They had gone missing due to dominance of Kikar trees

communities, each community comprising 10 – 30 different plant species, have come up in the park,” said M Shah Hussain scientist in-charge of ABP.

The native plants are also helping the animals that had once abandoned these areas to come back too. The count of bird species in Aravalli have also shot up from 50 in 2004 to more than 200 now. Some birds such as the black eagle, Indian pitta and pied hornbill have been spotted after almost seven-nine decades.

In the Yamuna park, the butterfly

population has shot up from just two species in 2002 to more than 75 now. Dung pellets and hoof marks of herbivores animals on the forest floor signal the return of animals such as boars and nilgai, recently a leopard was also spotted.

But the task of bringing back native species was easier said than done. Scientists had to survey the Aravalli ranges in neighbouring states such as Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh to identify suitable plants. Nurseries in those states were

requested to send seeds and saplings of wild plants.

“These saplings were nurtured in our own nurseries till they were at least 4-5feet tall. Only then we planted them in the forest to challenge the Kikar. Regular watering and cow dung manure was given at least for the following two years so that the natives could fight the foreigner,” said Faiyaz A Khudsar, scientist in-charge of the Yamuna Biodiversity Park.

Then, the thick Kikar’s canopy was opened by trimming the

branches. The strategy worked. The native species being taller than Kikar were able to cut off sunlight from reaching the Kikar when they were fully grown. Without sunlight the Kikar withered away.

Prabhakar Rao, one of the core members of Kalpavriksh, an NGO, said that the approach taken by Babu and his team seemed to be correct as trees like the Kikar need a lot of sunshine. “Once the native trees grow taller and create a shade over them, the Kikar died,” he said.