Nirmal Kulkarni from Mapusa is a noted herpetologist, field ecologist, conservationist and wildlife photographer. His tryst with the Mhadei region began two and a half decades ago when he accompanied Rajendra Kerkar to document the wild wonders of the Mhadei and its cultural richness.
As a young Art college student with a camera, he photo documented the exquisite diversity of this region. “As time went by, the researcher in me took over and walked, lived and traversed across the Mhadei region that is supported by the Mhadei River, Goa’s lifeline. Studying its herpetofauna diversity, I was able to discover five species of amphibians from this region along with colleagues and also help other researchers, photographers and ecologists delve into various facets of this biologically important region. As my work spread, the Northern Western Ghats became my focus, and was later on stretched to the central Western Ghats, where I still work on issues related to conservation science and community outreach besides my research in pit viper and amphibians,” Nirmal Kulkarni explains his love for the
Mhadei region.
He recently authored a 30 page full colour book, ‘Wild Jewels of the Mhadei’ which is targeted towards creating interest and awareness about the immense biodiversity of the Mhadei Bio region amongst children. It offers a glimpse of the wildlife from the Mhadei region which encompasses the states of Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra. The book is published by Herpactive Publications with the support of Mhadei Research Centre and Nirmal Kulkarni Expeditions.
The idea of the book was conceptualised in January 2023 with the goal to release it during National Wildlife Week in October. Nirmal worked closely with Nitesh Parulekar, the illustrator of the book. “My own work of compilation and notes, selecting species and brainstorming with colleagues and Assavri, my wife, who is also an artist, took two months to arrive on the draft version. A team of naturalists including Vikram Hoshing and Kaushalika Dharmadhikari, proof checked it for the science content as that was important for us too. We then ran it by Nitesh, who gave valuable suggestions and began illustrations while another close friend and editor, Deepali Nandwani, helped put together the information on every species in a child friendly manner. Once ready with a final draft, we took it to Sapna Sardessai, of Printer’s Devils whose amazing team led by Kavita Bugde designed it for us. The entire process of corrections and design took three months due to my field work and the printing was done by Impressions in Belgaum over the last fortnight,” says Nirmal about the entire process.
Nitesh Parulekar is also a naturalist, who has an extensive experience of birding and photography in the Western Ghats of Goa and the Konkan region. Nirmal has been working with Nitesh on illustrations for reptiles for awareness purpose for over a decade and hence their wave lengths match. “Working with him is fun and easy as he understands angles, nitty-gritty of colours and species identification due to his background in nature watching as well as art,” says Nirmal.
The book features 30 plants, animals and birds in the book followed by the illustration where the children are free to colour it as they want. However, it was a tough decision to select just 30 drawings from a wide range of biodiversity. “We wanted to highlight birds, reptiles, butterflies, moths, etc from the Mhadei region. We chose the species which were endangered and unique, and also gave emphasis on the colours as it is a colouring book. We also selected species that the children will see if they walk the forests of the Mhadei like important lesser known species like the Malabar torrent dart and the Indian pitta,” he says.
Besides Nirmal, the photographs have been provided by Parag Rangnekar, Dhananjay Jadhav, Omkar Dharwadkar, Nitesh Parulekar, Praveen Siddannavar, Raman Kulkarni, Niranjan Sant, Rahul Alvares, K P Dinesh and Vidyadhar Atkore. Nitesh has worked on all the illustrations except for the Malabar Gliding Frog which was illustrated by Fabian Gonsalves.
“Conservation outreach has always been team work. This book is an amazing example of the same. I received tremendous support from all photographers and researchers during its compilation. All the photographers generously offered their images and I am grateful to them,” adds Nirmal.
Nirmal has dedicated the book to his daughter Naia as he believes in the next generation and loves taking children out in nature when he get time off his work schedule. “My daughter Naia and her cousins and class mates are good birders and watch flowers too. They then draw and colour the same from their memory. This was an inspiration to me to think of such a book for all children who like to draw and colour from nature. There are many conservationists who are already taking Mhadei’s biodiversity closer to the younger generation through walks, talks and exploration programs. This book will help aid and support their work. It is a beginning for me as this is my first children’s book project and I have decided to focus on nature books for children to create awareness and consciousness from this year onwards. There are three other books in the pipeline and I hope we can launch them before the year ends,” informs Nirmal.
This book can also be influential in making children explore the wild by visiting the wildlife sanctuaries. Children need to step out into nature as it helps them focus and develops their sense of sight and smell. It also helps raise curiosity and provides good exercise as well as a spirit of adventure. He says, “A good nature walk guided by a naturalist has the capacity of tuning children into amazing nature lovers and explorers. The younger generation is sharp and filled with empathy. We need to showcase them our natural heritage as they are the future custodians of the same. In Goa, we are fortunate to have our wildlife sanctuaries and green habitats in close distance and we must make use of these opportunities to bring children closer to nature.”
Nirmal is also planning to do multiple launches of the book symbolically during National Wildlife Week at the hands of researchers, stalwarts from the conservation field, artists and more importantly children, as it is their book.
The books will be available at select book stores in Goa and Belgaum city and can be ordered online. These books can make ideal return gifts or giveaways for children, whose minds can be enlightened about the lively wildlife in the Mhadei region. “A set of 500 copies of these books will be distributed free to children living in forests of the Northern Western Ghats of India,” concludes Nirmal.
