I never imagined that I would stop my
'later morning' walks and turn into a couch potato. You can ask me why don't you beat the traffic and go early in the morning. I used to get up early for 40 years as a factory worker. Enough is enough.
I discovered TV5 Monde Asie and am addicted to it. This is from a series 'Terres sauvages en danger' (Endangered wild lands) which is thought provoking. Dangers to wild life is well known and this study covers China. I am trying this style of blogging to give you an idea of the larger issues which are fascinating.
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| At 5000 meters and 1,000,000 square Km it is the highest and largest desert on earth. |
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One would imagine not many could survive this harsh terrain. Surprisingly the Tibetan antelope which looks fragile adapted and were doing well. At one time their count was 1.5 million but has speedily dropped to a mere 70,000.
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| Dr. David Mallon of Manchester University is deeply involved in wild life conservation |
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There are many reasons for this, but it is the man-made ones which we need to worry about.
Tibetan antelopes, also called
Chiru were slaughtered for making the now banned 'Shahtoosh'.
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| With as much as $10,000 per shawl. It is reported that it is still being made secretly |
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A movie Mountain Patrol Kekexili Struggles to Save Antelopes From Poachers (and Fashionistas): "The mountains that rise from the Tibetan plateau make a suitably
dramatic backdrop for this story about the murderous cost we humans
exact on the natural world. Based on depressingly true events, "Mountain
Patrol: Kekexili" tracks the heroic efforts of a small group of
Tibetans struggling to keep the Tibetan antelope, or chiru, from
extinction. Although hunting the antelope was made illegal in the 1970's
-- you need to kill the animal to harvest its wool, which is turned
into a rare commodity called shahtoosh -- the population dwindled
precariously, beginning in the late 1980's and early 90's, because
enough wealthy consumers had no qualms about hitting the boldface scene
with shahtoosh on their shoulders and blood on their hands."
The greed or need and the insensitivity of the wealthy caused this slaughter. The Chinese government took stern action to stop this as a result of public outcry. Their action would have reduced poaching somewhat.
There was one more possibility which Prof Uchino of Japan undertook to study. He has been following the effect of the railway line built across this territory for many years. The timid Chiru could not deal with the railway line which went across their migratory route.
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| The professor chose to study the impact of the railways on Chiru |
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| Rohini lives in Shanghai! Tempting to think of a journey on this train! |
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| The antelopes were too timid to cross and died at the track |
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| Then Chinese government provided 'fauna passages' at 15 locations |
The roads were also a challenge. The Chiru were too scared to cross the
road. Volunteers arrived to stop the traffic and allow the antelopes to
cross. It took a while for the chirus to get used to humans
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| The antelopes are now used to the trains and are not anxious anymore |
It took a few years before the antelope learnt to deal with the barriers
and running trains. In the process thousands of them died.
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Each barrier which looked different was a challenge.
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The efforts by the Chinese government and the people who volunteered
helped to increase the numbers of Chiru from 70,000 to around 150,000
and there is hope the numbers will increase. There
is also the risk of more poachers arriving.
The study
of Chiru life illustrates the role of instinct for survival and how nature works. The males
fight hard to get the attention of the females. They stop short of
killing each other. The females who allow the victorious males to mate migrate right across the land to deliver their babies. It is an arduous journey with many
perils. They have many combined strategies to avoid the predators. Once
they reach the place of birthing, at a chosen time 15 or so females give
birth at almost the same time.
The mother and the baby recognize each other by
their scents. As the mother can take care of only one baby, she ignores other babies.
The Chirus had a sizeable
population before humans encroached their territory. It is hoped the antelopes will manage to survive as there is more awareness and control
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The Predators. Amazing that they have managed to adapt to the harsh terrain.
The story of orphaned babies. There is a endearing scene where a baby is able to reach its mother after a long chase. If not the baby would have died .
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| The orphaned have hope |
The antelopes have coped with nature and its vagaries, the
predators and the weather and show they are a sturdy lot. The scientists have been studying the antelopes to understand and help them survive in a harsh and hostile world
One would imagine not many could survive this harsh terrain. Surprisingly the Tibetan antelope which looks fragile adapted and were doing well. At one time their count was 1.5 million but has speedily dropped to a mere 70,000. 
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