Rain, rain, come again
MALEEHA RAGHAVIAH
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It was a wonderful trip which the campers really enjoyed.
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In the lap of nature: Amidst flowers and friends…
KOZHIKODE
The message conveyed by a recent rain camp was simple – “Cherish to the hilt the beauties thrown up by the bounteous South West Monsoon”.
Children and adults who took part in a rain camp organised by Kozhikode-based Malabar Natural History Society to Madayipara in Kannur District made use of the opportunity to register forever the beautiful scenes they viewed in their mind’s eye.
The camp was organised by MNHS jointly with the Environmental Education in Kerala (SEEK), Payyannur.
Monsoon flora of Madayipara, a flat –topped hillock is unique at this time of the year dominated with insectivorous plants such as Drosera indica and scores of species of Utricularia (Bladder worts) popularly called ‘kackapoo’.
Madayipara is about 21 km north of Kannur town and 8 km from Ezhimla Naval Academy. The Arabian Sea is only 2km from here.
The violet- blue flowers of Utricularia, white and blue flowers of Lindernia (Krishnapoo), white flower heads of Eriocaulon (Choothu) virtually painted the plateau in shades of blue, violet and white. Drosera indica (Sun Due) was there in abundance and students observed in close proximity the predation of small damselflies, house flies, mosquitoes and moths by this insectivorous plant.
A total of 82 nature lovers from different parts of Kerala participated in the programme including school, college students and teachers and those in different professions.
V.C. Blakrishnan, Secretary of SEEK, welcomed the participants to the camp formally inaugurated by T.P. Padmanabhan Master, Director of SEEK.
Many activities
He narrated stories and experiences about the monsoon that inspired youngsters and elders alike on the importance of Nature conservation and the role the monsoon plays on the ecosystem and the survival of living beings.
After dinner a slide talk on the “Biodiversity of Madayipara” was delivered by Dr. Jafer Palot, Secretary, MNHS through more than 50 slides. These included newly described plant species such as Lepidagathis keralaensis, Justicia ekakusuma, Nymphoides krishnakesara and Rotala malabrica.
Photographs were used to highlight threats to Madayipara from China clay mining, fire, and garbage dumping. This is the seventh time in succession that the camp is being conducted by the organisations in Madayipara during the month of July that coincides with the Malayalam month of Karkidakam before Onam- when the flowering of annual plants is on.
A visit to sacred groves of Madaykavu, an ancient Bhagavathi temple on the hill, spotting of birds such as Indian Tree- pie, Black-headed Oriole, Yellow Browed Bulbul, Jungle Babbler were interesting aspects of the camp.
After breakfast, participants undertook an extensive walk on the plateau to the mining area and Judha pond, a historic vestige of Jewish settlers in the area.
Small pools on the way had water plants such as Vallisneria, algae, water lily, tad poles, and aquatic insects.
Burrowing frogs like Rana breviplamata, Rana rufescens were plenty on the rocky ridges
Near the Vadukunda temple participants observed more than 32 species of butterflies including Buddha Peacock, Southern Birdwing, Crimson Rose, Tamil Yeoman, and Southern Rustic Great Orange Tip.
And as the camp was to conclude, it rained on the hills much to the joy of all who danced to a tune.
The distressing part of the camp was the visit to the China clay mining area, waste dumped, and pollution of the stream creating a scar on the beautiful hillock and minds of participants.
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