Bagging the snake_Photo by Sharmila R By Sahas Barve
The King Cobra Telemetry Project initiated at the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station in Karnataka and carried out between 2008-2011, was the first radio telemetry study of snakes in India. The study took field biologists deep into the rainforests of the Western Ghats. They tracked these large serpents through pouring rain, across deep swamps and up steep mountains. Surprisingly, the snakes also led the researchers through villages and people’s backyards. This unraveled a unique co-existence, where these snakes, which eat and control populations of other venomous snakes, live in close proximity to the people who revere them as holy without much conflict. Three years of following king cobras has thrown up a wealth of new information on their movement and ranging patterns, behavior, diet and social interactions in the wild. All these data are crucial for a better understanding of king cobra ecology and invaluable for designing a conservation plan for the species. I was lucky to be a part of the king cobra telemetry project, which gave me a rare insight into the day-to-day lives of these magnificent snakes and also helped uncover the harmful effects of a commonly used snake control practice.
The King Cobra Telemetry Project initiated at the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station in Karnataka and carried out between 2008-2011, was the first radio telemetry study of snakes in India. The study took field biologists deep into the rainforests of the Western Ghats. They tracked these large serpents through pouring rain, across deep swamps and up steep mountains. Surprisingly, the snakes also led the researchers through villages and people’s backyards. This unraveled a unique co-existence, where these snakes, which eat and control populations of other venomous snakes, live in close proximity to the people who revere them as holy without much conflict. Three years of following king cobras has thrown up a wealth of new information on their movement and ranging patterns, behavior, diet and social interactions in the wild. All these data are crucial for a better understanding of king cobra ecology and invaluable for designing a conservation plan for the species. I was lucky to be a part of the king cobra telemetry project, which gave me a rare insight into the day-to-day lives of these magnificent snakes and also helped uncover the harmful effects of a commonly used snake control practice.
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