VIRUDHUNAGAR: Beyond the clout of naked vision, a flash of mercury-vapor light fell on a piece of whitish cloth, attracting an eclipse of moths about to settle into the night in a farm near the Western Ghats. While small moths get attracted to the light in an hour, moths of saturniidae and sphingidae families get attracted around 2 am, N Sharan introduced the gorgeous physique of moths to his league of environmentalists.
In the search of lost splendour, the 28-year-old Sharan, who is the recipient of the Earth Educator Fellowship, peered over the world through a kaleidoscopic reflection of butterflies. For over six years, he has been trailing along the footprint of butterflies in the air, even intimating the forest department of the new species. However, once the fellowship got rolling, Sharan drifted his focus to transforming Rajapalayam, Virudhunagar, into a haven of environmental stewardship. Through Wild Earthlings, the nature-based community with Sharan at its helm, he set the standards for wildlife education and nature observation.
On weekends, Sharan, in the company of community members from all walks of life, trudges over deep gorges and beaten roads up to the summit. Along the trek’s course, they pursued an insight into the rare varieties of trees and flies. “The location and timings of the events would be shared on WhatsApp,” Sharan explains. The nature-walk sessions include mapping out the course of navigation, navigating through the wild and the pooling of data collected, he continues.
“Acknowledging the significance of trees and nature slowly sows the seeds of conservation in the participants’ minds,” Sharan remarks.M Ajay Kumar, 29, a civil engineer, deemed the walk to be an eye-opener, inspiring him to the brave the elements and inch closer to the essentials often overlooked.
For 30-year-old V Vivek, an assistant professor, the pursuit of nature is therapeutic, while P Prajith, a Class 9 student, connects with the nature-adoring sessions as a source of constructive education.Over the course, the team has managed to organise around 13 events, including Date with Dragonflies, Moth Nights, Bird Walks and Tree Walk, with Ant Walks and Spider Workshops on the anvil.
Source : The New Indian Express
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