courser since the people i had interacted were not aware. Mr. Chavan explained about awareness programs being conducted in school and so on.
moving from one place to another in hot sun without much success, at Condoor while i was sipping sweet bitter syrup- also referred as tea-someone gave me a phone no. It turned out to be that of Rahim (a driver, who later i found had an amazing knowledge about local flora and fauna) who gave me the number of guys from BNHS (Bombay Natural Historical Society) who were camping at Badvel. An hour later i was with Rahul Chavan and Samant Mally, both researchers with BNHS (picture herein) and have been trying to track Jerdon’s Courser for last two years. They told me about Jerdon’s Courser and their project. The habitat of these birds is becoming increasingly scarce and fragmented. The dependence of the settlers on the area for resources, and the increase in the number of settlers, poses a serious threat to habitat through fuel-wood collection, livestock grazing, quarrying, clearance for agriculture, and to the birds themselves through increased disturbance. Accidental trapping may also be an issue. Following the construction of the Somasilla Dam, villages were displaced and relocated within the Lankamalai, Palgonda and Seshachellam areas, which were previously inaccessible. Suitable habitat for the species lying outside Sri Lankamaleswara Wildlife Sanctuary was threatened by the proposed construction of the Telugu-Ganga Canal in Cuddapah District, however in 2008 the Supreme Court, having already halted construction work, approved a new route avoiding the remaining suitable habitat. Despite this, the remaining habitat is still under threat due to the expected increase of agriculture around the reserve as a result of the construction of the canal. I told them that the forest department need to make the people aware of the importance of Jerdon’s Courser since the people i had interacted were not aware. Mr. Chavan explained about awareness programs being conducted in school and so on.In 2008 a workshop was held to draft a Species Recovery Plan. The identified priorities included: ensure protection of the species' habitat; to map potential habitat of the species within scrub forest using remote sensing; to capture and radio-tag individuals; to increase effort to identify new sites that may host the species and to raise awareness of the species. A final draft has now been submitted to the State Forestry Department and National Government for endorsement. Mr Chavan showed me the copy of the draft. Later next day we went to place one of the camera traps in the jungle. On the way they discussed about the shrubs and species in the region, it was interesting since they were trying to identify each and every plant they come across. They quizzed each other. Mr. Chavan told me this was to keep oneself abreast. Jerdon’s Coursers are plover like bird that is insectivorous- this was found by studying fecal matter and behaviour comparison with a related specie in Africa.
A suitable patch was found and cleared; measurements were taken keeping in mind the height of Courser, the camera was adjusted accordingly and switched on. These 
cameras are sensitive to movements. Later i was shown the pictures taken through these devices, unfortunately and expectedly no Courser. Incidentally it was Mr. Chavan who saw Jerdon’s Courser-the last reported sighting in 2009!! He said “he being the last person on the earth to spot this bird was not a matter of pride since it only shows how precarious these species are”. There are estimated to be around 50 to 200 Jerdon’s Courser existing. By dusk we were sitting near a pond in the jungle and waited for the sunset (pic of a spectacular sunset), to listen to the bird callings. Each call was identified and noted down (it was first time i heard Nightjar calls so very clearly, quite magical ...i wrote a poem about it in my last blog). By the time we walked back to our vehicle it was pitch dark. What a memorable experience, i need to thank the guys from BNHS.
cameras are sensitive to movements. Later i was shown the pictures taken through these devices, unfortunately and expectedly no Courser. Incidentally it was Mr. Chavan who saw Jerdon’s Courser-the last reported sighting in 2009!! He said “he being the last person on the earth to spot this bird was not a matter of pride since it only shows how precarious these species are”. There are estimated to be around 50 to 200 Jerdon’s Courser existing. By dusk we were sitting near a pond in the jungle and waited for the sunset (pic of a spectacular sunset), to listen to the bird callings. Each call was identified and noted down (it was first time i heard Nightjar calls so very clearly, quite magical ...i wrote a poem about it in my last blog). By the time we walked back to our vehicle it was pitch dark. What a memorable experience, i need to thank the guys from BNHS. Anyone who is interested to know about Jerdon’s Courser can go to Badvel in Kadapa (about 2 hours from city, buses are not infrequent) and contact them they are more than enthusiastic to not only discuss about this bird but even take you to the habitat. With permission i am putting their Phone no. 08569282506
Nectar ocean of Annamacharya
Tallapaka Annamacharya (1408-1503) was a devotee of Lord Venkateshwara, a saint composer, a lyrical poet par excellence. He composed 32,000 sankirtanas in the praise of lord, well our man did live quite long. It is no small matter some of them are still very popular and sung by none other MS Subbalakshmi. The CDs are available in almost any shop in south India. These were originally written on copper plates and were found in the cellar of Thirumala in 1922. Annamacharya was born in Tallapaka (now in Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh), he was the product of Bhakti movement that was sweeping the subcontinent. He used Telugu – language spoken by common people and not Sanskrit, one reason for its enduring legacy. A great soul who chose bhakti marga at the feet of Venkateshwara.
I wanted to get the English translation of the Annamacharya’s sankirtanas (nearest translation is poems); somewhere i read it is available. At Thirumala (the abode of Lord Venkateshwara) in Tirupathi opposite the main temple is a book stall (next to Malayali swami’s shop!!) where the translations can be found. An effort by Ambika Ananth and Advitayee Dixit the book is quite voluminous. The translators admit difficulty in translating the elegance of the sankirtanas. I guess you can understand their difficulty if you can visualise MS singing Annamacharya in English!! They gave an example to elaborate “...in translation it is common to use the word ‘cupid’ for ‘Manmatha’, but we believe that the word ‘cupid’- which is basically form Roman mythology, and is also from Greek mythology...the picture which comes to the mind when the word ‘cupid’ is used is that of a ‘naked winged child carrying a bow’ and may demagnetise the beauty of ‘Manmatha’ as we perceive from our Hindu mythology’s point of view”. But this blogger found the myth associated with Annamacharya’s birth and other stories of ‘divine child’ not that amusing. It is in the nature of vested interest to create aura, i won’t be surprised if these are influences of miracle and ‘revealed’ truths driven organised religion, it is amazing the construct. Then follow it blindly and what you have is crusaders, jehadis...zombies with ‘pure heart’ who create misery for common people. Every human has potential and are talented in their own way. The beauty of a person like Annamacharya is that he is just like us, therefore his achievement becomes a miracle. It is not the other way round. This blogger strongly dispute the attempt to show some as blessed as compared to others. It is a ploy to construct distinction, also seeds of disparities. This ordained edifice creation helps vested interest, it is true for every known popular figure in the history. Budha was against idol worship and they created idol out of him, he never spoke of god and they made him god!! Once the person is edified- according to their prescription (mostly the elite- it is mostly a self justification process), the business is on. Someone once correctly said if Jesus was to be born again he wouldn’t be Christian, he wouldn’t understand Christians. It is true to all the figures associated with all the major religions, they are being used to settle scores and gain mileage. I am wondering how prophet Mohammad would be looking at the violence that seems to be using Islam as justification, they have given misery to lot of people. Some beautiful people have been misused for narrow purpose. Of course it goes without saying that religion has been source of inspiration and empathy for lot of people throughout the history, but they are getting less in numbers.I have been to Tirupathi few times, like all other temple towns (in particular Benaras, Haridwar, Guruvayoor) I love the ambiance of this place. Temple towns always have are so many happy excited people, so much hope. You really can feel the energy. But I rarely go inside the temple, I have problem with that. There are many reasons. The conception of god gets crass and grossly utilitarian, the money and gold ornaments on display, and of course bunch of threaded types and their rituals...all these sickens me. These vulgarisms percolate down to common people. I am told people pay huge amount to get darshan first!! Even if they give me money i wouldn’t like to go. I have my god inside me and i don’t need any powerbrokers. Yes there are moments of tribulations and uncertainties that can be exhausting but my god learns from experience, and yes i listen to people who are enlightened and try to get understanding.
Now for some translations (these are lyrical in original and is meant to be sung)
If understand, this itself is the teaching of the Vedas
At the beginning and at the end, Hari alone is the origin!
Amongst all the organs present in the body,
for executing work, the head is the important one!
Amongst the numberless gods,
Hari, who existed from before, is alone the origin!
Among all the functional organs,
the thoughtful mind is the important one!
Here, how many ever doctrines exist,
amongst the trinity, Hari alone is the origin!
How many ever intellectual traits one has,
the supreme knowledge is the important one!
The name of Sree Venkatweshwara, which is with us,
That alone is the essence of all mantras!
Another one
If not for You, how under the influence of the rigid minded Sunyavadins
could wise people rise above and survive!
In the past, the worlds were filled with
the doctrine of nirakara!
Proving that it is untrue, by showing Your form of trivikrama
You established the authority of Vedas
Hearing the words of those who proclaim ‘aham brahmasmi’
All devotion had been blown away into the winds!
During that time itself, You showed to Prahalada, in front of Hiranyakasipu,
The difference between the ‘ruler’ and ‘servant’
Another
The day to day existence is mere play,
The one which is perceived without being seen is salvation!
Birth is a truth, death is a truth,
in-between, our doing are but a play!
Right in front exists the world,
but the final destination is only salvation.
Food we consume, clothes we wear,
the deeds in-between are mere play!
The self acquired dual-karmas,
if we cross, only then is the salvation!
Binding are sins, inexhaustible are merits,
in-between, the passing time is but mere play!
High up is Sree Venkateshwara, the ruling deity,
there beyond the sky is the salvation!
Another
For these kind of Jivas, where is the steadiness?
Until You, O Lord, bestow Your grace abundantly!
Thinking about one’s life duties at times
Quickly forgetting the same at other times!
Ardently listening to puranic stories at times
Nurturing only doubts (in the mind) at other times!
Having become vexed with Samsara, attaining dispassion at times
Becoming intoxicated by the same at other times!
Getting attracted and becoming a slave of the senses at times
Becoming fatigued and bowing down to the lord at other times!
Wishfully engaging in penance and becoming good natured at times
Becoming indolent at other times!
O Venkatesha, even when You reside within the heart
feebly, unto You, we plead only at times!
This last one is one of the many that was sung by MS
Lowly am i, lordly are you
Your magnificence is all pervasive!
I am neither aware of birth, nor of death
How can i ever know you?
Present within me fully, the indweller you are,
Whatever be my sins, you may protect me!
Hateful at times, sinful at times,
how then can i spontaneously think of Your grace?
You who never let go of me, Lord Venketesha!
till the very end, may you protect me
