Vulture Restaurants in Raigad

On Raigad's 'vulture restaurants' from my column with Roundglass Sustain. Know more about this vulture conservation initiative in this video by Scroll.

Reverse Sexual Dimorphism in Raptors

There are many reasons why raptors are my favourite wildlife. Here's one. Happy Women's Day! Comic strip from my column with The Hindu.

Osprey Hunt

Which Indian wild animal wouldn't want to be on the cover of Sanctuary Asia ? From my column with Roundglass Sustain.

Ustad Mansoor Bloopers

Mughal miniature bloopers featuring Ustad Mansoor, one of India's most celebrated wildlife artists of the Mughal era. Cartoon from my Roundglass Sustain column.

Himalayan Griffon Wingspan

How wide are a Himalayan Griffon's wings? Meet India's resident bird with the largest wingspan! Comic from my column with The Hindu.

Caste Names in Taxonomy

The caste system makes its presence felt even in taxonomy, where terms such as 'Brahminy' and 'Pariah' are used to refer to superiority and ferality respectively. Surely, taxonomy can do better in this day and age, when common names are being revised to suit modern sensibilities.

The Brahminy Kite, a common coastal carnivorous, scavenging raptor, comments on the caste system in my column with The Hindu. The majestic bird is often associated with the mythological character Garuda, specially in South-east Asia countries where it is revered as a state symbol.

An Accidental Vulture Date

From my column with RoundGlass Sustain.

Cover for Nature Ecology and Evolution

I illustrated the elements for the cover of the January 2019 issue of the eclebrated science magazine Nature Ecology and Evolution, featuring some really interesting creatures that I happened to learn about during the course of the project, such as the Snail Kite, the Patas Monkey, the New Caledonia Crow and the Bamboo Shark.  Head to this link to read the list of species that grace the cover, and the science papers based on them. 

A big thanks to Chief Editor Patrick Goymer for collaborating with me!

Eco-friendly Diwali Tips from Wild Animals

Green Humour wishes readers from India and abroad a happy and eco-friendly Diwali. The comic appears in my column with Sunday Mid-day.

Prints and greetings available on my webstore here. For orders within India, write to me on rohanchakcartoonist@gmail.com.

Dirty Harrier

Harriers are migratory grassland raptors that specialize in hunting in grasslands, moors and swamps. As many of their prey items include agricultural pests such as rodents and locusts, they provide immense service to agriculture. The use of pesticides and the loss of grassland habitats is causing a decline in their numbers today.

The cartoon appears on my Gocomics page. Here's one for the fans of harriers and Clint Eastwood!

What's Sankranti without Kites

A Black Kite makes a humble appeal this kite-flying season. Wishing Green Humour readers a happy Sankrant/Pongal/Uttarayan.

From my column with Mid-day.

Birdwatching from a Train

A comic inspired partly by Douglas Dewar's essay 'A Naturalist in a Railway Train', and partly by true incidents, that appears in my column with Saevus magazine this month. I am sure every Indian birdwatcher who has taken a train journey will relate.

BNHS Bird Migration Atlas

One of my most challenging yet enjoyable assignments this year was this mega-poster for the Bombay Natural History Society. The brief was to depict migration journeys, ringing and recovery efforts undertaken for 25 species of birds, while at the same time displaying migration in all its glory. To the left is a map of the Indian subcontinent that shows birds ringed and recovered within India. To the right is a map of the Old World, showing rings and recoveries outside of the subcontinent. The icons that enclose the birds, also depict their preferred habitat in ringing and recovery locations. 

Packing so much scientific information into a single visual was a real challenge, but at the same time a tremendous learning experience! The project introduced me to some real wonders of bird migration, such as the South Polar Skua, ringed in the Antarctic Peninsula and recovered all the way up in coastal Karnataka! 

The poster was displayed at the CMS COP 12 held in Manila in October. Thanks to Dr. Deepak Apte (Director, BNHS) and to Ms. Vibhuti Dedhia (Editor, Publications, BNHS) for commissioning me for the artwork, and to ornithologist Tuhina Katti for patiently answering all my dumb questions throughout the project!

Batesian Mimicry

On Batesian mimicry from my column with BL-ink last weekend. There's an interesting rhyme to distinguish between the Coral and the Milk Snakes, which I came to know of watching The Jeff Corwin Show, and it goes like this- "Red and black, you're okay, Jack; Red and yellow, you're a dead fellow"! (This pertains only to a few species of North American coral snakes).

Raptors of the Indian Subcontinent

Big, bad and mean- here's a brand new compilation of all the 73 species of raptors found in the Indian subcontinent! Having such incredible diversity in landscape and habitat, it is of little wonder that the subcontinent hosts such a high diversity of raptors! Right from the 4 feet long Cinereous Vulture to the sparrow-sized Pied Falconet, raptors come in every shape and size, and inhabit all kinds of terrain, be it rainforests, scrubs, deserts, hills, coasts, islands or snow-capped mountains. Being the apex predators in the bird world, raptors truly are the tigers of the skies!

The poster, as well as individual illustrations are available as a wide range of prints and merchandise (and even a wall clock!) on my webstore here. 

For orders within India, see below-

Compilation-

A0 size Matte (841 x 1189 mm)- Rs. 3500 for the first print, 3000 for the second print onwards.

A0 size Canvas (841 x 1189 mm)- Rs. 4500 for the first print, 4000 for the second print onwards.

A1 size Matte (594 x 841 mm)- Rs. 3000 for the first print, 2500 for the second print onwards.

A1 size Canvas (594 x 841 mm)- Rs. 4000 for the first print, 3500 for the second print onwards.

Get a free A3 poster of any favourite raptor with every A0 or A1 print of the compilation!

Individual illustrations-

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

Fridge Magnets (65 x 65 mm, Printed in sets of 4)- Any 4 raptors for Rs. 1200

Coasters (3.5" x 3.5", Printed in sets of 6)- Any 6 raptors caricatures for Rs. 800

Personal Diary (Hard Cover, A5, 150 pages)- Anyraptor on the cover- Rs. 800

T-shirts (White cotton, roundneck; sizes- S,M,L,XL)- Any raptor- Rs. 1300 each

E-mail me on rohanchakcartoonist@gmail.com to order your prints!

Meet each of the raptors here-

Kites, Bazas, Osprey and Honey-Buzzard

Black-shouldered Kite

Brahminy Kite

Black Kite

Red Kite

Osprey

Black Baza

Jerdon's Baza

Oriental Honey-Buzzard

Eagles-

Crested Serpent Eagle

(Crested Serpent Eagle with a treesnake kill)

Great Nicobar Serpent Eagle

Andaman Serpent Eagle

(Andaman Serpent Eagle with a treesnake kill)

Black Eagle

Short-toed Snake Eagle

(Short-toed Snake Eagle with a snake)

White-bellied Sea Eagle 

(White-bellied Sea Eagle with a seasnake)

Pallas' Fish Eagle

Grey-headed Fish Eagle

Lesser Fish Eagle

White-tailed Eagle

Indian Spotted Eagle

Greater Spotted Eagle

Tawny Eagle

Steppe Eagle

Eastern Imperial Eagle

Golden Eagle

(Golden Eagle with a Himalayan Marmot)

Rufous-bellied Eagle

Bonelli's Eagle

Booted Eagle

Changeable Hawk-Eagle

(Changeable or Crested Hawk-Eagle with a Grey Junglefowl kill)

Mountain Hawk-Eagle

(Mountain Hawk-Eagle with a Khalij Pheasant kill)

Legge's Hawk-Eagle

Buzzards-

Upland Buzzard

Common Buzzard

(Common Buzzard with a field mouse kill)

White-eyed Buzzard

(White-eyed Buzzard with a Calotes)

Himalayan Buzzard

Long-legged Buzzard

Sparrowhawks-

Northern Goshawk

(Northern Goshawk eating a Hill Partridge)

Besra

(Besra with a leaf warbler kill)

Crested Goshawk

Shikra

(Shikra with a Blue Rock Pigeon kill)

Eurasian Sparrowhawk

(Eurasian Sparrowhawk with a Common Wood Pigeon kill)

Japanese Sparrowhawk

(Japanese Sparrowhawk with a Mangrove Whistler kill)

Chinese Sparrowhawk

Nicobar Sparrowhawk

Harriers-

Hen Harrier

Western Marsh Harrier

Pallid Harrier

Montagu's Harrier

Pied Harrier

Eastern Marsh Harrier

Falcons-

Amur Falcon

Eurasian Hobby

Oriental Hobby

Collared Falconet

Pied Falconet

Laggar Falcon

(Laggar Falcon with a Spiny-tailed Lizard kill)

Common Kestrel

Lesser Kestrel

Peregrine Falcon

Shaheen Falcon

Saker Falcon

(Saker with Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse)

Red-naped Shaheen

(Red-naped Shaheen with Northern Shoveler)

Red-necked Falcon

(Red-necked Falcon with a sparrow kill)

Sooty Falcon

See the Vultures of India (individual illustrations and compilation) here.

A preview of the raptor wall clock available here on my webstore-