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Walagamaba - the king of Kalagama -20110703_IMG_1645
Image by Dhammika Heenpella / Images of Sri Lanka
In the first night in Kalagama, the three of us along with our tracker had the luxury of sleeping ‘tight’ under starlight in a 6’x6’ guard hut (Massa) built on a tree by an open paddy field. There we had too much of information of the notoriety of Walagamaba. Some of the Walagamba stories which ended in tragic human deaths certainly made my night longer and colder.
After searching for the king for almost two full days, finally we got a phone call from a fellow tracker on the whereabouts. I was excited as a teenager who’s going to watch an ‘adults only’ movie for the first time. With the camera firmly held in my hand, I said “Let’s get out and get this bastard” to myself.
Finally we reached the location and spotted the pachyderm at a time when the pale sun kissing the horizon. Under the fading light we closed in stealthily. We travelled about 200 meters in a path somewhat parallel to the beast’s, leaving a quite comfortable distance between both the animal and the human beings.
At this small open forest patch, the king stopped suddenly and turned his huge head towards us. I was not sure how good its vision was but the bull elephant made sure to lock its eyes on us for a while which turned my enthusiasm in to a fear for life. It humbled me to the core – it indeed was a majestic and fearsome beast.
I agree with Rajiv Welikala. There is no doubt in my mind that Walagamaba has to be the king of the wild tuskers at least in the North Central part of the country. It is not because of his tusks or the strongly built body, extraordinary size or the aggressive behavior it is known for. But the majestic and fearsome look which only a king could possess.
Eyes of the tiger
Image by Swamibu
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A young bengal tiger giving me 'the look' (before lunch) at Shenzhen safari park, China.
Primarily found in India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Tibet, the Bengal tiger is one of the largest and the most common tiger subspecies. They live in a variety of habitats, including grasslands, subtropical and tropical rainforest's, scrub forests, wet and dry deciduous forests and mangroves.
Upto 310cm long, weighing upto 240kgs, it is estimated that there are only 4,500 of these animals left, with around 3,000 of them living in India. This was one of two young tigers, a couple of years old, looking at us (licking their teeth!) as we walked past!
