Vindhyan Ecology and Natural History Foundation organized the 4th episode of the talk series- 'The Naturalist' by Mr. Nachiket Kelkar on 'Demystifying Gangetic Dolphins on 5th September 2020 at 11 am.
Nachiket Kelkar has been studying the ecology of river dolphins, fisheries, and other freshwater biodiversity since 2007. His PhD research at Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Bangalore focuses on socio-ecological conflicts in riverine capture fisheries of the Gangetic plains, with a focus on Bihar. His research interests include freshwater biodiversity and ecology, animal population dynamics, river hydrology, fishery interactions, and their interactions.
Mr. Kelkar gave a brief introduction to the Gangetic Dolphin, its natural history which was followed by sharing his own experience working on Gangetic Dolphins since the year 2007. The talk included many aspects of Dolphin conservation, the challenges faced by researchers in surveying the Dolphin, and the influence of the political history on the survival of the species. The talk was followed by a discussion session with participants. You can watch the entire talk along with the discussion in the following video.
The Naturalist talk series is specially designed to initiate conversation and understanding of vulnerable species, threatened landscapes, less-discussed conservation challenges, and innovative models of environmental consciousness in the Indian subcontinent. The talk follows a flexible format where the expert first talks about the issue followed by an interactive face to face discussion with participants.
