Leopards Lair Bera Resort (Leopards Lair Bera Resort)

Leopards Lair Bera Resort (Leopards Lair Bera Resort): "Leopards Lair Bera Resort"

CATS BEHAVIOUR EXTRAORDINARY MT.ABU

Big Kali Offspring of Mao

Makeshift kittens grave
From the day my bitter half brought Mao into this house cats have become a part and parcel of my life. Today Mao is a Great, Great- grandmother to over a dozen and a half kittens. Big Kali one of Mao’s off spring the other day astounded all of us by going out of her way to bury one of her kittens that had died during the night. Unfortunately I wasn’t there to witness this extraordinary behaviour of this cat. The folks at home who witnessed this strange behaviour of Kali were just too stunned.
I’ve known of cats eating their young ones at the time of birth. Cats seem to sense which of their young ones want make in this eat dog eat world of ours, hence they do away with these weak or unfit offspring as a matter of natural selection for the survival of the others..
The kitten died during the night probably because it was too feeble and could not compete with the other two for the mother’s milk. In the morning when Kali did not turn up for her meal the servant went to her box to find out why she had not turned up, it was then she discovered the dead kitten. She then went in to report the mishap to Liz.
When the servant went to get rid of the dead kitten she was surprised to see Kali carrying off the dead kitten and heading for the bushes in the compound. She followed the cat at a distance and was surprised to see the cat digging away at the soft earth near our lime tree. She ran back to tell everyone in the house. The folks watched as Kali made a sizeable hole and to their surprise and astonishment she placed the dead kitten in it and then proceeded to cover it up with the mud she had dug out, she then placed some broken pieces of wood over the makeshift grave probably to camouflage it from other predators.
Never have I heard or witnessed this kind of behaviour from any one regarding cats burying their dead. Have You?

INDEPENDENCE DAY Gate way of Mount Abu Bursting

Mount Abu straining with the influx of thousands of tourists.

JANMASHTAMI, as predicted, saw thousands of tourists thronging the streets of Mount Abu. The steady stream of traffic from early morning till late into the night posed a herculean task for the medical team and the staff at the Toll barrier. A very large percentage of those who made their way into our home town had never heard of the expression Swine flu.
I shot the Video above on the 15th of August 2009. I was on my way to the Leopard’s Lair Resort Bera, to meet my old friend and companion Thakur Devi Singh. I really wonder how long each tourist had to wait before he saw the pearly gates of this paradise of ours.

On my return today, from hearsay I gathered that hundreds of tourists had to return for lack of accommodation. I believe that Abu Road at the base of the hill landed with this unexpected windfall of tourists.
Today there was a mass exodus of these gracious guests of ours some with happy memories others well, not so happy ones of this unique hill station Mount Abu the hill covered in GREEN, its monsoon cloak.

Traffic on Independent Day

Plummy on a misty day

Hillsides cloaked in green

Mount Abu - STAY ALERT! PREVENT AGAINST INFLUENZA A- H1N1 SWINE FLUE

This is the second time in Abu’s recent history that Abu has geared up to greet all tourists with a team of medical doctors and fully fledged staff at the Abu gateway. The first time it was when the rat plague was declared at Surat. Tourist to escape the impending epidemic there made a beeline for the Abode of the gods a safe heaven. Today and the next two days Abu is expected to house thousands of tourists as two very important holidays coupled with a Sunday have fallen together. JANMASHTHAMI a big Hindu festival where the birth of Lord Krishna is celebrated has fallen on the 14th followed by India’s Independent Day.
This is one of Abu’s biggest gateway holiday for our Guajarati brethren, Abu during this time of the year becomes so overcrowded that it sometimes fails to accommodate the volume of tourists that head this way. Today I made it a point to take a drive down to Monkey temple in the hope of snapping some reed warblers along the way and to observe the inflow of the impending traffic that should be heading for this paradise of ours.
I did not witness the volume of expected traffic as predicted probably because of the fear of the dreaded Influenza A (H1N1) Swine flu, that is spreading apparently at an alarming rate in some parts of our country. Yesterday a meeting was held at the Global hospital by prominent members of the Abu officers, the medical fraternity and denizens of this hill station. It was decided that total precautions be taken to dispel fear and trounce rumors, that might arise with the influx of tourists.
Tourists should be requested to comply and co-operate in our endeavor to make this heaven of ours a safe place by going through routine screening at our entry point, if a tourist is ill he should immediately take help offered by our medical help line.
Locals have been advised to avoid crowds, and if suffering from flue like symptoms to remain at home. Tomorrow if I don’t hear the steady drone of vehicles down my road I will conclude that the tourists have taken the necessary precaution of staying at home and adhering to the old adage of our forefathers.
“Prevention is better than cure”. But the festival of JANMASHTHAMI is far bigger than any epidemic, so I know tomorrow Abu will be bursting at its seams before I retire let me conclude with

WISHING ALL A JOYOUS
JANMASHTHAMI!

Birds of Mount Abu Phase IV

Asian Paradise flycatcher fledgling

Asian Paradise flycatcher
Oriental Honey Buzzard Immature.


Oriental Honey Buzzard Immature.


Oriental Honey Buzzard Immature.


White-throated Kingfisher


Golden Oriole

Golden Oriel

Golden Oriole
Grey Heron

Indian Pond Heron

Pied cuckoo

Pied cuckoo in flight

I know I haven’t posted in a while, but life has been so hectic for the past month and a half. Kid’s Mid-Term examination, coupled with getting my new premises into shape has left me feeling dull and drab as the monsoon season this year. To make matter worse I attended a medical camp hosted by the LIONS Club Mount Abu at the Global Research Hos[ital.. Regular tests were conducted by the team of experts from Delhi. I was tested for my deteriorating heart condition, and was told to make a trip into Delhi for further examination.
I went to my family doctor and showed him my results .He barged into me and did not mince words, “Ains you are to immediately leave for the heart specialist, your life is hanging by a thread” Words of doom. I promised him I would leave in a day or so and do the needful. I have already been under two angiographies and the thought of undergoing another or a possible by-pass left me in a quandary.
Here I’m on the threshold of becoming a senior citizen and the thought of starting life with a stint or a by-pass certainly does not appeal to me. I was left with no choice but to make a trip into Ahmadabad and meet my heart specialist Dr. Samir Dani.
On August the 1st I presented myself before his panel of experts, blood tests, ECG and eco were conducted on me. Later I was called to the office and Dr.Dani after examining all my reports pronounced the verdict, “Ains you are to change your life style, right now it’s your liver that need attention more than your heart” while talking to me he suddenly recalled, he had to speak to my family Dr. On ringing my Dr, and apprising him of my condition, he was told that he was to do an angiography on me immediately. I told Dr. Dani I was happy to go with his former verdict and if the need arose I would personally come down for the angiography. He agreed and told me to make a trip to his hospital on the 21th of this month.
I spent another three days in Ahmadabad doing some shopping for my bitter half and simply lazing it out and contemplating what immediate changes I would make in my lifestyle………