Wombat Droppings and Climate Change Denial in Australia

Climate change denial is on the rise in Australia, with not just the government refusing to commit to a net zero emissions deadline, but also appointing a climate science denier, Barnaby Joyce, as Deputy Prime Minister. Cartoon from my column with The Hindu. 

Ocean Zones: Illustration for Arastirmaci Cocuk

An illustration depicting the various zones of the ocean, done for the Turkish kids' magazine Arastirmaci Cocuk. Read their latest issue on the website here.

Prints of this poster in English are available on my webstore here, shipped worldwide. For orders within India, email me on rohanchakcartoonist@gmailcom . Sizes and prices for prints within India are as follows: 

A0: Rs. 3500 for the first copy, Rs. 3000 for the second copy onwards

A1: Rs. 3000 for the first copy, Rs. 2500 for the second copy onwards

A2: Rs. 1500 for the first copy, Rs. 1200 for the second copy onwards

A3: Rs. 500 for the first copy, Rs. 300 for the second copy onwards

Humpback Mahseer in Kaveri

Kaveri's Humpback Mahseers are critically endangered, but with efforts like that of river ecologist Neeti Mahesh, there is hope. Comic strip from my column with The Hindu.

A Tigress Reviews Sherni

Amit Masurkar's new film about the challenges, sociopolitics, and the many grey areas of tiger conservation in India, is sure to go down in history as the first accurate portrayal of conservation issues in mainstream Hindi cinema. Other than having some stellar performers (Vidya Balan, Vijay Raaz, Sharat Saxena, Brijendra Kala and Neeraj Kabi among others), Sherni is also a beautifully made film, with various aspects of filmmaking being quite simply, top-notch. A completely palpable and believable Vidya Balan portrays DFO Vidya Vincent with both the calmness and grit that I have witnessed in so many female forest officers I have had the honour of interacting and working with. The brilliant Vijay Raaz, who I last saw playing a whimsical gangster obsessed with wildlife trivia in the much-underrated comedy 'Lootcase', plays a moth biologist and forest department consultant, while the legendary Sharat Saxena slips comfortably into the role of a hunter clearly based on the egomaniacal and trigger-happy Nawab Shafat Ali Khan. But the prime highlight of the film isn't its theatric or technical perfection, but the fact that the nuances of conservation in India are portrayed with pinpoint precision. If you've ever walked a patrol with a forest guard, interacted with forest-dwelling tribes who are the foremost victims of man-animal conflict without even being the cause, or even spent a few minutes at a forest department office, you will identify with every minute of Sherni's screentime. And of course, a special mention goes to the film's producers at T-Series not just for backing a film of utmost social relevance, but also being sporting enough to take a joke on their own erstwhile hit song 'Achha sila diya'! It would not surprise you to know that Amit Masurkar was the man behind the exceptional political drama, Newton.

A recommendation for those who have watched and loved Sherni: Anay Tarnekar's powerful Marathi short film 'The Kill', starring Radhika Apte and Girish Kulkarni, which speaks about tiger poaching.

Comic from my column with Roundglass Sustain.

Pygmy Blue Whales in the Indian Ocean

Nuclear bomb detectors placed near Chagos Islands detected whale sounds, which when analysed by a group of scientists from the University of New South Whales, led to the discovery of a new population of Pygmy Blue Whales in the Indian Ocean! Comic from my column with Sunday Mid-Day.

Diamond Mining and the Environment

The forests of Buxwaha in Madhya Pradesh, an important wildlife corridor could be lost to a diamond mine being planned by the Aditya Birla group in the region, threatening not just endangered wildlife but also tribal livelihoods. A petition in support of the forest is on Change.org here. If you wish to use the Hindi version of the cartoon, please write to me on rohanchakcartoonist@gmail.com . 

Shark Illustrations for the Save Our Seas Foundation

I had the absolute delight of illustrating 43 species of sharks and rays, with a focus on endangered ones, for the Save Our Seas Foundation's new website— 'World of Sharks'. The SOSF team has designed some ravishing infographics wit these illustrations, which you will find on the website.

Thanks to SOSF for the continued association, and for always assigning projects that are tremendous learning experiences!

Antechinus Sex Addiction

A short story of sex and the Antechinus, an Australian mouse-like marsupial. Comic from my column with Roundglass Sustain.

Feeding Feral Pigeons

Feral pigeons are not only a threat to wild birds, but are also an emerging cause of lung disease in humans— just like your favourite politicians! Cartoon from my column with The Hindu.

Ninja Lanternshark

Nature TV presents the Ninja Lanternshark- a bioluminescent deep sea shark, in my column with Roundglass Sustain.

Conservation Threats to Scorpions

India's scorpions, especially our endemic, rock-dwelling varieties, are under increasing threat from habitat loss and the pet trade. Read a detailed report on Mongabay India on the status of scorpion research and conservation. Cartoon from my column with Sunday Mid-Day.

Pinnipeds of the World

This World Oceans Day, know the Pinnipeds (seals and walrus) of the world in this brand new poster! Pinniped prints and merchandise are up on my webstore (for international orders). 

For orders within India, the range of goodies available is as follows (email me on rohanchakcartoonist@gmail.com to order):

A1 Posters (loose)- Rs. 2500 each

A2 Posters (loose)- Rs. 1200 each

Loose Posters (A3- Individual species and compilation)- Rs. 500 for the first copy and Rs. 200 for the second copy onwards

Coffee Mug (Compilations)- Rs. 850

The orders can be placed by e-mailing me on rohanchakcartoonist@gmail.com. Payments are accepted by NEFT and cheque.

Unpopular but Right Opinions of the Right Whale

A Right Whale offers its two bits on marine conservation, this World Oceans Day. Comic from my column with Sunday Mid-Day.

Green Humour for a Greying Planet

It's been 11 years of poking fun at everyone else. So in my upcoming book 'Green Humour for a Greying Planet', my pets Srishti and Sakshi decided to turn the tables on me!

Green Humour for a Greying Planet is a curation of over 200 of my cartoons on wildlife, ecology and nature conservation, published between 2012 and 2020.

A huge thanks to the Penguin team for making this compilation a reality, to Romulus Whitaker and Janaki Lenin for their delightful foreword, and to Dia Mirza and Faye D'souza for their generous endorsements. And thanks to each one of you who has read, shared, subscribed to and critiqued my work over the years. Okay, enough of my sentimental speech; GO PRE-ORDER on Amazon!

Eurasian Woodcock in Hyderabad

In the month of February, my wife Rithika and I had come across a strange wader stuck in a kite maanja, in Hyderabad. With the help of some concerned onlookers, we rescued the bird and handed it to the bird rehabilitation centre at the Nehru Zoological Park. Little did we know that this encounter would turn out to be Telangana's first documented record of the Eurasian Woodcock! The bird survived for two months in the care of veterinarian Dr. Syed Asaduddin and zoologist Mr. Laxmi Narayan before succumbing to its injuries, but not before becoming a bit of a local celebrity, thanks to my radio jockey friend Shehtaaz aka Mirchi Shezzi. A note on this encounter appears in the latest issue of the Indian Birds journal, along with this cartoon. Thanks to Mr. Aasheesh Pittie and Praveen J for publishing the note. 

Amazonian Palm Oil

On Amazonian palm oil's double standards, which despite being introduced with a promise of sustainability has been taking a toll on wild habitat and tribal land with deforestation and chemical pollution. Cartoon from my column with The Hindu.