This year in the month of February, I visited Little Rann of Kutch with my family. After visiting Gir, I was damn excited to head to Little
Rann, the only and last habitat of Indian Wild Ass.
In case you don’t know, Little Rann of Kutch is a huge
marshland of salt in western India. The Little Rann of Kutch, Great Rann and
Banni grasslands are located in Kutch district and stretched over 30,000 sq.
km. It is well known as the last and only refuge to Khur “Indian Wild Ass” in
the world. The government has announced it the Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary for
its conservation. This bleak landscape is an ecologically vital landscape and
bio-diverse area for its wildlife. You can spot a lot of migratory and local
water bids in winters. If you are getting here in summer, bear in mind that it
is one of the hottest regions in India. The temperature soars around 41°C in
summer and peaks up to 49.5°C. On the other side, it drops to 0 °C in winter.
We started our journey on Friday morning from Ahmedabad. Our
stay was located around 130 km from the city. There are different ways to
access this desert area. We reached the camp by 2PM when our tummies were
growling. We halted at our vivid round shaped huts, got fresh and prepared for
lunch. The hotel staff served lunch. After having lunch, we returned back to
our rooms for some rest. At 4.30PM, we had to leave our accommodation for
evening safari.
After driving a few kilometers, we found the artificial
white salt mounds. From the salt pans, the salt is deposited and goes to the
factory for processing. A lot of dumpers and tractors carry it along. We
spotted Nilgai in the bushes somewhere around a few meters away. Nilgais are a
bit taller than goats. India has over 6 types of antelopes and Nilgai is the
one found here. Others are Gazelle (known for their curvy and long horns),
Sambar, Spotted deers, Black Buck and Chinkara.
Finally on the next stop, we found a herd of Wild Ass around
a few meters away. They have vast brown spots on white skin. You can spot the
males with their hide’s color. The females have whiter hides than that of
males. These animals can survive in extreme temperatures of the desert. The
temperature reaches over 49 degrees C in summer. The camp opens only from
October to mid of March. We got to know that Asian Wild Ass has three varieties
along with Indian Wild Ass. And three of them are found in Persia, Turkey, and
Mongolia.
Next day, we left the camp around 12 PM and had a buffet
lunch at a restaurant. Finally, we reached Ahmedabad by evening.
Phone: +918010450000
Email: info@asianadventures.in
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