The making of a "maneater". The Pithoragarh maneater

[ckkalyan]

Thank you for this exciting story prashantsingh; I do understand how you feel! There will be another time and another day!

[Baljit]

The pick ups driver was a devout hindu and a pure vegetarian.

Prashant, just wondering how he make up his mind to go hunting with all of you guy's if he is VEGETARIN? most of the VEGETARIN peoples do not like hunting/hunters.

After giving the driver some basic instructions we started just before dusk and went on till late night.
Half an hour into the drive. The driver suddenly breaked and started honking.
We had asked him to drive slowly and be quiet. It came as a surprise when he almost sat on the horn in the middle of the jungle.
When inquiring what had happened he told us that there was a frog infront of the vehicle and he wanted it to move away.

Now !! this is something very interesting.

We were shocked and didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Shahid got down and gave the driver a good firing. "Aise to kabhi bhi baagh nahi marega."
"If you are scared of a bloody frog . How do you expect us to kill the maneater."He concluded

I can understand the felling about this Prashant. All the hard work you guy's put into this maneater hunt, can go into drain very easy with these kind of mistake.

Very disappointed, how this ended.Keep in mind there is all ways next time.This is hunting, if you are lucky you can hunt down very first day , if not then,it's takes forever.
Like herb says,thank you very much for sharing your experience on this hunt with all of us,the detail and the pictures.


Baljit

[prashantsingh]

Prashant, just wondering how he make up his mind to go hunting with all of you guy's if he is VEGETARIN? most of the VEGETARIN peoples do not like
[/quote

Baljit[/quote]

Baljit. The driver was an employee and not the owner of the pick up.

[Sakobav]

Prashant, Zaheer, and Safari
Congrats on great work if its of any consolation you guys were dead on - close yet far..I hope leopard was taken sorry to here about rockstar..no good deed goes unpunished..chalk this bad luck to great experience and lessons learnt. We all know how bureaucratic wheels creak and grind in India ..janaab has pressure and more hunters in their opinion means more chances and probability of getting the cat but they forgot What corbett warned - it could also lead to missed chances or scary close calls for hunters shooting at each other or even scaring the cat away..

Regarding he calf we call them Vacha in Punjab and she Calf Vachi. folks had a funny theory she calves are always prancing around jumping happy go merry type where as Vacha comes across moody, dull or brooding..reason being the latter knows he will be the animal of burden hauling load whereas former will be taken care for milch..rural but rational logic..
once again thanks for narration amigos

Cheers

[prashantsingh]

In the hills, ngrewal , the male buffalo is not used as a beast of burden. The steep gradient and rough terrain makes them useless. Mules are best suited for the job.
As mentioned earlier the Vachas here are either sold to the Butcher or set free in the jungles to fend for themselves.

[xl_target]

Prashant, this is a disappointing end to all your hard work.
I assume from your post describing the end of the hunt, that the other Shikari benfited from all your preparation and took the Leopard.
I guess time will tell if he was the man-eater.

Once again, I want to express my appreciation for your intestinal fortitude in tackling these tasks.
It takes asignificant amount of courage to go out in the dark, on foot, after a man-eating big cat.

[prashantsingh]

Now for the Twist in the Tale.

Zaheer is not sure who sat on the machaan that evening.
Both Lakhpat and Joy are seasoned hunters.
The maneater came at about half past eight.
It was a pitch dark night.
The animal was very cautious when it approached the kill.
The moment the flash light wad switched on and before the shot could be taken the beast slipped into the darkness. Never to come back again.
This WAS the maneater and over the years he has evolved to one smart animal.

It's not over yet. Gentlemen.
The hunt is still on.

[xl_target]

Now for the Twist in the Tale.


It's not over yet. Gentlemen.
The hunt is still on.

Aha! We were all disappointed at the "ending" of this tale.
Good to hear that you're still in the game.

[dev]

I am so bloody thrilled that there is twist in the tail. See the universe decides who the hero will be. As Yoda would say,'Practice salting leeches more you must and trust the force."

[sreenivaspkamath]

thrilling.... enjoy the mission.... all the best.

[skeetshot]

I agree that you MUST go back.

Shikar is a complex sport, and persistence and stubbornness is essential to it.

It is a classic maneater tactic to exercise such caution, though I hope you will be able to identify its pug marks or walk or something else.

As a hunter, you may wish to consider having two or three alternative techniques with you such as a call, alternate baits, different types of machans , camera traps etc etc

Good luck, Prashant and Gang, stay with it .

[prashantsingh]

[quote="skeetshot"]I agree that you MUST go back.

Shikar is a complex sport, and persistence and stubbornness is essential to it

Good luck, Prashant and Gang, stay with it .[/quote

Thank you Sir.
Coming from you. I will surely take your advice.
But only after the other hunters leave.

It's not the trophy, but the race.
It's not the quarry, but the chase.

That's what I strongly believe in.
Not sure if the hunters traced the Maneaters pug marks the following morning.
Since the animal is getting spooked by the flashlight. The only thing that comes to my mind is using a night vision device. But I believe those are banned in India.

[zaheer.bakshi]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldne ... as.html?fb

[brihacharan]

Now for the Twist in the Tale.
Zaheer is not sure who sat on the machaan that evening. Both Lakhpat and Joy are seasoned hunters.
The man-eater came at about half past eight. It was a pitch dark night.
The animal was very cautious when it approached the kill. The moment the flash light wad switched on and before the shot could be taken the beast slipped into the darkness. Never to come back again.
This WAS the man-eater and over the years he has evolved to one smart animal.

It's not over yet. Gentlemen. The hunt is still on.

"That's the Spirit" - The Game is not over till it's Won....
We'll wait for the Good News!!!!
Good Luck Prashant!
Briha

[ckkalyan]

Thanks for the media update zaheer.bakshi so the game is still on!

From your link above:

Man-eating leopard 'targeting drunks' in Indian Himalayas
Villagers in the Himalayas fear a leopard, which has killed 12 people in two years, is preying on drunks walking home in the dark

A man-eating leopard has terrorised Himalayan villagers who fear it is targeting inebriated men as they stumble home from long drinking sessions.

The leopard is believed to have killed 12 people since January 2012 when it attacked a 46-year-old man in Simar Village. It is believed to have killed twice this year, the latest a 44-year-old man from Badeth village.
Madan Paneru from Kotali village told the Telegraph local people are now afraid to go out after dark and are living in a state of fear. They say most of the victims were drunk when the man-eater savaged them.
"Villagers are terrorised by the wild animals and it's almost impossible to venture out after dark. Moving from one village to another or to markets through forested area becomes difficult.
"People carry sticks with them and remain alert all the time. Many in the village believe that drunk people are easy prey for the wild", he said

Belinda Wright, the leading conservationist and head of the Wildlife Protection Society of India, said she did not believe leopards were targeting drunks but their behaviour made them vulnerable.
"Quite frankly when people are drunk and weave their way back home to the village they are easy prey. I don't think the leopard is targeting drunk people, just people stumbling along the path at night.
"I'm sure you won't taste any better because you've consumed liquor," she said.
I K Singh, Pithoragarh's divisional forest officer, said the area was under attack by a man-eating leopard but was also not convinced it is targeting drunks. Many of the victims had been pounced on as they emerged from an outside lavatory, he said.

"We have declared the leopard a man-eater. So far he has killed 12 people including two women and injured 4 others. It attacked a man on Thursday, injuring him severely. The animal is said to be 10-12 years old and robust.
"We do not know whether it is a male or female leopard", he said.
Leopards and tigers usually become man-eaters when they are injured or old and no longer able to catch dogs, their favoured prey.