Sea Sparkles and Arabian Sea

Not all that glitters is a romantic bioluminescence! On sea sparkles and their impact on fisheries in the Arabian Sea, from my column with Sunday Mid-day. Read more about the issue on Mongabay India's article here.  

Panjim- an Urban Biodiversity map

A biodiversity and heritage map of the Goan capital Panjim, commissioned by ICLEI South Asia. Situated on the banks on the Mandovi River, Panjim is dotted with a rich network of estuaries and mangroves, which are home to diverse coastal flora and fauna. Migratory waders throng Panjim's beaches and mudflats along the Ribandar causeway and the Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary, which is also home to estuarine reptiles like the Glossy Marsh Snake. The mangrove ecosystem along the coast host many commercially important fish, crustaceans and the elusive Smooth-coated Otter.  Goa's proximity to the Western Ghats ensures that a variety of endemic insects and herpetofauna make Goa their home, including the Goan Shadow Dancer perched on the title of the map. The star of the Arabian Sea, the Indian Ocean Humpback Dolphin dwells where the estuaries of Panjim meet the sea. Innovative but endangered traditional livelihoods which Goan communities have evolved such as the Goan salt-pans and sluice-gate fishing, are depicted on the map.

Some of Panjim's most important heritage buildings also feature on the map. The illustration style itself pays tribute to Goa's iconic Azulejos tile art, which came with the Portuguese and became Panjim's visual identity. A Goan rooster perches on the map's compass. As Panjim grapples with rapid expansion as Goa's capital city, the illustration is meant to serve as a reminder of what the city must preserve and coexist with.

A huge thanks to my dear friend and Goan conservation biologist Nandini Velho, my partner and ICLEI's Assistant Manager Rithika Fernandes, Sayeesh Pirankar and Hycintha Aguiar (ICLEI) and Goan tree expert Dr. Usha Desai for their generous help and inputs for the map (and for some lip-smacking food recommendations!).  Thanks to ICLEI for commissioning a series of delightful, exploratory and experimental map projects. The illustration is available in a high resolution here. 

Here are a few close-ups from the map:

Coastal Fauna- Posters for UNDP

A series of posters I designed for school kids, for the World Wildlife Day event hosted by the UNDP, were displayed at the event. Thanks to the UNDP India team for commissioning the designs.

Maps of Marine Conservation Priority Sites in Hong Kong

To celebrate World Oceans Day (8th June), WWF Hong Kong commissioned me to create this set of 7 maps for marine conservation priority sites in Hong Kong. WWF is working with the government to create marine conservation reserves in these areas. The maps show some of the key species found in the region, as well as the threats and conservation pressures that they face. 

The maps were displayed at kiosks and interactive devices at the WWF Hong Kong event 'Sea for Future', held on World Oceans Day. The maps are also being used in WWF's marine conservation and awareness collaterals. Thanks to Samantha Lee of WWF for commissioning me for this project, and for giving me a chance to draw and learn about fish!

Dolphin Sightings

I'm sure some of you have had much better luck with watching dolphins in the wild than I have! The comic appears in my column with Roundglass Samsara.

Why the Dolphin Smiles

Earlier this month on a visit to Hong Kong over an assignment, I took a trip with WWF to the fishing village of Tai O. While the trip yielded my first dolphin sightings in the wild (the Chinese White Dolphin, a race of the Indo-Pacific Humpbacked Dolphin, for which the Pearl River Delta in Hong Kong is one of the last remaining strongholds); a very special moment for me, I also happened to witness a rather jolting sight- that of a dead infant.

Infant mortality for dolphins has been on the rise in the Pearl Delta, because of the rising level of pollutants in the water, that go on to accumulate in and contaminate the milk of dolphins nursing their pups. Seeing that smiling face on a dead body has been one of the most disturbing moments for me in nature. Being one of the world's busiest ports, Hong Kong's polluted waters are already largely devoid of natural marine resources, posing a critical threat to the population of Chinese White Dolphins. 

The situation for Indo-pacific Humpbacks in India is not any better, with boat traffic, pollution, over-fishing, and noise threatening their existence. The comic appears in my column with Mid-Day today. This one's for you, baby dolphin.