Time For The Wild
Published in The Straits Times on 6 Oct 2019
Get inspired by this month-by-month guide on where to watch the most extraordinary wildlife around the world.
Fishing bears in Alaska (Photo: Ralph Lee Hopkins)
Rubbery tubercles on its lower jaw, crusty barnacles cemented to smooth skin, and deep ventral grooves on its mammoth body, all unmasked in full glory.
It was whale-watching season in Southeast Alaska. We knew we were surrounded by a pod of humpback whales, after sightings of tail lobs, flipper slaps, and spouts that left trails of misty plumes at the water surface.
But we were all waiting with bated breaths for the jewel of leviathan acrobatics – the aerial breach.
Then in a startling moment, a massive humpback whale burst through the water with great force, arched its colossal body in mid-air, and crashed back into the ocean with a thunderous spray.
Like a dividend to reward our patience, a whale calf leapt playfully to mimic its mother’s breach, and dived down with streams cascading off its fluke like a mini waterfall.
Nothing comes close to the thrill of witnessing animals in the wild, and it is humbling as it is awe-inspiring.
Be it scanning the horizon for a whale encounter or unearthing clues like bitten bamboo and footprints to see pandas in the wild, there is something extraordinary about immersing yourself in the natural world.
You feel a deep sense of gratification when a grizzly bear looks your way, or when hordes of wildebeest stampede across a crocodile-infested river.
Observing animals in their natural habitats can also feel therapeutic, away from modern offices and hyper-hectic urban living.
In wildlife watching, timing is crucial. Consider wildlife cycles, such as migration patterns and mating periods.
Weather is also important–in some areas, for example, animals congregate at water holes during drier spells and are easier to spot, while certain national parks are closed during monsoon seasons.
There is no clear-cut formula or guarantee of sightings–wildlife moves at its own pace and that is part of the allure–but some planning goes a long way in helping you be in the right place at the right time.
Here are some highlights on when and where to catch intriguing wildlife around the world.
JANUARY
Mountain Gorillas
Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda
Mountain Gorillas (Photo: Eric Rock)
Gazing at the soulful eyes of a wild gorilla can be poignant and humbling. Up-close, the brawny frames of the silver back males, which weigh up to 200kg, seem intimidating. But the largest of all primates look less daunting when they barrel lovingly towards their playful brood frolicking on the forest ground.
A mountain gorilla trek at high altitude amidst thick undergrowth can be arduous. But with only 700 wild gorillas left in the world, and half of them in the Virunga range, the efforts to track them are well worth it.
January lies within in one of the two dry seasons, which offers the most accessible hiking conditions and lower malaria risk.
February
Wolves
Yellowstone National Park, USA
Wolves in Yellowstone National Park (Photo: Ray Doan)
Yellowstone National Park in the biting cold is not for the faint-hearted, but a winter safari offers one of the world’s best opportunities to track elusive wolves. In February, the wolves at Lamar Valley are more visible, their black and grey furs contrasting against the snow, and paw prints leaving a nifty trail.
It is also a surreal stage, with plumes of geothermal steam rising from the snow-blanketed grounds, and trees gleaming with icy crystals.
You might see a hungry wolf pack circling baffled elk,and some time later, each wolf trotting away, fur sprinkled crimson.
MARCH
Whale Sharks
Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia
Whale sharks at Ningaloo Reef, Western Australia (Photo: Tourism Australia)
Each year, several days after the full moon in Marchand April, the pristine waters of Ningaloo turn blush as the reef spawns, releasing billions of coral sperm and eggs. The fascinating occurrence draws swarms of zooplankton for extensive feeding sessions, which lures large schools of whale sharks.
Whale sharks look daunting, measuring up to12min length, but the gentle giants are filter feeders and slow swimmers that move their entire bodies from side to side.
Boats, spotter planes, snorkelling and diving trips help visitors get closer to the action.
APRIL
Tigers
Ramthambore National Park, India
Tigers in India (Source: Surya Ramachandran)
Ranthambore National Park is an excellent place to spot the handsome Royal Bengal tigers,along with jackals, sloths and langur monkeys. Formerly a hunting ground for maharajas, the park contains ruins of a medieval fort, a stunning backdrop in the wilderness to track the wild cats.
In April,temperature scan be high, but ideal for wildlife watching. Vegetation is sparse, and watering holes dry up, rendering the tigers easier to spot as they congregate around the remaining sources.
Other tiger reserves in India, such as Bandhavgarh or Pench Reserves in Madhya Pradesh,are good options too.
MAY
Turtles
Sipadan, Malaysia
Long known as one of the top dive sites in the world, Sipadanis a protected turtle-nesting site, and an exceptional location for swimming with the docile reptiles. It is not unusual to spot over 20 green or hawks bill turtles in just one dive.
Sipadanis Malaysia’s only oceanic isle, rising from the seabed instead of the continental shelf. Along the dramatic reef wall with a drop-off of over 600m, the waters are also teeming with marine life, such as sharks, angelfish, morays and gobies.
May lies within the dry season, and divers enjoy visibility of up to 50m. Green and hawks bill turtles also nest this month, going ashore to lay eggs on the beaches of Sipadan.
JUNE
Blue-footed boobies
Galapagos Islands
Watch mating rituals of blue-footed boobies in Galapagos Islands (Photo: Ralph Lee Hopkins)
There is supposedly no bad time to visit the Galapagos Islands for wildlife watching, but June presents intriguing opportunities for bird enthusiasts, with the eccentric courtship ritual of exotic blue-footed boobies on North Seymour.
Observe the male preening by ‘sky-pointing’ his beak and broadening his wings. After attracting a female, the couple dances, the male shuffling with a perked tail and raising his distinctive baby-blue foot.
June is the startof the dry season at the Galapagos Islands. It is also nesting season for waved albatross, with first chicks appearing this month. In North Seymour, giant frigate birds start displaying their bright red throat pouches.
JULY
Brown bears
Katmai NationalPark, Alaska, USA
Fishing bears at Katmai National Park, Alaska (Photo: Brad Joseph)
Seen photographs of bears standing by a waterfall, catching leaping salmon with their open mouths? Chances are these images were shot at Katmai National Parkin Alaska.
Brooks Falls is world-renowned for its huge concentration of brown bears, drawn by copious numbers of sockeye salmon swimming upstream in July. On good days, 20 bears can be spotted fishing here at the same time.
This month, make a side trip to the waters of southeast Alaska to try and witness the amazing behavior of humpback whales ‘bubble-netting’. Observe a group of whales blowing a net of bubble in tandem to envelope and confuse their prey, then swimming through to gulp down their meal......
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