Helping Hoolocks

The National Green Corps (NGC) has come out with a publication “Young in Green Action – Inspiring stories from the National Green Corps’.

We have made efforts to work with existing Eco Clubs in the region and our efforts at Saiha have been stated in here as a case study from Mizoram “Helping Hoolocks”. 

Further information on the publication is up at ~ http://www.paryavaranmitra.in/NGCcasestudy.htm

Glad to share the text and images below. 

It all started with the exhibition. In 2008, the Don Bosco School in Saiha hosted the annual science exhibition organized by the State Council for Education Research and Training (SCERT) of Mizoram. ‘Conservation of Natural Resources’ was the theme of the exhibition. Under this theme, the NGO, eco-club students and the teacher in-charge of the school decided to focus on the conservation of Hoolock Gibbons, in consultation with Samrakshan Trust, an ngo. For this purpose, eco club members had to collect information on Gibbon species. Under guidance of Samrakshan Trust a survey was undertaken on Hoolock gibbons in Saiha town.

The Western Hoolock Gibbon (Hoolock hoolock) is the only ape species found in India and restricted to the forests of North East. The arboreal ape is classified as endangered. It has been on the list of the world’s most endangered 25 primates since 2006.  Primarily a vegetarian species, Hoolocks are today threatened due to many reasons, habitat destruction and fragmentation being the major. The main reason for habitat destruction and fragmentation in Mizoram is stated to be the traditional method of jhum cultivation practised by the local population that has led to the decline of Hoolock gibbons. Besides habitat destruction killing of these animals for meat, blood and bones is another reason for their sharp decline.

Samrakshan Trust is promoting education for conservation of the Hoolock Gibbons. The trust works with a number of target groups including village councils, local NGOs and the Don Bosco on this issue. The Trust works closely with teachers of Don Bosco School. The teachers in turn engage in activity based conservation education with students to save Hoolock Gibbons. So some of the information on the primate has been collected from the trust reports. In order to assess people’s awareness and perception and awareness of this rare species, eco club students have carried out a survey. They have developed an objective based multiple choice questionnaire for this purpose. Some of the questions include details of the colour of primate; primary habitat (for example, forests or habitations); the average life span and group size of the primate; number of young ones the female gives birth at a time, movement of primates through the forest and their eating habits. Students under the guidance of their teacher in-charge Biswajit Singha and Nimesh Ved from Samrakshan Trust interviewed 50 individuals picked up from various locations in the town. The survey was undertaken in two languages; English and Mizo (local language). Analysis of the findings, to the surprise of the students, reflected that most people were aware that the primate was under threat and that its population had reduced. The belief that the consumption of blood and meat of the Gibbon cures diseases, though myth, had resulted in the hunting of the animal resulting in its decline.

Students put the information gathered from the Trust and their survey report together and set up an exhibit, which included graphs, photos, tables and important facts and information. This was a popular exhibit in the annual science exhibition organized by the State Council for Education Research and Training (SCERT) of Mizoram. The exhibition was attended by students of 30 schools, thus spreading the awareness on Gibbons and their conservation to larger student population.

This initiative demonstrates how students can be tutored to become young conservation researchers. Conveying the Gibbon facts after a good amount of research and analysis of the results only demonstrates the importance of systematic process employed by the eco club teacher in-charge with the help of the Trust which is noteworthy.