Out in the wild

Meet Subhashini Krishnan, wildlife biologist, who lives a nomadic life following dogs, foxes and wolves.

Out in the wild

“States, countries, boundaries, religion, gender, social status … all these become redundant when one thinks of Nature as one entity that our planet needs to revere and acknowledge,” believes Subhashini Krishnan, a 23-year-old wildlife biologist from Coimbatore.

Subhashini, who has a fellowship from the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun, to study the impact of free-ranging dogs on wildlife, especially wolves and foxes, in Ladakh, did a B.Sc. in Advanced Zoology and Biotechnology from Coimbatore and, for field work experience, interned with Nature Conservation Foundation. Her goal was a master’s at the WII, which opens only once in two years.

“I had a year free after graduation, so I volunteered at the Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History in Anaikatti and used the year to learn more and prepare for the National Entrance Test.” While one has to have done science in class XI and XII to pursue a master’s in Wildlife Science, Subhashini points out that the WII has introduced a master’s degree in Heritage Conservation and Management which is open to students from all academic backgrounds.

Sightings

She bubbles over when talking about her life in Ladakh and sightings of animals like black-neck cranes, wolves, foxes, Pallas cats and more. “Everyone I knew thought I was mad to go there in the winter,” she admits, “but people have been living there for so many years. I just had to follow their lifestyle and would be fine,” she shrugs.

Subhashini lives in Hanle, a village in the Changthang region of Ladakh. Here, she follows dogs, foxes and wolves around. “The wolf is called shankhu in Ladakhi and the people call me the ‘shankhu lady’. They are well networked, so, I got all the reports I needed. But I kept getting asked, ‘Did you get posted here as punishment?’ They just couldn’t believe I came here of my volition.”

When she talks about her sightings, her face lights up and her excitement is palpable. “I had just one sighting of the Pallas cat — a five-second one — in the 4.5 months I lived there,” she says, making it sound like she has spotted a superstar. And then her special animal: the wolf. “My first sighting was a five-member pack, known locally as the horse hunters. Usually, the wolves hunt goat or sheep but this pack is different. Then there’s this lone female,” she has a dreamy look, as she says, “I watched her feed for around three hours and was as close as 40 metres. I crawled closer and closer till she retreated. Then I knew that she wouldn’t take any more.”

What does it take to be a wildlife scientist? “One has to be at home in all places — dense forests, riverine areas, deserts, mountains, seas, villages, tribal settlements, and cities,” pat comes the answer. “Be ready to live without network and connectivity and with just bare necessities. The job is nomadic, so build social ties wherever you go and make an extra effort to maintain familial ones. Work on being mentally and physically fit. Most important, build an innate respect for all life and a curiosity for the happenings of the world.”

Necessary qualities for research

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