Fireflies and Light Pollution

Light pollution affects the lives of several nocturnal creatures adversely, including fireflies. Here's a comic that explains the effect of light pollution on firefly courtship. The comic appears in my page with the Turkish kids' magazine Arastirmaci Cocuk this month.

Mai Po Nature Reserve- an Illustrated Map

Located in the Deep Bay in the north-western part of Hong Kong, Mai Po Nature Reserve is a wetland of international significance, and one of my favourite birding destinations! In addition to harbouring vast stretches of mangrove forests, tidal mudflats, grasslands and marshes, Mai Po is a major wintering ground for the endangered Black-faced Spoonbill, the critically endangered Spoon-billed Sandpiper, and a number of other birds. Birds aside, Mai Po is probably the only place where a species of firefly named after the- the Mai Po Bent-winged Firefly is found! (A caricature of this insect illuminates the title of the map). Mai Po is also an important heritage destination, as it is one of the few remaining places where traditional and manually operated shrimp ponds called Gei Wai can still be seen in use. Wonderfully designed observation hides make for some fantastic sessions of bird-watching, while the mangrove trails are a great way to spot the rare Leopard Cat and the Eurasian Otter!

The reserve is managed by WWF Hong Kong. I was commissioned by the WWF HK's Education team to visit Mai Po in September last year, gather resource and reference, and create a bilingual illustrated map. The illustration is intended for display at the nature reserve, and also at various educational events conducted by the WWF. A big thanks to my friends at WWF- Alex, Augustine and Kitty for having me at Mai Po!

Also take a look at the Wildlife Map of Hong Kong, illustrated last year.

Sloth Bears and Mahua Flowers

A comic on the Sloth Bear's penchant for Mahua, from my column with Mid-Day today. Mahua isn't just a popular drink among bears, but also people! And Mahua's credentials include not just alcohol, but also medicine.

If you're going out drinking tonight, don't forget to try the Mahua Macarena!

Macha the Fishing Cat - Mascot for Coringa WLS

Meet Macha the Fishing Cat, the official mascot for Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary in Andhra Pradesh! ('Macha', Tamil,  means friend or 'bro' in colloquial parlance across Southern India). Coringa is one of India's largest contiguous stretch of mangrove forests and hosts the largest population of Fishing Cats in the country. DFO Mr. Anant Shankar commissioned a mascot design and a series of four posters in which Macha introduces his 'machas', YOU, to Coringa and mangroves. Read on- 

A big thanks to Mr. Shankar and the AP Forest Department for initiating this fun project! The posters are up at the interpretation centre in Coringa.

Macha the Fishing Cat now proudly endorses Coringa to visitors as a life-size sculpture! Thanks to the team of artists who worked on converting my character design into this magnificent sculpture.

Karnataka Ecotourism Map

An illustrated map for Karnataka's Ecotourism Board that highlights sanctuaries, national parks, ecotourism facilities and some heritage destinations in the state. The map was formally released at the Karnataka Bird Festival concluded recently in Mangalore. Thanks to Mr. Vijay Mohanraj for commissioning the project.

Rhino and Elephant Poaching

Sudan, reportedly the last male Northern White Rhino, died at the Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya yesterday. Sudan may have died of old age, but it is poaching and the demand for rhino horns and ivory that took his sub-species out. 

From my column with RoundGlass Samsara.

Little Things You and I Can Do to Save Sparrows

Some simple steps you and I can take to bring the sparrow back into our lives and neighbourhoods. From my column with Sunday Mid-day.

Buy prints of this comic on my webstore, (or place your order on email (rohanchakcartoonist@gmail.com) if you live in India)

I've been a sparrow landlord since 2016, and have hosted around 10 broods of House Sparrows in my four nest boxes collectively so far. Here are some pictures-

(A family of Oriental Magpie Robins too had occupied one of my boxes last year!)

Brand Conscious Shoebills

Shoebills are stork-like waterbirds found in tropical Africa between Sudan and Zambia. One look at their massive bills, and it isn't hard to guess why they got that name! The shoe-shaped bill is designed to catch much larger aquatic quarry such as lungfish and catfish, that most other waterbirds don't hunt. Shoebills are threatened by habitat loss and hunting, and are classified as 'Vulnerable' on the IUCN Red List.

The comic appears in my column with RoundGlass Samsara. Visit the Roundglass website to read more Green Humour.

Animals that Pout Better than You

Five animals whose pouts can give your Instagram profile a run for its money, the Slingjaw Wrasse being the mother of all pouts! From my column with Sunday Mid-day.

So please, pout with a purpose!

Flamingos of Sewri

(Not so) Magnetic Maharashtra. From my column with The Hindu BL-ink today.

Barn Swallows in the Himalayas

A comic on Barn Swallows nesting in the Himalayas from my column with Saevus magazine. With this comic, I complete six years of my association with Saevus, which also reaches its six year milestone with its March 2018 issue! Congrats to Saevus, and a big thanks for their continued association with Green Humour.

The comic takes inspiration from Ms. Janaki Lenin's beautiful article on Barn Swallows, published in The Hindu.

Some Female Indian Wildlife Artists

This Women's Day, meet some of India's female wildlife artists! Read more about them here, and I guarantee you'll be inspired through the day:

Maya Ramaswamy- http://www.artistsforconservation.org/category/news/maya-ramaswamy,

Sangeetha Kadur- http://sangeethakadur.blogspot.in/, 

Sunita Dhairyam- http://jlrexplore.com/explore/interviews/sunita-dhairyam-wild-canvas,

Hemlata Pradhan- http://www.serindiagallery.com/hemlata-pradhan/

Roshni Vyam- https://www.natureinfocus.in/author/roshni-vyam

Niharika Rajput- http://www.niharikarajput.com/about/

Nirupa Rao- http://beejliving.com/the-woman-who-paints-trees/

Ashvini Menon- http://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/energy-and-environment/ecotism/article19895165.ece, http://www.ashvinimenon.com/

The comic appears in my column with Mid-Day. (The list of artists depicted in this strip is far from comprehensive; India has many, many more, both established and budding!)