Andrew Chick Ecology

Our next destination was the Little Rann of Kutch, where we had booked a few nights at the luxurious Rann Riders Resort—an oasis of tranquility amid India’s daily chaos. We arranged a couple of safaris around the Gujarat Wild Ass Sanctuary, which turned out to be an incredible experience. The sanctuary is home to beautiful, cappuccino-colored wild asses and hundreds of bird species. In just one day, we spotted 144 species including Variable Wheatears, three species of harriers, and thousands of pink flamingos. Here’s a link to my checklist from a three-hour jeep ride: https://ebird.org/checklist/S210229013

On the outskirts of the sanctuary, we stopped to observe local families working salt pans . These families live in makeshift tents, eking out a living in the remote and host wilderness. Despite their tough circumstances, they appeared genuinely content and were grateful when we shared our leftover (egg heavy ) safari breakfast— including egg parathas, egg sandwiches, and boiled eggs, all accompanied by steaming masala chai.

We also visited the Nayakpur Saran Wetland, perhaps one of the most remarkable wetland areas I’ve ever seen. Tragically, local government development is slowly encroaching on the habitat, systematically one block at a time. Tens of thousands of cranes, wildfowl, and waders are losing their home—a sobering reminder of the fragile balance between nature and the never ending pressure of expanding humanity….