Fwd: [bngbirds] Ganeshgudi stay - Not so pleasent side
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Bhalachandra Shirolkar
Jan 5, 2014, 9:24:03 AM1/5/14
to Pune Birders, Garde Kaka
A mail recd regarding inept behavior from some nature enthusiast. Since mail mentions about group from Pune, I thought I share with you.
ThanksShirolkar
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Ajit A <fores...@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, Dec 30, 2013 at 2:58 PM
Subject: [bngbirds] Ganeshgudi stay - Not so pleasent side
To: bngb...@yahoogroups.com
From: Ajit A <fores...@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, Dec 30, 2013 at 2:58 PM
Subject: [bngbirds] Ganeshgudi stay - Not so pleasent side
To: bngb...@yahoogroups.com
Hi,
I along with 3 of my nature loving friends stayed in JLR Ganeshgudi and apart from the wonderful experience of nature, I, to my chagrin, also experienced all the ills that i have heard about how photography taken to the extreme and nature clash with each other. The following observations were made.
1) A gecko was brought out into the open late in the evening around 9:30 PM and chased mercilessly for more than 20-25 minutes by a group of individuals(They were apparently students from Pune). They even tried to put a foot on its tail to hold it still. I along with my friend, objected severely and give them a piece of our mind. They did not respond back as they were aware that they were not doing the right thing. However they did not stop also. They continued for a little more time and they stopped. I could not find the naturalist immediately and hence updated him about this first thing in the morning. The manager was also updated and he ensured that he will speak to them and stop them from doing it. One my friend asked him to call those individuals right away and blast them in front of us but the manager could not muster enough courage.
2) We heard later in the morning (Overheard the conversation in the dormitory) that these same set of individuals played Scops owl bird song late in the night and were trying to get the Scops owl to come. It did respond also and they would have continued it but for a loud barking deer call which scared them and they decided to come inside. I mentioned this also to the manager in the morning. He acted shocked but we could not see enough action being taken immediately to bring the matter to a logical closure. It a little hard to believe that so many incidents happened and none of the JLR staff saw it and none were aware of it.
3) Birds songs were used by some photographers(Most of the people were only photographers and had nothing to do with nature) to attract Indian pitta and the pitta responded and flew back and forth and was apparently confused.
4) We went for an evening trek and on the way spotted Indian pitta. It showed itself for a fleeting second and then was not to be seen. The person from JLR who took us for a trek used pitta sound from his mobile to attract it. Though he didn't use it repeatedly, he played for 3 or 4 times. I found the fact that they have the bird songs in their mobile a little unnerving.
5) There were absolutely no boards mentioning the do's and dont's of the property. We suggested placing strict instruction boards, both in the entrance and near the bird bath area so that people who are not aware become aware of it and also to deter, in some way, people from indulging in it. Today people can easily violate and if questioned can easily question back as to where its written that its not allowed. Rather than leaving it open to individuals opinions, such things should come under the ambit of a common set of guidelines which is more friendlier towards nature rather than towards photography. These guidelines should be enforced stringently by the people who are running such resorts.
Though the opinion about using birdsong is divided and though there may not be conclusive evidence on the ill effects of using bird songs, flash photography etc,(please correct me if i am wrong.) its better to err on the side of caution and not indulge in it unless its for a very specific research purpose. Especially resorts like this should not encourage it and should try to deter people away from it.
I have nothing against photography. I love it myself. But when it comes to nature, photography is just a medium for me to indulge further into the joys of nature. While i cant expect everybody to have a similar inclination, the least i expect is an awareness of when we cross the boundary. What is required is the basic awareness of when the passion for photography is clashing with whats ethical and whats not as far as nature is concerned. In a single gathering, seeing such a large and diverse set of people all missing this basic point(knowingly or unknowingly) was quite an uncomfortable experience for me.
At the end of the day, It was quite a sad spectacle to see a whole dormitory full of people being in the lap of nature having nothing to talk about nature and their experience with it. It was all about focus latching, finding the sweet spot, full frame shots, PP or the conversation takes the direction wherein they will gloat about their rare sightings, discuss which bird they would like to see, the number of birds seen till now, count for the day and comparison of counts, seeing which bird will make this trip a success and what not.
I will be sending the pleasant side of Ganeshgudi trip, observations and bird list in a separate mail...
Rgds
Ajit
I along with 3 of my nature loving friends stayed in JLR Ganeshgudi and apart from the wonderful experience of nature, I, to my chagrin, also experienced all the ills that i have heard about how photography taken to the extreme and nature clash with each other. The following observations were made.
1) A gecko was brought out into the open late in the evening around 9:30 PM and chased mercilessly for more than 20-25 minutes by a group of individuals(They were apparently students from Pune). They even tried to put a foot on its tail to hold it still. I along with my friend, objected severely and give them a piece of our mind. They did not respond back as they were aware that they were not doing the right thing. However they did not stop also. They continued for a little more time and they stopped. I could not find the naturalist immediately and hence updated him about this first thing in the morning. The manager was also updated and he ensured that he will speak to them and stop them from doing it. One my friend asked him to call those individuals right away and blast them in front of us but the manager could not muster enough courage.
2) We heard later in the morning (Overheard the conversation in the dormitory) that these same set of individuals played Scops owl bird song late in the night and were trying to get the Scops owl to come. It did respond also and they would have continued it but for a loud barking deer call which scared them and they decided to come inside. I mentioned this also to the manager in the morning. He acted shocked but we could not see enough action being taken immediately to bring the matter to a logical closure. It a little hard to believe that so many incidents happened and none of the JLR staff saw it and none were aware of it.
3) Birds songs were used by some photographers(Most of the people were only photographers and had nothing to do with nature) to attract Indian pitta and the pitta responded and flew back and forth and was apparently confused.
4) We went for an evening trek and on the way spotted Indian pitta. It showed itself for a fleeting second and then was not to be seen. The person from JLR who took us for a trek used pitta sound from his mobile to attract it. Though he didn't use it repeatedly, he played for 3 or 4 times. I found the fact that they have the bird songs in their mobile a little unnerving.
5) There were absolutely no boards mentioning the do's and dont's of the property. We suggested placing strict instruction boards, both in the entrance and near the bird bath area so that people who are not aware become aware of it and also to deter, in some way, people from indulging in it. Today people can easily violate and if questioned can easily question back as to where its written that its not allowed. Rather than leaving it open to individuals opinions, such things should come under the ambit of a common set of guidelines which is more friendlier towards nature rather than towards photography. These guidelines should be enforced stringently by the people who are running such resorts.
Though the opinion about using birdsong is divided and though there may not be conclusive evidence on the ill effects of using bird songs, flash photography etc,(please correct me if i am wrong.) its better to err on the side of caution and not indulge in it unless its for a very specific research purpose. Especially resorts like this should not encourage it and should try to deter people away from it.
I have nothing against photography. I love it myself. But when it comes to nature, photography is just a medium for me to indulge further into the joys of nature. While i cant expect everybody to have a similar inclination, the least i expect is an awareness of when we cross the boundary. What is required is the basic awareness of when the passion for photography is clashing with whats ethical and whats not as far as nature is concerned. In a single gathering, seeing such a large and diverse set of people all missing this basic point(knowingly or unknowingly) was quite an uncomfortable experience for me.
At the end of the day, It was quite a sad spectacle to see a whole dormitory full of people being in the lap of nature having nothing to talk about nature and their experience with it. It was all about focus latching, finding the sweet spot, full frame shots, PP or the conversation takes the direction wherein they will gloat about their rare sightings, discuss which bird they would like to see, the number of birds seen till now, count for the day and comparison of counts, seeing which bird will make this trip a success and what not.
I will be sending the pleasant side of Ganeshgudi trip, observations and bird list in a separate mail...
Rgds
Ajit
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