Shiwani As the sun goes down, the nightwalker, or rather, I would say, night fliers come out, one can see colonies of bats flying in the sky and sometimes wandering near a tree or plant. On one such night, as I stood on the balcony, sipping a cup of tea, I observed some bats visiting … Continue reading Bats: The Night Workers
Aditi Dhillon & Ajay Immanuel Gonji In his seminal essay Why Look at Animals? John Berger (2009) talks about how, in the past, people kept domestic animals because they were useful to them – as guard dogs, hunting dogs, mice-killing cats, and so on. Later, people began to keep animals regardless of their usefulness, a … Continue reading Disciplining Non-human Bodies in the City
Ajay Immanuel Gonji My first close encounter with roadkill was during fieldwork for my Master's internship, way back in 2013. I remember seeing the bloated body of a large male nilgai, fully intact, on the footpath of the Aruna Asaf Ali Marg – a 6-lane highway bifurcating the Sanjay Van city forest and the Jawaharlal … Continue reading Life in the Fastlane: Roadkill in the Anthropocene
Ajay Immanuel Gonji For many of us, our first encounter with animals was probably at home with cats and dogs, or on the streets with cows, chickens and so on. These creatures may be called ‘domestic’ because their lifeworlds almost entirely revolve around human beings. On the other hand are creatures that are collectively referred … Continue reading Exploring the Behaviour of Urban Wildlife
Sonali Chauhan During mid-March 2020, academic institutions in Delhi were put under lockdown. A few days later, office work, general discussions, and conversations shifted to online mode. Apart from the pandemic, the conversations were centered around the topic of anxiety and mental stress that may increase due to our current sedentary lifestyle. People are devising … Continue reading The Little Bird Over My Window
Rashmi Singh & Ajay Immanuel Gonji A few days ago, an email thread on the student mailing group of Ambedkar University Delhi, Kashmere Gate (henceforth AUDKG) was particularly interesting. The subject of the discussion was not academic, political or social in nature, but was actually over food! Apparently, a plate of noodles was left abandoned … Continue reading Monkey Business: Expressing Intentions and Emotions
Amit Kaushik Canis lupus familiaris - the dog - was genetically classified as a subspecies of Canis lupus or the grey wolf in 1982. Although the wolf has always been demonized by human beings, the dog is considered as their best friend. 7,000-year-old archaeological evidence from ancient human civilizations emphasizes the mutualistic relationship between dogs and human beings. This … Continue reading Human Beings Best Friend Can Be Wild Too: Observing Dogs in a Wetland Park
Ajay Immanuel Gonji Annoyed and slightly dejected was I as I dragged my feet back to the entrance of the Sanjay Van forest patch of the Delhi Ridge. Early morning that day my friend Amit and I visited the city forest hoping to spot the elusive golden jackal and capture the animal on our cameras. … Continue reading Dodging the Dog
Amit Kaushik Culling wildlife in contested spaces has been a new form of land acquisition in human-wildlife co-habitants. In India, after the incorporation of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, hunting was banned, and several wildlife types were listed under several categories. This gave them legal protection to wildlife based on their status. Several species like mice, house crows, fruit-bats, termites, etc. … Continue reading Situating Nilgai in Delhi
Ajay Immanuel Gonji About three weeks ago, a solitary male leopard was found loitering in the national capital's Yamuna Biodiversity Park (YBP) - one of the two biodiversity parks (the other being the Aravalli Biodiversity Park) that has been established in the capital by the Delhi Development Authority. According to park officials, the animal is … Continue reading Fauna in the City – Part II
