In search of an elusive Ullu reports from Melghat
Ithad been raining all over India for almost a week now. Here in the Central Indian forests, fortunately the downpour meant that our movement was restricted, and so was it of the forest denizens.
We had already walked for hours now, in drizzle or in an occasional shower. Walking on wet forest floor and over undulating landscapes posed a major challenge. Many a times we were on all fives, but we continued our search.
After a quick break for lunch, we were back on field again. This time fortunately, the rain gods were helping our cause and even the sun god made a momentary appearance. And suddenly our friend Bhola called us excitedly and after another brief search, we were almost jumping with ecstasy…
On the tree in front of us was an Ullu!!! An owl? Yes. An owl! The elusive Forest Owlet.
This ullu was not just another owl, but an owlet that had been thought to be extinct for almost 113 years. It was only when Pamela Ramussen, an American ornithologist went on a rediscovery attempt on few old distribution sites, that she finally located one bird in the Satpura foothills in 1997.
The forests of Melghat had also since then reported a few of these Forest Owlets. We too were here in the search of this owlet and not with the dream of trying to photograph a few of Melghat's tigers.
Melghat was in fact among the first 9 Tiger Reserves to be notified in 1973-74 under the prestigious Project Tiger movement launched to revive the tiger populations in their natural habitats across India. Melghat, being a true representative of the Central Indian Highlands was an obvious choice. Located in the Northern part of Amravati district, this is where Maharashtra meets Madhya Pradesh in the South Western Satpura mountain ranges. Initially this Tiger Reserve was spread over 1571 sq km., encompassing the Gugamal National Park, Melghat Wildlife Sanctuary and neighbouring Reserve Forests. Now the area under the Tiger Reserve has been further extended to provide protection to 2029 sq. km. of rich deciduous forest.
Bhola, a friend for many years is a local Korku tribal and an excellent second generation-naturalist, like his father. Of the many hours that we spent in searching for the forest owlet, we were lucky enough to spot it for just about 20 minutes, reminding us of its elusiveness.
The dry deciduous forest of Melghat and its surrounding areas of Vidarbha become leafless and the little owlet of just about 23 24 cm height - resembles a solitary leaf on a branch. We too had to look for many such ‘leaves’ before finally locating the bird.
The first specimen of this bird was collected in December of 1872 from Basna, in what is now Madhya Pradesh, by F.R. Blewitt. It was studied and described newly to science the next year by Octavian Hume and aptly named Forest Owlet (Athene blewitti), after the collector. Now of course it has been placed separately and referred to as Heteroglaux blewitti.
For almost 113 years, this bird was not observed until Pamela's exploratory work in 1997. Ever since, a few more birds were found from N. Maharashtra and S.E. Madhya Pradesh. Despite that, the total numbers of this bird is estimated to be less than 250 individuals - making it critically endangered.
Till 1997, the only records of the bird were seven stuffed specimen in the British museum collected almost a century ago. There was an interesting twist to the owl rediscovery story, when one Richard Mcinertzhagen managed to steal the specimen from the museum. He then resubmitted them with new labels and false locations. This led to many failed field searches, until Richard's theft was discovered.
What also probably made things difficult for ornithologists searching for this owlet were its weird diurnal habits. Someone searching for owls would have normally expected a night time activity, when this bird mostly remains inactive.
When we saw this bird, that late afternoon, it was not just the sighting of the bird that thrilled us, but its appearance is what has made it deeply etched in our minds. The prominent white markings on moustache and supercilium, the eyebrows gave it a rather wise old man look. The white belly patches also added to its charm.
As it flew from one tree to the other, the alarmed chirping of smaller birds easily gave its location up. Small birds form a part of its menu, though it is the lizard, skink and rodent dishes that prominently appear on its menu card. Other than the alarmed chirping of smaller birds, it was a little difficult locating this bird, as it itself, did not call out too often. However, instead of June, if we were here in the breeding season of January and February, locating the bird would have been much easier. As, then the courtship calls of "ah-owow" would remind us that love was in the air.
Today, the need of the hour is to retain such areas of wilderness before they are captured for development - lest this time we "really" lose our rich wildlife heritage like the Forest Owlet. We should not forget that extinction is forever.