Writer: Dr. Oishimaya Sen Nag
To most of us, the name crocodile rings an alarm bell – an animal to be only observed from a respectable distance and never to be approached. Our fear is not totally baseless, however. Crocs are one of the toughest organisms on the planet that have survived and evolved over a longer time than many extant species. Crocodilians like muggers and saltwater crocs are apex predators of their aquatic ecosystem, designed to kill any animal that dare enter their territory. Yet, in this Anthropocene era, these reptilians are suffering greatly, with some species like the gharial being “critically endangered.” They, too, need to be protected now, and what better than an entire festival dedicated to the crocodilians? Yes, recently, a festival devoted to Crocs was organized in Nepal. Let us take a tour of this unique event through this article, but first, we must know the crocodilians that call Nepal home.
The Mugger And The Gharial
The “Vulnerable” mugger (Crocodylus palustris) and the “Critically Endangered” gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) are the two crocodilians found in Nepal. In Chitwan, the life-giving waters of the Narayani and Rapti river systems are home to these reptiles. Although they are both crocodilians, they are vastly different, both in appearance and behaviour.
Male gharials have a pot-like protrusion on their snout that resembles a ghara or pot, hence the name of the species. This feature is entirely absent in muggers. Gharials have long and thin snouts to feed only on fish, while muggers are ready to rip and bite off any species for a meal!
While gharials are only found in free-flowing waterbodies, muggers also score higher here with their ability to inhabit both rivers and stagnant water bodies like large ponds and lakes. Muggers can also climb up higher mudbanks and go some distance inland to nest or bask, but gharials’ movement outside waters is confined to the low-lying sand banks or sand bars in rivers.
Thus, the gharials’ extremely specific needs make them more threatened than the muggers, but we humans have spared neither species. Dam construction, overfishing, pollution, drainage of water bodies for human needs, mining and quarrying activities along the river banks, poaching, etc., are only some of the many threats to these crocodilians.
However, although these crocodilians deserve the conservation spotlight, they get very little of it, given the general apathy of the people towards these reptilians. The Nepal Crocodile Conservation Fair comes to the rescue to change this perception.
All About The Nepal Crocodile Conservation Fair
A two-day event, the Nepal Crocodile Conservation Fair, was held on the 8th and 9th of December, 2023, by the ‘Care For Nature,’ an NGO dedicated to conserving the gharials and mugger crocodiles in Chitwan. The event was first started in 2022 to create awareness about the conservation of crocodilians among local communities, students, government and non-government conservation organizations, and other stakeholders.
“As herpetofauna never comes to the limelight, this conservation festival was held to bring the focus on herpetofauna like the threatened gharials and muggers of Nepal, and encourage stakeholders to speed up conservation efforts to save the species,” said Bishal Neupane, co-ordinator of the Nepal Crocodile Conservation Fair.
On the morning of the first day of the event this year, the festival team arranged a clean-up drive along the banks of a river to highlight the need for a clean, unpolluted river ecosystem to support the survival of the crocodilians. The rest of the day was spent teaching the importance of crocodilians to the future of Nepal, the schoolchildren. Quiz sessions, art competitions, and engrossing games were all employed to educate the students, and prizes were given out to the best performers in the competitive events.
The second day was equally, if not more, exciting. A conservation rally was held where many indigenous communities like the Tharu, Tamang, Bote, Chamar, and others took part, displaying posters, voicing slogans, singing songs, performing dances – all celebrating the presence of crocodilians and raising awareness about the need to conserve them! The Mainaha Playground, Chitrasari, Chitwan, was the end point of the rally and the main venue of the festival.
The scene at the venue was a charming one, with rows of stalls, local communities crowding the place in their vibrant traditional costumes, and many young students brimming with excitement at the opportunity to learn about the enigmatic Crocs! Tourists also filled the venue as Chitwan is one of Nepal’s best wildlife-viewing destinations.
The stalls focussed on providing valuable information and insights to the visitors about crocodilians and other herpetofauna of the region. For example, fishing equipment that threaten gharials was on display.
To add fun to learning, there were also stalls selling local handicrafts and mouthwatering traditional cuisines. The best part was the face painting stall, where one could get colourful paintings of Crocs and other herpetofauna on their faces. Songs, dances, and dramas promoting the cause of conservation of crocodilians were performed and attended by a massive crowd.
The event also celebrated and acknowledged local conservation heroes who work day and night to save the gharials and muggers. The famous Nepali zoologist and conservationist Professor Karan Bahadur Shah was awarded the National Conservation Hero Award to recognize his immense contribution to wildlife conservation.
In the end, the event was a huge success, acting as a voice for the voiceless crocodilians and allowing the message of conservation to reach far and wide, especially among the youth – the future conservation leaders of the country.
