Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Buddhism and science
Buddhism and science
Creation... and The End of the World
I did a little research on the question raised yesterday in a comment by Mark, a student at Drury University in Springfield, Missouri, where I curated an exhibition and lectured last fall. His question (read it in full in yesterday's "Comments" section) was about the creation. If there were no deity to perform the act, he asked, how was it done--and why?
I was interested in Mark's question because, in fact, I had given little thought to the matter and was ill-informed about Buddhist thinking about the origins of the universe. As it turned out, this was no great surprise, since the Buddha clearly discouraged speculation on the subject, as he appears to have done most frequently with the great unknowables. One answer I came up, however, was in an essay by one A.L. DeSilva in an essay on the website,Buddhism Today:
"Buddhism says little on this subject," writes DeSilva, "and for a very good reason. The aim of Buddhism is to develop wisdom and compassion and thereby attain Nirvana. Knowing how the universe began can contribute nothing to this task." DeSilva continues with this story from the Buddhist texts:
A good story. One of the appealing things about the Buddha is that he told a good story--at least to judge from the reports of those who carried them in memory and those who eventually wrote them down. It bothers me that Evangelicals spend so much time and effort agonizing over the beginning and the end of the world. I suppose it's because their concern is with what they believe to be the eternal soul, and what will happen to it after death. In this light, the Buddhist concept of rebirth seems infinitely more expansive and humane. Do-overs, to me, are definitely preferable to eternal damnation--a fate which Evangelicals tell me I must expect if I'm not "reborn in Christ."
In any event, to believe in the literal word of the Bible on the subject of creation despite centuries of empirical scientific evidence seems to me willfully obtuse. The Buddha would surely shrug off that kind of ignorance. As for the end of the world, the Armageddon that Evangelical Christians like to wave like a warning cudgel--and which they appear to embrace in the belief that they alone will be spared... well, I like the incisive, playful irony of Robert Frost:
Wise words written in 1920. And of course, there's always the anticlimax T.S.Eliot offers in The Hollow Men:
(My thanks to Michael Davis at Michael's Scribblings for reminding me of these two visions!)
So what would the Buddha say? I think he'd say simply, don't bother your head about the things you can never know. Take heed of the present moment, and put your efforts into developing that wisdom and compassion. As for the origin of the world, as DeSilva nicely puts it at the end of his short essay: "Buddhism concentrates on helping us solve the practical problems of living - it does not encourage useless speculation. And if a Buddhist did wish to know how and when the universe began he would ask a scientist."
I was interested in Mark's question because, in fact, I had given little thought to the matter and was ill-informed about Buddhist thinking about the origins of the universe. As it turned out, this was no great surprise, since the Buddha clearly discouraged speculation on the subject, as he appears to have done most frequently with the great unknowables. One answer I came up, however, was in an essay by one A.L. DeSilva in an essay on the website,Buddhism Today:
"Buddhism says little on this subject," writes DeSilva, "and for a very good reason. The aim of Buddhism is to develop wisdom and compassion and thereby attain Nirvana. Knowing how the universe began can contribute nothing to this task." DeSilva continues with this story from the Buddhist texts:
Once a man demanded that the Buddha tell him how the universe began. The Buddha said to him "You are like a man who has been shot with a poison arrow and who, when the doctor comes to remove it, says 'Wait! Before the arrow is removed I want to know the name of the man who shot it, what clan he comes from, which village he was born in. I want to know what type of wood his bow is made from, what feathers are on the end of the arrow, how long the arrows are, etc etc etc.' That man would die before all these questions could be answered. My job is to help you to remove the arrow of suffering from yourself." (Majjhima Nikaya Sutta No. 63)
A good story. One of the appealing things about the Buddha is that he told a good story--at least to judge from the reports of those who carried them in memory and those who eventually wrote them down. It bothers me that Evangelicals spend so much time and effort agonizing over the beginning and the end of the world. I suppose it's because their concern is with what they believe to be the eternal soul, and what will happen to it after death. In this light, the Buddhist concept of rebirth seems infinitely more expansive and humane. Do-overs, to me, are definitely preferable to eternal damnation--a fate which Evangelicals tell me I must expect if I'm not "reborn in Christ."
In any event, to believe in the literal word of the Bible on the subject of creation despite centuries of empirical scientific evidence seems to me willfully obtuse. The Buddha would surely shrug off that kind of ignorance. As for the end of the world, the Armageddon that Evangelical Christians like to wave like a warning cudgel--and which they appear to embrace in the belief that they alone will be spared... well, I like the incisive, playful irony of Robert Frost:
SOME say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To know that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.
Wise words written in 1920. And of course, there's always the anticlimax T.S.Eliot offers in The Hollow Men:
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
This is the way the world ends
Not with a bang but a whimper.
(My thanks to Michael Davis at Michael's Scribblings for reminding me of these two visions!)
So what would the Buddha say? I think he'd say simply, don't bother your head about the things you can never know. Take heed of the present moment, and put your efforts into developing that wisdom and compassion. As for the origin of the world, as DeSilva nicely puts it at the end of his short essay: "Buddhism concentrates on helping us solve the practical problems of living - it does not encourage useless speculation. And if a Buddhist did wish to know how and when the universe began he would ask a scientist."
..................................................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................................................................
Buddhism and Modern Science by Dr. Granville Dharmawardena, University of Colombo"Buddha is the greatest scientist in the history of mankind." I have often heard this at bana sermons. This is completely wrong. Scientists are people who are constrained to work solely within and accept only, the knowledge generated by the scientific method. They generally reject knowledge generated by the other method. The Buddha did not use the scientific method and therefore he is not a scientist. Of the two methods of acquiring knowledge available to the human being the Buddha used the right brain centered intuition method, where as the western approach to acquiring knowledge used the left brain method. The Buddha trained his mind to an extreme high state of enlightenment (Buddhahood) from where he could understand the true reality of nature in its totality. It is based on such knowledge that he propounded a philosophy which is most conducive to balanced and happy living which leads to living in harmony with others, living in harmony with nature, meaningful living devoid of stress, anxiety, jealousy and empty pride, ultimately ending up in a meaningful state full of bliss. That was over 2500 years ago. Science began much later. Science is often explained as systematic formulated knowledge. It is knowledge needed to understand the phenomena that we observe and those that influence our lives. For the early man science represented a cumulative process of increasing knowledge and ability to understand what is around him. It also meant a sequence of victories over ignorance and superstition. During the time of the Buddha, science was still speculative explanation of common sense observations by intellectuals who devoted much of their time for thinking and understanding natural phenomena. Science helped to develop technology essential for producing things needed to make life more comfortable. During the seventeenth century the French Mathematician Rene Des Cartes restricted the scope of science to only what is material by bifurcating the universe as matter (res extensa) and mind (res cogitans) and limiting science to the study of the former. The science that evolved on the basis of Cartesian bifurcation was confined to material objects within the limits of perception of human sensory organs which are unable to perceive anything that extended beyond three spatial dimensions. The above constraints on science stood on the way of achieving its desired objective of understanding the true reality of nature, because nature and natural phenomena are neither confined to matter nor to three spatial dimensions. Many of the important phenomena of nature therefore happened to be outside the scope of science. Science, nevertheless, has provided enormous material benefits to mankind. Therefore people all over the world have very high confidence in science and accept anything explained to them in terms of science. The ultimate aim of science is understanding the true reality of nature, minimizing human suffering and making human beings happy by way of providing material comforts.The Buddha's way of acquiring knowledge by intuition was not subject to the limitations that stifled science and therefore unlike science the knowledge that the Buddha acquired is complete and represents the true reality of nature. This is confirmed by over 2500 years of experience. For this reason the Buddha did not have any grey areas that need to be hidden under a cloud of imaginary superhuman force. Just as in science Buddhism does not require its followers to have dogmatic belief in anything that the Buddha taught. The Buddha advised people not to blindly accept what he taught, but research on them for themselves before accepting. For this reason his teachings have remained unaltered and valid for all times and under all circumstances. While the knowledge the Buddha acquired represents the true reality of nature, what scientists aspire to understand as the ultimate destination of the scientific method, is also the same true reality of nature. While the goal of the teachings of the Buddha is elimination of human suffering and making human beings happy and contented by way of training their minds and creating self discipline in them, the goal of science is providing mankind with material comforts. In 1905 Albert Einstein broke through the three dimensional barrier in science and took the scope of science beyond three spatial dimensions and Des Cartes restrictions. This enabled man to aspire for a more realistic view of nature and natural phenomena through the scientific method. Modern twentieth century science that developed after transcending the dimensional barrier by twentieth century scientists such as Albert Einstein, Erwin Schrodinger, Louis de Broglie, Paul Dirac, Werner Heisenberg, Richard Feynman, Murray Gellman, Sir Arthur Eddington and Stephen Hawkin is based on the theory of relativity, quantum mechanics and uncertainty principle. These have annihilated the artificial Cartesian bifurcation and extreme materialism in science. By the mid twentieth century the process of gathering scientific knowledge constituted of well organized laboratory and field experimentation, observation, development of theory, prediction, verification of the predictions and general acceptance. Transcending the three dimensional barrier and taking science beyond the capabilities of human sensory organs eliminated the need to present perceptible mechanisms of observed phenomena as an acceptance criterion. The advent of computers has greatly enhanced the capability of the human brain to tackle complex phenomena that are too formidable to be tackled by the unaided and unenlightened human brain. Computer can never aspire to acquire the capabilities of the human brain because the human brain is driven by consciousness which operates at a speed much faster than the speed of light.The main achievement of the success of the twentieth century scientists in transcending the three dimensional barrier is acquiring a more realistic understanding of nature and natural phenomena. Twentieth century transcended science enables us to scientifically confirm that such concepts as impermanence, rebirth, telepathy and selflessness taught by the Buddha are true phenomena of nature which are beyond three spatial dimentions and therefore beyond classical science. Derek Parfit of Oxford University (probably the world's most important living philosopher) accepts the Buddhist view of life and selflessness. He believes that his acceptance of selflessness which was inspired by split brain research, has liberated him from the prison of self. He says, "When I believed that my existence was such a further fact, I seemed imprisoned in myself. My life seemed like a glass tunnel, through which I was moving faster every year, and at the end of which there was darkness. When I changed my view, the walls of my glass tunnel disappeared. I now live in the open air." Derek Parfit, Fritj of Capra (the well known Nuclear Physicist) and Gary Zukav accept the Buddhist view of matter and believes in the need to liberate ourselves from the prison of material particles. The process of human reproduction is explained in Buddha's teachings as parental union when mother is fertile and the arrival of consciousness. The former supplies the full complement of chromosomes needed to create a Zygote which by normal cell division creates the physical body. The arrival of consciousness into the physical body makes it an individual. Stating with the creation of test tube babies in 1968 by Dr. Robert Edwards's team of scientists at Cambridge University, incredible advances, culminating in cloning in 1996, have taken place in reproductive biology. Yet all these advances have only shifted the site and altered the mechanism of creation of the zygote. The maturing of the zygote to a foetus, making it an individual by the arrival of consciousness and birth remains as per Buddha's teachings. It is now increasingly becoming clear to those who reach the front lines of modern science that what science has been discovering a new had been known to the Buddha over 2500 years ago. This is confirmed by the following statements made by topmost scientists of the twentieth century. Albert Einstein regarded as the father of the theory of relativity says, "Individual existence impresses him as a sort of prison and he wants to experience the universe as a single cosmic whole. The beginnings of cosmic religious feeling already appear at an early stage of development, as an example in the Psalms of David and in some of the Prophets. Buddhism, as we have learned especially from the wonderful writings of Schopenhaur, contains a much stronger element of this." Niels Bohr who developed the presently accepted model of the atom together with Earnest Rutherford says, "For a parallel to the lesson of atomic theory….. (we must turn) to those kind of epistemological problems with which already thinkers like the Buddha and Lao Tzu have been confronted, when trying to harmonize our position as spectators and actors in the drama of existence." The most eminent Nuclear Physicist, Robert Oppenheimer, who produced the first atom bomb says, "The general notions about human understanding … which are illustrated by discoveries in atomic physics are not in the nature of things wholly unfamiliar, wholly unheard of, or new. Even in our own culture they have a history, and in Buddhist and Hindu thought a more considerable and central place. What we shall find is an exemplification, an encouragement and a refinement of old wisdom." - Robert Oppenheimer. The main teaching of the Buddha is the Noble Eight Fold Path. D. T. Suzuki writes about the first item of this Path, right seeing as, "The seeing plays the most important role in Buddhist epistemology, for seeing is at the basis of knowing. Knowing is impossible without seeing; all knowledge has its origin in seeing are thus found generally united in Buddha's teachings. Buddhist philosophy therefore ultimately points to seeing reality as it is. Seeing is experiencing enlightment".The teachings of the Buddha, founded on the basis of the true reality of nature, have been recognized to be valid at all times and under all conditions. Buddhism is the only Doctrine based on the true reality of nature in its totality available to mankind. It is now becoming increasingly clear that solutions to most human problems that arise as a result of over indulgence, excessive competition and exploding greed leading to acquiring and amassing unlimited wealth, increasing violence, terrorism, drug addiction and self destruction lie in the teachings of the Buddha. It is clear that Buddhism is getting accepted, the world over, as the way of life of intelligent people in the third millenium. | ||
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Kalpitiya joins Lanka’s whale spots | ||||
As I walked to the beach an Indian Nightjar churred. I was sensing the world through my ears. I was in a world of darkness, like the one inhabited by the Sperm Whales. In their world, in the murky depths where no light penetrates, they will 'see' with sound, using echo-location.
Waves gently lapped the shoreline in front of the boat house at the Alankuda Beach Resort. The silent murmur of the sea was abruptly broken by the scream of a powerful out-board engine as we thundered out, hurtling across the reef at 30 kmph to where the continental shelf plunged away into a deep abyss. I was heading in the darkness before day break, in search of the creatures of the darkness of the deep. I had instructed the boatman Susantha to head west, in search of whales and answers to another theory put forward by British marine scientist Dr. Charles Anderson.
An orange fireball lurked below the Eastern horizon, still waiting to be uncovered by the Earth's rotation. I was on my way for one more of my dedicated whale watching trips in Kalpitiya. Amazing as it may seem, it seems that this was the first serious, dedicated effort to look for whales off Kalpitiya and to ascertain whether whale watching could work as an eco-tourism product. It is not that others had not seen whales before.
But almost all of them had been chance encounters of people watching dolphins in-shore of the reef. No one it seems had so far made a serious effort to go in search of whales beyond the reef which lies around 6 km out, roughly parallel to the peninsula. Any references to the reef in this article is not to Barr Reef which is off Kandakuliya.
Trincomalee has been known for its whales since the 1980s. But it is yet to be assessed for its whale watching strike rate in the post-war environment. I had already led the publicity campaign for Dondra. I was back in Kalpitiya to research another story - that Kalpitiya could be the next whale watching hot spot in Sri Lanka.
My last effort on April 19, 2009 to look for whales off Kalpitiya was thwarted by bad weather. With the boat buffeted by strong waves, and the chances of spotting a blow almost nil, I called off the search and decided to bide my time for the next season after the current south-west monsoon had spent its energy.
My next dedicated whale watching session off Kalpitiya had been the day before, on Tuesday, February 23, 2010. Two boats had set out. One had Sandie Dawe, the chief executive of Visit Britain, with her husband Jock. They would follow the 'Dolphin Line', broadly an area which ran north-south parallel to the Kalpitiya peninsula, in-shore of the reef.
The other boat, prepared with three tanks of fuel and food and water for a long sea faring session carried Dallas Martenstyn, English photographer Georgina Viney and myself with boatman Susantha for a deep sea mission. None of what I have done in Kalpitiya would have been possible without the help of Dallas and his team who put together all the logistics for my whale watching trips. It is thanks to Dallas and his fellow investors at Alankuda that the world learnt about the dolphin watching at Kalpitiya. As we headed out, we paused a few times to gauge the depth using a fish finder.
The whale watching effort this time got off to a fairytale start. We had left at 7 a.m. and at 7.55 a.m., Georgina spotted the first blow whilst Dallas and I were fiddling with our two GPS units. We were at N 08 03 583 E 79 35 300 approximately seven nautical miles out from the shore (Alankuda Beach Resort is at N 08 03 121 E 79 42 560). We had encountered a group of five Sperm Whales. I explained to Susantha he should never make a direct bearing to the whale and the importance of keeping a distance from the whale where it would be comfortable with the boat.
We spent about 15 minutes with the school that were travelling on a south to north trajectory parallel to the peninsula.
I was elated that the search for whales had been so successful. Determined to find more whales, the third consecutive whale watching session had begun before day break. I was joined once again by Nikki Connolly and Linda Fennell who had been excited by the images I had taken the previous morning. These are probably the first images of Sperm Whales taken off Kalpitiya of a publishable standard.
We headed out due west and then travelled on a south to north axis past the previous day's sighting which I had marked on Jonathan Martenstyn's GPS unit.
We continued north keeping out at sea at a distance of around seven nautical miles, with the shoreline no longer in sight. Three hours of searching yielded nothing when on the way back, I saw a burst of spray dancing over the waves. We had found Sperm Whales. There was a group of three and another pair. They were travelling south, on a south-north trajectory, at a pace of around 10 kmph. Susantha knew how to handle them this time and we spent over an hour with the group keeping a comfortable distance and trying out the arc-forward a few times.
Susantha said that he had come out just once before beyond the reef to look for whales. It had been with some of the staff. With clients they always stayed in-shore of the reef to look for dolphins and encountered a stray whale about once every three weeks.
That evening I spoke to Jonathan Martenstyn who runs the boats from Dolphin Beach. He confirmed that they stay in-shore of the reef and had never gone looking for whales. He said their rate of encounter with whales was less than Alankuda who ran more dolphin trips.
Chitral Jayathilake of John Keells who runs the whale watching from Mirissa and dolphin watching from Kalpitiya also confirmed that they stayed in-shore of the reef. Chitral had never gone out to look for whales off Kalpitiya and had never seen one here, in-shore or off-shore of the reef. Even Dallas Martenstyn had told me that the only time he went out beyond the reef to look for whales was when he had gone out with Georgina and me the previous morning.
It seems quite astonishing that with Kalpitiya becoming publicly known two years earlier for its dolphin watching no one had made a dedicated effort to whale watch and evaluate whale watching as an eco-tourism product from Kalpitiya.
It was not that people had not reported whales from Kalpitiya before. There had been a trickle of reports from people who had gone dolphin watching. Initially, I had dismissed them as chance events. I was a sceptic until March 2009. No one had offered a concrete reason why Kalpitiya should be good for whales.
My earlier doubts about Kalpitiya being good for whales had to do with the location of the continental shelf. I knew the continental shelf held the key to an area of sea being good for whale watching. It had to be close to land. I had looked for whales off Negombo and Kirinda for example and failed because one had to travel out over 30 nautical miles to reach the edge of the shelf.
In May 2008, I had taken the story to the world that the seas south of Mirissa was beyond doubt the best place in the world for seeing Blue Whales. My conviction was based on field results of a theory by Dr Charles Anderson. In addition to a theory of a migratory movement, a key to the ease and proximity of sightings was the fact that the continental shelf pinched in very close to Dondra Head.
My interpretation of Admiralty Chart No 828 Cochin to Vishakhapatnam was that the continental shelf was just too far out from Kalpitiya. But I wondered whether there was a submarine canyon which in conjunction with a movement of currents or tides somehow created a channel rich in nutrients which created an unusual and exceptionally rich concentration of marine life. The Spinner Dolphins would be a top predator of this unusually focussed food chain off Kalpitiya.
A more likely answer came on March 24, 2009 as I listened to Charles explaining to Dallas Martenstyn that the latter's observations of dolphins and the occasional stray whale could be explained by the continental shelf being closer than was previously believed. He also thought that there could be whales to be seen beyond the reef. I had been circulating a graphic we had done based on British Admiralty Chart No 828 which showed that the continental shelf was far out from Kalpitiya, not close to it. Charles disagreed with my interpretation and we pulled out a bundle of admiralty charts that Dallas had in the office. I saw that the 1,000m depth contour which is my personal benchmark is not actually shown on any of the admiralty charts I had carelessly interpolated. It was easier to interpolate smoothly along where the depth was available and draw the 1,000m isocline far out from Kalpitiya than to imagine that somehow it pinched in close to the Kalpitiya Peninsula like it did at Dondra.
I studied the charts more intently and with Charles teaching me to read them, the realisation swept over me, that what I had misinterpreted as hard evidence for a wide shallow basin was no evidence at all. In fact the location of the edge of the continental shelf was wide open. There was absolutely no data available at that time to us or anyone to know conclusively where the continental shelf lay. I instinctively knew that Charles with his deep experience was onto something. I was astonished by the idea that the continental shelf could be pinching into the Kalpitiya Peninsula as it does at Dondra.
That night, long after the others had turned in, I waited in the 'ambalama' thumbing through the charts. Occasionally I stared out to sea, immersed in thought, a shiver of excitement running through me. I knew that Charles had led me onto another big stoy.
The next day, on March 25, 2009, Charles, Dallas and I went dolphin watching from Alankuda and saw around 600 Spinner Dolphins. I returned to office as there was a business to run. But I knew I had to come back to nail the story with evidence. I needed to get the whales and get the depths.
On March 24, 2009 I had realised I needed to get the whales and the depths to confirm Charles 's insight that the continental shelf was close and that explained the presence of whales straying to the dolphin line. I was elated that on February 24, 2010 I had finally found the whales.
But I decided not call or text anyone yet with the news that there was conclusive evidence that Kalpitiya could be a whale watching hotspot. In my heart, I knew I did not have all the pieces together. The depth soundings I had taken with Dallas with a fish finder effective up to 700 feet was Mickey Mouse data. It did not prove anything. Driving back, that Wednesday, I knew that the only chance for any meaningful data lay with the National Aquatic Research Agency (NARA). What followed was a remarkable series of fortuitous meetings.
The next day, on Thursday, February 25, I attended a meeting at the World Bank convened by Sumith Pilapitiya. I looked around for people who could help me in the search for the missing data. I homed in on Dr Malik Fernando, a marine biologist and asked him if there was any data available on depths off Kalpitiya and where the continental shelf may lie. Malik told me how he had swum with Arjan Rajasuriya from NARA in the area where they had thought the continental shelf plunged into a deep abyss. Dallas had also told me on the last visit that with his experience as an angler, sailor and diver, that the continental shelf was close. But visibility in water does not go beyond a hundred feet. No one can peer down to a few hundred metres and see the edge of the shelf plunging a kilometer or two deep.
So although there were clearly others who shared the Anderson theory, I only had gut feelings to go by.
I desperately needed hard data. As if reading my mind, S.A.M. Azmy, Head of the Environmental Studies Division of NARA joined us and introduced himself. I asked him whether there were any data, any recent data at all of depth soundings off the Kalpitiya Peninsula. He explained that the search for oil had resulted in the sea floor being mapped. I asked him whether it would show the 1,000m and 2,000m isoclines. He confirmed it would and in fact said that they would have that for all around the island.
On February 26, Azmy pulled out a chart which showed in remarkable detail the depth contours off the Kalpitiya Peninsula mapped for exploration of oil. There in front of me were the depth contours which showed that the continental shelf was indeed very close and that the edge of the shelf, where it rapidly plunged to 1,000 and 2,000m was parallel to the peninsula. It was the north-south axis at E 79 35 the Sperm Whales had hunted on and for which I had taken GPS readings. I could not believe how well it all fitted together. Wow!
Technically speaking the continental shelf is defined as the 200m isocline and here that was as close as 4 nautical miles. The 1,000m depth isocline which I use as a benchmark for whale watching was 9 nautical miles away. I was probably the first person from the general public to see this chart which had been published internally in October 2009. The data simply had not been available when Charles had first convinced me to re-consider my view. The data had come out seven months later and I suspected that few in marine biological circles were aware of it.
M.A. Ariyawansa, the Head of the National Hydrographic Office (NHO) introduced me to his team and to their amusement I rushed over to a pile of maps on a table and began thumbing through feverishly. Out came an untitled map simply which showed the 200, 1,000 and 2,000m depth isoclines around Sri Lanka and the outer limits of the exclusive economic zone. It showed the continental shelf pinching in three places.
Trincomalee with a submarine canyon which has been known for some time and shown in the Admiralty charts. Dondra, again shown on the Admiralty charts but its significance for whale watching unknown until Charles had explained it to me in August 2003 and only one other place - the Kalpitiya Peninsula. Sri Lanka therefore has only three places which in terms of the location of the continental shelf are positioned ideally to be whale watching hot spots because the whale and oceanic dolphins need deep water to come close in.
I had now found the conclusive evidence which connected the dots to show that Kalpitiya was one and in fact the last of the three whale watching hot spots to be recognized as such. My role once again had been to listen to scientists and to go out and do the field work and connect the dots to make a big story to bridge science with commerce.
The NHO team were helpful, courteous and genuinely interested in their work. They gave me a print-out of the Mannar depths and a custom print-out of the chart showing the continental shelf. I came out of NARA clutching the remaining evidence why Kalpitiya can be a whale watching hot spot. The chart with the continental shelf was dated January 2010. My timing had been perfect. A few weeks earlier and the chart may not have existed.
Of the three records of Orca sightings since 2008, two have been at Kalpitiya, photographed in March 2008 by Senaka Abeyratne and on January 31, 2010 by Maithri Liyanage. It is likely that Kalpitiya could rival Mirissa for the diversity of species of marine mammals. However, Mirissa may remain the top spot for watching Blue Whales because the migratory movement postulated by Charles takes them past Dondra twice. I saw no Blue Whales on the two days I was whale watching at Kalpitiya. In contrast on Wednesday February 24, Anoma Alagiyawadu, the Jetwing Lighthouse naturalist observed what he believed to be seven different Blue Whales from Mirissa.
It is too early to conclude where Trincomalee, Mirissa and Kalpitiya will rank in terms of overall species diversity, the likelihood of seeing Blue Whales and Sperm Whales, etc. But what is very clear is that we have a scientific basis for concluding that Sri Lanka has three key sites for whale watching because of the proximity of the continental shelf, the marine mammal species diversity and logistics. The three sites could result in Sri Lanka emerging as the leading whale watching destination in the world.
The appetite to go after whales from Kalpitiya and not to dally with just the dolphins will grow. Serious whale watching will now start from Kalpitiya. A trail has been blazed.
In Kalpitiya as elsewhere, legislation or guidelines will need to come in for the safety of the whales as well as the whale watchers. But legislation must be intelligent, practical and simple, to allow the whale watching industry to grow and create livelihoods. Whale watching in Sri Lanka can easily grow to be worth several billion rupees of revenue each year. Wildlife can pay its way.
|
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Animal World (sri lanka)
Elephant watching..................................................................
Elephant watching made easy
Sri Lanka is renowned for Elephants and rightly so since there is a huge Elephant population in Sri Lanka for a relatively small country. It is no secret that Elephant watching and Elephant back safaris are one of the main attractions for tourists. With the end of the civil war there is a huge increase in the number of the tourists the wildlife and tourism ministries are smoothing the way for eager tourists who are looking to get a glimpse of the Elephants. There are many places where you can see the Elephants in Sri Lanka and while some places are fun and entertaining some places could be a little dangerous. One sure things is you will definitely see an Elephant in the below mentioned places but they are a bit hard to spot in some national parks.
Elephant Back Riding is very popular among tourists
National Zoological Gardens - Easiest and the nearest place
Since most of the tourists prefer to stay in Colombo the easiest and the nearest place you can watch Elephants is in the National Zoological gardens in Dehiwela. Its about a half an hour drive from Colombo and there are 10-20 Elephants in the Zoo. There are Elephant back rides available if you are interested at that. One of the most popular items with the tourists is the Elephant show at around 4PM where the Elephants perform some acts to entertain the crowds. The trip to the zoological garden itself is a great experience because you can view lots of tropical animals especially if you are coming from European countries
Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage - watch and study Elephants in semi-wild conditions
Pinnawela is an Elephant orphanage which is situated near Kegalla town which is about a two hour drive from Colombo. This is a breeding place for Elephants as well as a place to take care of injured Elephants because of various human activities. There is also a research center where you can study Elephants. Bottle feeding baby elephants and watching them take a bath in the river in semi-wild conditions are two of the main attractions. Check out Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage in Sri Lanka.
Udawalawe National Park
Of all the national parks or reserves in Sri Lanka this is the best national park to see Elephants. Even during the mid day when Elephant usually go into the bush you can see plenty of Elephants. Another great thing about Udawalawe National park is that Elephants are somewhat used to people so you have a very good chance of getting pretty close to the Elephants. Although I really couldn't see much of a difference other than the size according to the guide that went with us there are three types of Elephants in Udawalawe and you have a very good chance of seeing all of them in one visit.
Wasgamuwa National Park
Home of the notorious "Kane Hila" Wasgamuwa national park if famous for Elephants that charge and hit safari jeeps. Most of these charges are mock charges but some do actually get hit while visiting there. One main reason for this is somewhat adventurous drivers who gets very close to Elephants and provokes them. This is another national park full of elephants so you must be very very unlucky if you didn't see and elephant over here. If you are the adventurous type and want's something a bit more thrilling than just watching elephants then Wasgamuwa is the place to be.
Its hard not to see an Elephant in Sri Lanka
Almost all national parks in Sri Lanka have elephants so it is almost impossible not to see an Elephant if you go in the right time. The best times to see elephants are from 6AM to 8AM in the morning and after 5PM in the evenings. In places like Udawalawe and Wasgamuwa you can see them almost any time of the day. Although the most famous national park in Sri Lanka its a bit difficult to see elephants in Yala national park but you should be good in any other national park
..................................................................................................................................................................
Elephant Back Safari in Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka
Elephant Back Safari in Sri Lanka brings in multifaceted joys. The majestic beast, the locations in close proximity to the cultural attractions and the terrain rich with bird life all add up to bring in memorable experiences to the tourists holidaying in Sri Lanka. Elephant Back Safaris are one of the newest and most thrilling safari experiences in Sri Lanka. These Elephant Back Safari not only make it possible to view wildlife from the back of an elephant, but perhaps more importantly, provide the unique opportunity to share a day in the life of the elephant.
Elephant Back Safaris not only make it possible to view wildlife while riding an elephant, but also to view the wildlife enthusiasts chances to be familiar with the nature and behavior of tamed Elephants. The holiday makers may opt to share a day with the majestic beast by picnicking in the bush in the shadow of the elephant or by swimming, grooming, feeding the elephant too. The most popular locations of Elephant Back Safaris are Habarana, Sigiriya and Kaudulla.
Carriage of guests in Elephant Back Safari
All Elephant Back Safaris are accompanied by the mahout. A wooden saddle, a basket like enclosure upon a wooden platform is large enough to carry four passengers. Riders needs to be on alerts to stoop down on and off to being knocked by the overhanging branches of trees along the path.
Habarana, the most popular area for Elephant Back Safari
Habarana located 210km north east from Colombo is the transit point of the large herds of wild elephants at the National Parks of Minneriya and Kaudulla. Habarana is a popular location among the wildlife enthusiasts and nature tourists. Moreover, Habarana being the central location of the cultural triangle of Sri Lanka, the culture tourists touring therein too grab the opportunity to enjoy an Elephant back safari in Habarana. The irrigation reservoirs and waterways of the area bring in a riverine terrain where the elephants would wade through, or swim to reach the banks in the farther end. The ride would also takes place over the main road, the pathways, villages, jungles, swamp and river.
The best period for Elephant Back Safaris at Habarana is during March to July when the water level of the river is high enough to ride the elephant, with a good part of it submerged. From August to November the level of water of the river is low. December to February being the rainy season at Habarana, river would in full flow.
Elephant Back Safaris at Minneriya National Park and Kaudulla National Park
A ten minute drive east of Habarana is Minneriya National Park famous for large herds of elephants. A fifteen minute drive north east is Kaudulla National Park, another regular tourist attraction in view of its large herds of elephants. Elephant back safariin these National parks afford opportunities to enjoy the sight of wild elephants as well as the birdlife.
The Elephant, the riders and the mahout
The tamed elephants are accompanied by mahouts carrying a lightweight spear-like bull hooks. Elephant Back Safaris afford the opportunity to riders to be familiar with behavior of the elephants.
Elephant Back Safaris at Yala National Park
Elephant Back Safaris at Yala National Park brings in the chance to enjoy the sights of wildlife and birdlife that abound in the wilderness. Yala National Park is one of the popular National Parks in Sri Lanka.
| Related Videos for Elephant Back Safari in Sri Lanka |
 Elephant Back Safari in Sri Lanka | |
|  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Accommodation - for this bird watching tour:
in Sri Lanka, covered in our tour plan
Anuradhapura - Flourished more than Two Thousand years ago. Greatest of the islands three most famous ruined cities, birth place of Sinhala royalty and national capital from the third century B.C. to the 10 th Century A.D. Countless fascinating ruins including Sri Maha Bodhi Bo tree - The oldest historical recorded tree in the world. Anuradhapura is in the heart of the tank country in which was developed distinctive Sinhala irrigation system and hence the distinctive Sinhala economy and culture.
Polonnaruwa- The medieval capital of Sri Lanka , more than one thousand years old. Polonnaruwa peaked during the reign of king Parakramabahu the great, when Sri Lanka had an empire extending into India . See its places and Public Hall, Shrines and temple, the massive but exquisite Gal Vihare sculptures, carved in living granite and the mammoth Sea of Parakrama.
Sigiriya- This is the rock fortress, which was the pleasure palace of the a single King called Kashyapa in the 5 th century A.D. In a pocket of the giant rock are the famous frescoes of the heavenly maidens of Sigiriya.
Dambulla Cave Temple - A vast isolated rock mass like Sigiriya was one of the retreats chosen by a Sinhala King, when he was driven by South Indian King in the 1 st Century B.C. On re-gaining his throne, he turned caves which had sheltered him into a rock temple.
Kandy - This is the capital of the Hill Country and is a World Heritage City. Home to the famous Temple of The Tooth, remains the Sinhalese cultural and spiritual Centrex, one of the top attractions in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka to be expected in this bird watching tour
Endemic Birds to Sri Lanka:
Sibly and Monroe, Who revised the recent modern Bird Taxonomy in 1990, have mentioned that there are 23 numbers of birds species, are endemic to Sri Lanka. Later in 1994 Priyantha Wijesinghe in his Bird Checklist of Sri Lanka has increased the number to 26. Then, in 2004 Pamela C. Rasmussen, in her book on Birds of South Asia (Rasmussen and Anderton) further increased the number to 33.
Birds found only in Sri Lanka and India
Globally threatened birds found in Sri Lanka
Critical - none
Endangered
Vulnerable
Near Threatened
Links for more information
Migration routes of birds to and from Sri Lanka
According to the geographical location in the Indian Continent, the land of Sri Lanka is situated at the extreme southern point beyond the south of India. The stretch of ocean from here to the south pole contains no other land. Hence, for the migrant birds that travel south from India, Sri Lanka is the final destination.
There are 3 flying routes across India along which immigrant birds come to Sri Lanka. These are – the western route, the eastern route and the Andaman Island route.
THE WESTERN ROUTE
From the northern and northwestern parts of the world along the western coastal line of India, then towards the extreme south of India, which is commarin point. Then they fly across this coast and arrive in Sri Lanaka mostly across this coastal line between Mannar and Kaluthara.
The migrant birds take this route initially from Europe, West Asia including western Siberia, & from the western regions of Himalaya including Kashimir.
THE EASTERN ROUTE
From the northern and northeastern parts of the world, along the Eastern coast line of India, towards the south. Passing the coastline between Kalmier point and Ramesvaran, which is further south these migratory birds arrive in Sri Lanka from India, from East Asia which includes eastern Sibiria and Mongolia, from the Eastern regions of Himalaya including Tibet, these migratory birds fly along this route initially.
ANDAMAN ISLANDS ROUTE
Apart from the above-mentioned two routes there is still another route to the North Eastern coast of Sri Lnaka, which is the Andaman Islands flying route. This route falls across the Andaman Islands in the Indian Ocean. It is believed that these migratory birds arrive in Sri Lanka along this route from south East Asia and the East each year.
Each year the migratory season commences in October and ends in April – May in the following year. Very often, the birds take the same route they arrived. However, some birds return along different routes.
The departure of these birds flying across Kalpitiya in large flocks is a fascinating sight. The beauty of thousands of birds departing at the same time from dew-drop shaped Jaffna as they leave the country is an unforgettable memory, etched in the minds of those who experience this splendid sight.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)