A RESPLENDENT EXPERIENCE WITH RENJITH HADLEE

In September I undertook a rather interesting journey to the wilds of South India. The focus wasn't tigers or even elephants, but something much smaller and absolutely stunning - frogs, both big and small in the company of a gentleman who curates it, with responsible tourism & awareness creation being the base of it all. Let's meet - Renjith Hadlee.

- Bhavna Menon

What exactly is meant by the term 'herping?' Can you give our readers an insight into your journey into the world of frogs and snakes? As a founder of a tourism outfit, what are the practices you follow while exploring such fragile species?

The act of exploring regions with a good population of amphibians and reptiles has been termed 'Herping.' Herping is popular in countries around the world and is slowly gaining momentum in India. With research in amphibians and reptiles getting popular, the number of herpetologists or people studying them is also increasing. I too acquired the basic knowledge of herping from researchers who I have guided in the past 7-8 years and developed my knowledge on the same by regularly going out at night on the field to understand the behaviour, habitat and importance of these tiny creatures. As I spent more and more time in the company of these wonderful creatures, I started considering the idea of introducing the world of microfauna to people which is when we introduced 'Herping in Munnar' as a part of one of the mainstream activities of our travel company 'Resplendent Experiences' named after the critically endangered resplendent bush frog. During our herping tours, we try our best to photograph and observe the species with minimal disturbances. Whenever possible, we try out best to shoot them in their natural habitat and behaviour without any external influence to suit our needs. Also during our trips with amateur enthusiasts, we orient them about the importance of the species and their role in maintaining the equilibrium of nature.