‘Migrant’ Duo Wild Bison Have Come To Town! Covid-19 Lockdown Giving Control of City Back into Nature’s Hands
Mangaluru: While the migrant workers/labourers are packing off and leaving Mangaluru to their hometowns, on the other hand, we have ‘Migrant’ wild animals leaving the forest and invading the nearby cities, during the Covid-19 lockdown- and one such Migrant Wild animal is a ‘Wild Bison’ spotted early this morning ( Tuesday, 5 May) in the Alake area, near Vishal Nursing Home, Mangaluru. At around 10.30 am, it was learnt there was one more Wild Bison spotted near warehouse, in Mannagudda, Mangaluru.
With people across India and elsewhere locked down in homes due to the coronavirus, the peaceful reclamation of public spaces by animals is teaching us important lesson. After India’s lockdown, in many places around the country, even in Kodagu areas, elephants have invaded the town, and other places around Madikeri various other wild animals have been spotted, and the residents are gone into fear, after these animals have reclaimed public spaces again. As soon as humans emptied the streets, animals took over. And not just in India, we have seen and read in the media, from the US to France, Italy to Japan, Poland to England, animals have truly come out of the wild.
It is a lesson in the human-wildlife conflict that tells us how we have occupied their spaces — and how animals reclaim them the first chance they get. Perhaps it’s the nature’s way to bring balance in biodiversity and give back to other species what we have forcibly taken from them. These animals being spotted on the Indian streets are not running around aggressively, damaging public property or causing harm to anyone — traits that humans have been quick to point out to justify the need to demarcate these spaces and term the wild animals as ‘intruders’.
But with us deciding to stay at home due to the threat of coronavirus, the peaceful reclamation of public spaces by animals shows who the real intruders are. While embracing an aggressive, ‘development-driven’ lifestyle, we have altered the natural surroundings, keeping our needs and desires as the reference points. So just like we go out to the grocery stores or shops to buy food and essentials when needed; similarly these animals due to lack of food since not many people/tourists out there who used to offer or throw away left overs, are desperately come into public spaces in search of their food- or when they are kept in a zoo but press the panic button, some monkeys land on our rooftops or a rhino shows up at some human settlement.
But India isn’t the only country under lockdown. And that’s why animals world over is rejoicing the newfound freedom and extra space to move around. Several videos of wild animals strolling around the city streets have surfaced on social media- and there are a bunch of such videos on my WhatsApp. The message is clear: animals love the quiet and a world free of human presence. And here we have this Wild Bison on a “Non-Tourist Visa” strolling into the City, and pro-photographer Manju Neereshwallya had captured some lovely pictures and few video shots, which he has generously shared with Mangalorean.com.
Speaking to Team Mangalorean, Manju said, “This morning around 6.30 am, the dogs in the Alake vicinity near Vishal Nursing Home started to bark loudly, and when the residents came out of panic, were surprised to a strange guest in their neighbourd, which happened to be a wild bison- and it kept running out of fear when it saw the people and dogs chasing behind it. From Alake area, the bison was seen running on M G Road towards Hat Hill, and was last seen around 10 am near Bejai Kapikad. Forest department officials were informed, and they are trying their best to catch this wild beast. No damage to property or human beings has been reported until now”.
In conclusion, the coronavirus lockdown is a lesson for humans to rethink their relationship with nature. Researchers have shown how humans are inviting new diseases upon themselves by expanding into the wilderness and closing the gap with other species. A study found that “some 60 per cent of the new diseases that crop up around the globe each year are zoonotic — meaning they come from domesticated animals or wildlife.” The Covid-19 is also a zoonotic disease, with the virus purportedly coming from the wet markets of Wuhan, China, primarily because the Chinese have never really regulated their illegal black markets for live animal trading. Perhaps that’s why the markets in Wuhan have reopened after a two-month lockdown. Animals are being butchered and sold again.
Under such circumstances, can humans blame the animals? It is ironic that to fight a virus that came from the animals, humans are looking for a vaccine again with the help of animals. The Chinese government has prescribed using ‘Tan Re Quing’ — an injection containing bear bile — for the treatment of Covid-19. China’s hunt for a vaccine will eventually hurt India’s wildlife species in the northeast region. Clearly, humans haven’t learnt the lessons yet.
It remains to be seen how things are going to change once the lockdown is over. We will get back to our daily routines. Thousands of vehicles will flock the roads, and the animals would be forced to retreat to the wild and their sanctuaries and zoos. There is a possibility human-animal conflicts might increase if they get used to a human-free environment. But if the coronavirus lockdown has told us anything, it’s this: the human-wildlife interaction needs to change. We need to be more inclusive, make laws keeping in mind the ecological aspect or at least not interfere with nature’s way of functioning. We might claim to be missing nature, and nature surely isn’t missing us.
Photos and Videos by : Manju Neereshwallya
