Sunday 16th September, 2007: Valley Park

There were two very good reasons why this particular visit just had to happen. The first: it was at Belapur, although about 8 kilometres away, a stone’s throw away from my place by Bombay standards. And the other: we were going on a nature trail… led by BNHS (Bombay Natural History Society) members, Isaac Kehimkar and V Shubhalaxmi. There were seven of us joining the larger BNHS group... Dhwani, Nandini, Nishant, Gunjan, Nirav, Aditya and I were part of an assorted group of nearly 25 people, both young and old, with the youngest being around 4 years old and the oldest perhaps in their sixties. It felt great to see so many citizens flocking to join a nature trail early on a Sunday morning. A bus-load of us was deposited in front of the Valley Park in Belapur by 7.30 am.

As we entered the park it was clear that the monsoon had worked its magic. The park was a spectacular riot of green. The sounds of traffic began to fade perceptibly as we walked into the park. Then the real fun began! :) We were taken through a brief history of the place and how it was now being protected by CIDCO after years of indifference. They also began to point out various trees, shrubs, insects and animals that played important roles in the local ecosystem. It was astounding to me that just a few minutes away from the traffic and congestion of the city, there were so many species of plants, insects and animals regenerating this beautiful forest which is partially planted. Over the next three hours, we encountered the Common Crow, the Yellow-Orange tip, the Tiger Striped, the Chocolate Pansy and the Blue Oakleaf among many others. If you’re wondering what these are, they’re butterflies! :) And really beautiful ones at that. Most of us have probably seen the little yellow ones flying about near our homes somewhere, but these were absolutely new to me. And to think, I’ve been clueless about their existence, when they’re so abundantly to be found just a few kilometres away from my place!

The Giraffe Weevil showed us how a tiny little insect can do something that is truly spellbinding. This weevil lays its egg on the leaf of the Ahan plant and then rolls up the leaf beautifully in order to protect its offspring. This accords the egg some protection (and later, food) after it hatches until the young weevil emerges into this world. The mother weevil holds the folded leaf together with some precision drilled holes in the leaf that is evocative of the finest engineering feats of man. We also came across another insect that secretes a foam like substance that looks like spittle from a distance. The insect lays its egg within this foam so that it is protected from predators through the use of a simple yet effective mechanism.

There were also multiple examples of camouflage that we saw at work. The grasshopper, for example… which has legs matching the stalks of grass and is the same shade of green as the grass around… incredibly difficult to spot unless one is looking out for movement. And a particular kind of toad, which is white in colour and has a distinctive dark stripe on its back. This one blends in so well with the surroundings that you would almost have to step on one to realize it is there. We also saw the Indian Rock Bee pollinating a flower. And the dwellings of the harvester ants… very beautiful circular mounds low on the ground unlike the regular anthills that we see looming upward. The harvester ants have their skyscrapers going into the ground… these are marvels of technology which allow the structure to be temperature controlled. As we crossed a beautiful stream, we came across some land crabs that scuttled to safety as soon as they perceived our presence. And the hoverfly which manages to hover in place by beating its wings hundred of time per second.

Overall, this four hour nature trail was a fantastic experience and one that I hope to repeat regularly… on my own, if there aren’t more such opportunities through the BNHS or other organizations.

Reading about ecology is one thing; experiencing it is another. This is the key to understanding the importance of relationships… of co-evolution… in the natural world, a world that we are very much a part of. But one that we have artificially divided into ‘civilization’ and ‘nature’. In reality, there is only nature. This ‘civilization’ over which we take so much trouble will be just another temporary phase if we don’t learn to understand our role in nature.

PS: All pictures linked in the post were found on Flickr. Copyrights with the photographers.