Swimming and Sleeping Snakes

In the recent rains invariably snakes were seen swimming on or swept along the flowing water of storm drains. They are washed away from their cryptic crevices by the flood water and transmigrated to a new habitat; they visit thus near human dwellings in rainy season.
In Winter snakes (like The Little Indian Snake) sleep under small rocks. It seems they don't want to get out in cold climate - indicating that they are cold-blooded. At early mornings, as the day warms up, they get out and go on hunting to appease their hunger. You could hear the preyed upon frog or rat squeak on being devoured by them! (Here a better example could be the Rat snake).
At full moon days, it is said that the snakes become romantic! And so both male and females can be seen at night-time of these days, increasing the probability of seeing a snake (or a pair).

The Weird Rainy Season of South India

In India the North East monsoon rains end usually in the first week of January itself, each year. But this year it appears to continue further after two months gap - in this March. Generally the weather in South India, from January to April, will be dry, and chill to warm. Due to the rains the March is wet and cold now unusually! Yesterday night (21st March, a full moon day) it rained when there was moonlight!
As the previous monsoon brought inadequate rains, is it now a deferred compensatory raining? Or is it due to the newly started Solar cycle? Why does this happen? I wonder so about the Nature's weird ways of influencing the weather of the Earth!

The Wonder in Golden Shower Tree Sapling

I transplanted a six months old sapling of Golden shower tree. But its tap root tip had been 'left out' in the earth when it was dug out. It shriveled up in two days.
I persevered with transplanting: another sapling was transplanted (with the tap root intact) on the same spot again. The leaves of this sapling also dried down as happened before and fell off leaving a stick-like stem. But I didn't lose hope. I watered it on and on though I didn't see any change in it. Later I came to a conclusion that this too has become a failure. But I still watered it. On one day I saw the 'stick' to bear tiny greenish buds of tender leaves - after a month! I wondered about the Nature's in-built avidity to survive in this tree.

The customs of the West and the East

In the month of April a religious festival is being conducted yearly in Tamil Nadu state of India. It is called 'Mariamman Panguni Pongal.' During this festival the Goddess, Sri Muthumariamman (of Aruppukottai) is worshipped with much devotion and fervor. Children too exhibit their devotion towards the Goddess: they smear their body and face in black and white spots of soot and lime. Then they go in groups to all the houses in their town reciting a song that overwhelms the occupants with devotion to the Goddess. They end the song with a request to give coins to buy materials and propitiate the Goddess at Her temple. If they are not 'treated' with the coins, they go on repeating the song refusing to move away - the 'trick' to get their 'treat'! Yes, it is akin to the 'Trick- or- Treat' played by the children in USA during the fun festival, Halloween Day!
Here in Tamil Nadu, a newly built house has always a white pumpkin painted with a face of a demon and hung in its portico - to ward off the 'evil spirits' and the 'evil eye', that too reminds the Halloween Day!
These customs still linger on, though modified in form and content, carried over from continent to continent for ages!

Nature's selection of Plants and Animals in a Year

Pictures of Plants and Animals






NATURE selects and promotes only a certain type of plants or animals in a year. This phenomenon depends upon environmental conditions, such as local rainfall, weather, climate and the fertility of both the soil and the living things. In the past five years period it has been found in my South Indian backyard that in a given year only a type of wild flowering plant grows more in abundance dominating on other plants. But this dominating nature didn’t continue so in the next following year: another plant dominated! Likewise in animals, for example, the frogs, different varieties of them were promoted in a year like one of our common frog or tiger frog or tree frog. Similarly, within arthropods, spiders or scorpions (arachnids) and butterflies or bugs (insects) dominated. Another aspect was also noticed: in reptiles, one of these like either lizards or snakes was promoted to breed profusely in a year. The next year another CLASS of animal kingdom among Classes of animals or within their Families or Species dominated. Even disease producing bacteria or viruses are promoted in a similar manner. So, it can be deduced here that diseases affecting man are also ‘preferred and promoted’ by Nature each year! The best example was seen here in the year 2006, when Chikungunya disease affected many people. It was due to the promotion of an Arbo virus (alpha type 1) (and also its virus carrying mosquito, Aedes egyptii naturally)!

Egret's ingenious way of preying upon

Egrets catch fish in ponds in an ingenious way. They stand still in the shallow waters. Then they lift up one of their legs slightly and move it inside water from side to side repeatedly. This agitates the water and the mud on the pond's floor. The fish lurking come out to the water surface. The egrets catch them quickly with their yellow beaks!

The Hill of the Supreme Being

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                                                             

Being present in the sylvan beauty that is enclosed between the tops of four hills must be enchanting and exciting, isn’t it? The place on this earth referred to is called ‘MAHALINGA MALAI’ (it is in Southern Tamilnadu of India). Cut off totally from the rest of the world, there it will be great to enjoy the company of trees and plants, birds and animals & the devotees and their prayers to SIVA, the Hindu God of these hills! The mantra chanted everywhere on the hills is: “Sivayea nama Om”

Up the hills to the abode of the god:

The hills have to be ascended up by walking and climbing through the paths surrounded by many medicinal plants, trees and streams, and dotted with small worshiping sites for minor deities here and there. The path is occasionally seen strewn with scats of bears. Monkeys follow you for the snacks you carry. Jungle fowl strays out near the path sometimes.

The tiredness of ascending is blown out by the hospitality received from the devotees when we reach the Mahalinga malai temple: the devotees provide us resting spots and give free food as these services to the worshipers are equaled to the services to the God.

The elephants too worship the God:

It is said elephants come to the shrines of SIVA when the humans are absent, and pray the God by offering flowers! I wonder whether we humans have interfered much their praying duties! I think that why we should not allot for them certain period of the year for their free prayers?

On the hills one can even go for trekking higher up the hills to their tops with the guidance of experienced devotees. Note that nobody resides on the hills except Siddhars! All devotees descend down after praying the God. It is a wonder everywhere on the Mahalinga malai having always wonderful experiences at each time of the trip to be told to the folks at the plains!

Gene Studies

(1) The study of the faulty gene in Type 1 Diabetes patients leading to finding it as a risk factor to people in the development of the disease.
(2) Tampering the gene content in mouse to study its sexual behavior by its organ in the nose.
(3) Identification of gene that causes the visual disorder, Glaucoma.
These reported gene studies in the dailies are quite interesting. But when will they be put into more practical use for improvement, development and cure?

The Wise and Benevolent Plant

Insects aid plants in pollination. Some plants avoid interference to this insect pollination: The Passion vine plant (Passiflora incarnata) produces nectar at the base of each leaf for ants that may interfere! This distraction also has another advantage: the plant is guarded by these ants round the clock! Really it is a WONDER in the Nature!

This plant exhibits a peculiar phenomenon. Its flowers bloom overnight and close at forenoon as soon as sun's rays heat them! This also happens even when the flowers are plucked and kept in the shadow!

Read and view about it in:

Passion vine