Sanctuary Asia – July 2019

Sanctuary |In the Field

Co-inhabitants of the cat include

smooth-coated otters, Indian golden

jackals, rhesus macaques, domestic

cattle and the omnipresent humans. It

is reassuring to see that man and felid

coexist peacefully here (except when

they are caught raiding fi shing nets or

aquaculture ponds, which is when they

are summarily chased away!) In fact, the

mascot of the Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary

is ‘Macha’ the fi shing cat!

Not far from the mangroves are

pristine beaches that off er olive Ridley

and green turtles perfect nesting sites.

Unlike in Odisha, there is, however no

arribada (mass nesting) phenomenon,

though the marine turtles do come to

nest year after year.

But it’s no easy homecoming. The

globe-trotting turtles must contend

with a phalanx of fi shing trawlers that

lead to suff ocation and crabs, birds,

jackals, and stray dogs that sniff out

BELOW RIGHT One of the most charismatic

carnivores found in these wetlands is the

fi shing cat, Prionailurus viverrinus, locally

known as neetipilli.

BELOW LEFT Not far from the mangroves are

pristine beaches that off er olive Ridley and green

turtles safe nesting sites.

Coringa, once a fl ourishing port

town, internationally famous for

ship-building, repairs and maritime

trade, was devasted by a cyclone.

The storm of 1839, caused the

third largest loss of life from

any cyclone worldwide – around

300,000 fatalities.

SRIKANTH MANNEPURI

ANJANI KUMAR S.

ROHAN CHAKRAVARTY / GREEN HUMOUR / AP FOREST DEPARTMENT