Tigress on tuk-tuk

For the season finale, we explore the underwater realm with wildlife biologist and ocean explorer, Chetana Purushotham. She takes us on a guided tour of coral reefs-these incredible ‘living-rocks'; plant-animal combos that support all kinds of life - lionfish, clownfish, yellow box fish… We even stop to listen to what reef fish sound like! We then float past lush sea grass meadows, slow down with nudibranchs, say hello to rays and sea cucumbers hanging out in the sand, swim through schooling fish and meet the cool creatures of the night-time seascape. Find out about unbelievable underwater partnerships and trace the origin of white beach sand back to a fish's bum hole. If you've never gone diving, think of this as your auditory first..and if you have seen some underwater sights..well, there's gonna be more than a thing or two that you'll find out on this episode, for shore!OH ALSO! FISH CALENDARS. EVERYONE and their grandma needs one!Soooo much on this episode. Headphones. Snorkel. Dive in!Show Notes:Follow Chetana's adventures @spidersandtheseaFISH CALENDARS: Know your fishIn Season fishChetana's WritingVocalisations videos:Fish Sounds from a restored reefFish Sounds: Earth UnpluggedThe Sound of a coral reefParrotfish eating algae/ crunching coral

How well do you know your neighbours? No, not the human kind but other (more interesting!) creatures and critters that share city space with us. Leaf cutter bees who cut out chunks from leaves leaving behind perfectly scalloped leaf edges. Trees with wine goblet flowers and sticky seed pockets. Swallowtail butterflies that sashay about flower patches in busy roundabouts. Gorgeous geckos that hang out upside down on our ceilings. Bird songsters outside the windows. Wasp architects under the desk…Naturalist, photographer, writer and educator, Karthikeyan Srinivasan tells us story after story of many, many urban creatures. Inspired by Karthik's blog and his first-hand accounts of various lifeforms,  think of this as a collection of audio stories on the many celebrity critters and bird-next-door starlets hanging out around the ‘hood.Shownotes:Karthik's journal (blog)Follow Karthik Follow the show Purchase books/pocket field guides

A mammal that can fly. Like proper flap-flap bird-fly. Bats are unicorn-level phantasmal creatures with Greek god fitness levels, living amongst us! This episode is dedicated to these marvellous, under-appreciated creatures and is a full blown effort to take on the undeserving bad raps that bats have. Dispelling myths, addressing batty Covid fears, getting into the true meaning of the term ‘batshit crazy' and giving us logical, scientific suggestions to live considerate lives, making room for bats is a near impossible task. So we called the best man for the job - bat biologist Rohit Chakravarty who has worked with 100s of bats over the last 9 years. This episode also features Zareef Khan, a Van Gujjar from Uttarakhand and Rohit's field assistant. He gives us incredible field stories on bats and banshees and keeps it real and relatable for regular (not-a-scientist) folks like you and me. Show notesFollow Rohit: @paintedbatFollow the show : @tigressontuktuk For Information on MAEEhttps://india.mongabay.com/2021/05/van-gujjars-people-of-the-forest-or-nowhere/https://www.earthtouchnews.com/natural-world/animal-behaviour/watch-falling-sex-bats-give-us-a-glimpse-into-the-weird-world-of-bat-mating/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/11/opinion/covid-bats.html

Muddy hands. Sandy feet. Peaceful minds. Happy hearts.This week, super-fun teacher and  inspiring educator, Chandini Chhabra gives us the 411 on nature education. We get into all the cool, mind blowing ways in which time in nature promotes a child's learning and development. There's SOOOOOO much that nature makes better - inside our heads, for our bodies heck, definitely for the soul too!We get into some research and evidence, jump into a couple of Chandini's awesome online nature classes and come out of this episode informed and inspired for some much needed nature-infusing, for our kids, for ourselves and for our planet.Show Notes:Chandini Chhabra  @liana_forest_schoolNerd Bird  @nerdbirdhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6401598/https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00305/fullhttps://childmind.org/article/why-kids-need-to-spend-time-in-nature/https://www.childhoodbynature.com/going-local-why-kids-need-to-love-local-nature/https://news.ncsu.edu/2019/07/children-local-nature-study/https://www.davidsobelauthor.com/articles-and-filmhttps://www.apa.org/monitor/2020/04/nurtured-nature 

Spiders give you the heebie-jeebies?? Make the hair on the back of your neck stand up? You running off to grab a shoe even at the thought of one? Hairy, Scary, Stealthy, ‘Scuttlers'  and messy Cobweb-makers, that's what you're thinking right?Ok, here's the REAL, full, silken spider low down with Samuel John. How he went from shrieking, shoe-brandisher to big time spider lover.  How Spiders are superb parents. How they produce crazy-valuable silk. How they are master-mind decision makers. How arachnophobia works and how humans actually have a rich history of spider appreciation and respect. Take a listen to some incredible spider stories and some live, edge-of-the-seat, spider action witnessed while walking around in a busy Indian neighbourhood.Also, this one's got lots of laughs, guaranteed!Show notes:John's spider stories:  https://www.spidersandthesea.com/writinghttps://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/spiderwebs-explained?loggedin=truehttps://www.science.org/content/article/spider-silk-five-times-stronger-steel-now-scientists-know-whyhttps://www.deccanherald.com/science-and-environment/jumping-killers-and-their-varied-webs-of-retreat-732025.htmlhttps://news.mongabay.com/2018/02/webs-under-water-the-really-bizarre-lives-of-intertidal-spiders/

Amphibians are Nature's best Percussionists, Beatboxers, Choral Singers and Vocalists. They are also Harbingers of the monsoon and Guardians of the earth's life systems. They are also sitting ducks for extinction. Dr. Seshadri tells us all about these night-time superstars-how they sing, how they find love, how they parent, how he discovered new frog species and all the million ways in which we need these enigmatic creatures in our lives. Buckle up for a ribbiting story.Show Notes:http://seshadriks.weebly.com/http://seshadriks.weebly.com/uploads/2/0/0/2/20029205/seshadri_krishna_sunil_2012._bangalores_frogs_at_risk.pdfhttps://www.newscientist.com/article/dn28013-zoologger-worlds-first-venomous-frog-has-the-kiss-of-death/https://www.cell.com/current-biology/comments/S0960-9822(06)02384-0https://news.mongabay.com/2012/07/3000-new-species-of-amphibians-discovered-in-25-years/https://www.vox.com/science-and-health/2016/10/14/13147056/amphibian-extinction-frog-bdhttps://adamalonzi.wordpress.com/2016/05/10/amphibians-through-the-ages-why-frogs-matter/https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/07/03/535383841/how-frogs-benefited-from-the-dinosaurs-extinctionhttps://www.researchgate.net/publication/345793932_Amphibian_Species_Discovery_Pattern_in_India_Past_Present_and_Future_Trends

You a Writer? Artist? Doodler? Ardent notetaker? Scribbler of book edges?  Post-it point-jotter? Paint brush wielder? Obsessive compulsive observer?  Part-time portrait-maker? Full time Nature lover? This episode is for you!Renowned artist and nature/wildlife illustrator, Sangeetha Kadur introduces us to the world of nature journaling. How to begin, techniques and tips, what art supplies to include in your kit, how to get out of your head, into nature and onto a journal page! This is a very hands-on episode..so feel free to whip out your art supplies (or just pen and paper), go find a little ‘sit spot' and let her dulcet voice guide into trying out some fun stuff.Show Notes:http://sangeethakadur.com/http://greenscrapsjournal.blogspot.com/https://www.instagram.com/green_scraps/?hl=enhttps://johnmuirlaws.com/https://www.naturejournalingweek.com/blogs/what-is-nature-journalinghttps://www.naturejournalingweek.com/start-herehttps://wildlife.lowecol.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/25/Make-a-Date-with-Nature.pdfhttps://johnmuirlaws.com/sacrificial-pancakes-video/Instagram: @tigressontuktukhttps://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/2022/jan/13/unpacking-stories-from-nature-for-urban-dwellers-2406067.html

In the second instalment of the snakes episode TOTT slithers headfirst into the Indian snake scene with 3 super guests . Sara Mohan discovers Irulas and their brain-stumping snake tracking skills. Snake venom and it's many confounding properties. Snakebite and some scary-as-hell stats. Gerry Martin gets into the nitty gritty of snake research - venom, behaviour; oh and also snake heartbeat (happy squeal)! Gnaneswar brings firsthand reports on snake bite stories, peoples' attitudes and the dizzying diversity of snakes in India. Aaaannnd a helluva snake walk with Kali, as he magically tracks and catches snakes (almost conjuring them outta thin air) in a paddy field in suburban chennai. SHOW NOTES:Film: A survival guide to the Big 4Snake bite related papers/articles:https://www.researchgate.net/publication/286712156_Venom_antivenom_production_and_the_medically_important_snakes_of_Indiahttps://science.thewire.in/health/snakebites-anti-venom-irula-cooperative-cobra-krait-viper-romulus-whitaker/https://indianexpress.com/article/india/at-1-2-million-india-has-highest-number-of-snakebites-in-the-world-heres-why-its-dangerous-7442747/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330467543_Prevention_is_better_than_cure_Prevention_is_better_than_cure_snakebite_education_in_India/link/5f417c5a92851cd3021a8d9e/downloadhttps://theprint.in/science/snake-antivenom-in-india-ineffective-in-treating-bites-from-most-species-study-finds/331923/https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(17)31751-8/fulltextSnake Radio Telemetry:https://india.mongabay.com/2021/03/radio-telemetry-signals-new-ways-to-study-snakes/

Sara Mohan takes a trip to Hunsur (near Mysore, Karnataka) to meet world-renowned snake man Gerry Martin.  In his cosy office, surrounded by tanks and tanks of snakes, Gerry unravels the mysterious world of serpents coil by marvellous coil. Snake origin stories, snake lengths (sorry to break it to ya, but the length of your…SNAKE is irrelevant), venom and fangs, the BIG 4, kissing king cobras , what NOT to do around snakes and why we'd have no food if snakes were to disappear...This is the first instalment of a two-part story on these enigmatic creatures, told in Gerry's inimitable, no-nonsense, giggle-inducing style. SHOW NOTES: Snake Evolution:https://www.discoverwildlife.com/news/new-findings-reveal-the-origins-of-modern-day-snakes/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/mother-all-snakes-was-surprisingly-modern-180955349/ Who is the longest of them all?https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_snakesIranian Spider-tailed Viper:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFjoqyVRmOUEyelash Viper: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axJalwdWPmI&feature=emb_imp_woytHow flying snakes fly?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gpW5aWMxrEw http://www.indiansnakes.org/mobileapp

How far would you go to see really cool wildlife?? You don't need to go anywhere. Simply take a peek outside your window or walk down your street! Vena Kapoor unpacks wildlife of the concrete jungle and chats to Sara Mohan about plants for pollinators, weeds and their wonders,  the perils of bird feeders, potter wasp pheromones, leaf-cutter bees and their magic carpet leaves, pigeons aka pests and other delightful revelations about the the many cool creatures that run wild in our cities. Articles & Papers on Urban Wildlife:(Co- Authored by Vena Kapoor)https://sustain.round.glass/habitat/nature-city-walls/https://sustain.round.glass/urban-jungle/wild-city-pavements/Other resources:The Green, green grass of home:https://sustain.round.glass/urban-jungle/garden-grass/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257342677_Why_garden_for_wildlife_Social_and_ecological_drivers_Motivations_and_barriers_for_biodiversity_management_in_residential_landscapeshttps://www.researchgate.net/publication/341228869_Good_and_Bad_Urban_Wildlifehttps://www.researchgate.net/publication/256669012_Urban_wildlife_research_Past_present_and_futurehttps://www.researchgate.net/publication/248200323_Does_variation_in_garden_characteristics_influence_conservation_of_birds_in_suburbiahttps://india.wcs.org/Newsroom/Blog/ID/14209/Small-or-Big-Your-Home-Garden-Has-the-Potential-to-Be-a-Refuge-for-Urban-WildlifeBird Feeders:https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-58346043https://www.researchgate.net/publication/29469598_Feeding_birds_in_our_towns_and_cities_A_global_research_opportunity

Crabs who live like hermits. Shells that look like sunsets. Stars that dress up in feathers. The beach is is a wondrous place. But how well do you know this familiar space and all its denizens? Probably not too well. TOTT catches up with  the fondly and famously named  Ocean's 6 for a seaside adventure in Chennai; it'll leave you a little wiser about the magic land that is the ‘inter-tidal'. Links:Coastal Biodiversity Guide on iNaturalist:  https://www.inaturalist.org/guides/13428Coastal Biodiversity Pocket guide+Fun posters+Beach Bingo: https://onedrive.live.com/?authkey=%21AJ2JkCClzvCn-6k&id=4A3AFC730D6873%216740&cid=004A3AFC730D6873Follow MNS/ YNN:  @madrasnaturalists / @ynnchennaiHermit Crab shell swap: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1dnocPQXDQSwimming feather star: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRej1VKDgcEFollow the show on Instagram and Twitter @tigressontuktukiNaturalist app download: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.inaturalist.android&hl=en_IN&gl=UShttps://apps.apple.com/us/app/inaturalist/id421397028

Why a Tigress? And what in the world is she doing on a Tuktuk? Host, Sara Mohan explains!

Tigress on tuk-tuk meets the world! What is this show about? How was it born? Who is it for?Host, Sara Mohan tells you everything.