Close Munnar encounters

The strident crowing of a jungle cock heralds the dawn. And the silence of dusk is often broken by the eerie howling of a jackal. But if ...

The strident crowing of a jungle cock heralds the dawn. And the silence of dusk is often broken by the eerie howling of a jackal. But if you want a closer encounter with Munnar8217;s famed wildlife, then trek through the town8217;s tea terrain. In my three decades of doing so, I have had several unscheduled trysts 8212; some friendly, some hostile, but every one of them an eye-opener.

Just the other day I chanced upon an unusual example of wild wisdom. A barking deer and a jungle rooster were foraging side by side on the edge of a tea field. Perhaps bonded by their common need to survive in an unfriendly environment, each gamely took its turn, from time to time, to keep a look-out for danger while the other browsed. Crouching behind a boulder, I spied on the duo for over 15 minutes. Then, my foot dislodged a stone which rolled downhill, scaring the twosome away.

Not so alert was the sambar stag that I found drowsing in a glade one evening, its antlered head resting on its shoulder, its ears flicking away troublesomeflies. For quite some time I feasted my eyes on the recumbent stag, so relaxed and languorous 8212; and blissfully unaware of my presence. Then the boy in me surfaced. Cupping my palms to my mouth, I let out a series of staccato yaps to imitate the call of the murderous wild dog 8212; the terror of herbivores in these hills. Rudely jolted awake, the stag sprang up, alarmed, and bounded desperately downhill, its stumpy tail upraised!

Though seldom seen, wild dogs are very much around. Occasionally, one finds grim evidence of their deadly hunting prowess in the tea fields 8211; the skeleton of a sambar or barking deer stripped to the bone. I once surprised a pair during an evening stroll. Sighting them some distance away, I decided not to lose this rare opportunity of observing them closely. I climbed a low tree overlooking their path. Suddenly they stopped and sniffed the air suspiciously in unison, moist nostrils quivering, ears perked up. Evidently they had scented me. Then one of them espied me on my perch. I frozemomentarily. The next second, however, only the dust kicked up by the fleeing canines remained!

On the other hand, Munnar8217;s wild pigs are as ubiquitous as its tea bushes 8211; and perhaps the boldest of its wild denizens. One evening I discovered three piglets nosing around in a drain flanking the town8217;s main thoroughfare! On seeing me, they scurried into a clump of bushes 8211; from where a deep guttural grunt warned me of the presence of a watchful parent. The wild pigs haunting my neighbourhood regard me as a nuisance. For I invariably turn up, on my evening walk, when they are raiding one of the vegetable gardens nearby. On seeing me approach, they very reluctantly melt into the undergrowth, only to emerge as soon as I have passed!

Recently I had an unusual encounter, engineered by a Muduvan tribal, a seasoned tracker. Hidden with him in dense shrubbery, I watched, enthralled, as he lured a curious jungle rooster 8212; the epitome of alertness 8212; out of the forest, to within ten feet of us, by expertly aping itscrowing. I was gazing, enchanted, at the bird8217;s splendid plumage when a leaf tickled my nose. I sneezed explosively and was chagrined to see the rooster take off, its long black tail trailing regally behind it.

Once I did have a close brush with death. On a morning stroll I espied a big porcupine rooting in a ravine. Hoping to observe it from close quarters, I intently began to stalk it, crawling on all fours beneath the tea canopy. My concentration was total. As I edged closer, a slight movement to the left caught my eye. I was petrified. It was the swinging tail of a wild tusker ruminating contentedly hardly twenty metres away, providentially with its back to me. I fled for dear life. Had that pachyderm been facing me, I probably wouldn8217;t have been around to narrate this tale!