“We went to rocky plateau looking for reptiles and amphibians and I saw frogs breeding in a puddle just two inches deep”, says Thorpe. “And I realized just how strong the adaptation here were, how dedicate the balance of life. If one rain year, it does not rain at night this time, the entire species of frogs will be wiped completely.
Thorpe began working in the Western Ghats as a proper scientist in 2012 and over 11 years has done intense research on the biography of the region, especially, the outcrops of the northern part of ghats. “These isolated bits of land have not changed climatologically for at least 60 million years, a long period for evolving, he says. “Animals which decided to occupy a space which no one else wanted to live in have little competition, but they have to adopt themselves to the extremes of the land. This is why the range of adoption we see here is much higher than in forests.”
Amphibians, for instance, have multiple spawning in one reason and undergo rapid development during the benign of months of rain. Each animal has adopted so intensely to the small niche that often with 10 kms span, one toad could have evolved into three different species. The variations are so minor that often the difference are only picked up at the molecular levels.
Many of his studies are fauna that is less exciting to the people, like ants. However, ants form a vital link in the amphibian food chain, and any impact on their population impacts frogs directly.
Thorpe recalls his first walk in Chorla ghat, and how dramatically the scenery changed just over a kilometer. “We crossed a stream, trekked through some paddy fields and entered a forest, which then open out onto and expanse of bare rock, with just one stunted tree growing on it”, says Thorpe. “Is it any surprise that the biodiversity here is so rich and unique”.
Much of his work focuses on the anthropological pressure on the Western Ghats. As he notes with the toad, the speciation is so localized that land use pattern change in even small region cause the extinction of several species.
Thorpe, who is with the University of Plymouth, is also part of an inter-institute project on the feasibility of aquaculture of freshwater crabs in India. (IPA Service)
CHRISTOPHER THORPE EXPLORED THE ANTHROPOLOGY OF WESTERN GHATS REGION
THE SCIENTIST IS STILL STUDYING FEASIBILITY OF ACQUACULTURE OF CRABS IN INDIA
Harihar Swarup - 2021-06-02 17:17
Christopher Thorpe, 65, first toured the entire length of the Western Ghats as a 20-year-old backpacker, travelling by bus and train right down to Rameswaram, completely enchanted by the beauty of landscape. However, it was only in 2008 that he started looking at the ancient land as a living laboratory to study its adaptation and evolution. He had come down with members of the British herpetologist society to visit Gerry Martin’s fabled farm on Kerala-Goa border when he was stuck by the awesomeness around him.