A Trip to Konehalli

There was a terrible craving for an expedition among the team. We decided to get out of the city for a couple of days in the outdoors. It was end Oct 2010 when we set out with our back packs to the grassland of Konehalli. It was winter yet the monsoon showers had not died out. It kept raining even in that low rainfall area.

A view of the Konehalli grassland. photo by Guruprasad B.S.

We abandoned our idea of staying out in the tents. Instead we decided to stay in the cattle shed meant for the renowned Amruthamahal cattle. The team felt it as a better option than getting into the barracks of the Guest house. Getting into the guest house meant staying in the concrete block and being far from the creatures of the grassland. On our previous visits we had stayed and used their infrastructure while assessing the biodiversity of this field research station.

Catttle shed

Formerly known as Bidarammanagudi, Konehalli farm-a part of the four centuries old, cattle ranch- Amrithmahal Kaval. Amrithmahal Kaval is basically, home tract for Amruthmahal & Hallikar breeds. ‘Kaval’ means a grazing reserve for cattle. These Kavals were exclusively set aside for Amruthmahal Cattle by the rulers of wodayar dynasty. Amrithmahal are traditional cattle of Indian origin that are protected by the state since the days of the raj. They have a very strong build and their horns stand about three feet upright. A characteristic hunch on the back of the shoulder makes the males look majestic and aggressive.

Amruthamahal cattle, photo by Manu K.

These cattle require vast extents of open grazing areas.  In fact this very grassland, like sixty others, spread out across the plains of Karnataka is set aside for grazing these gregarious cattle. Such grasslands are spread out largely in the six districts of Southern Karnataka -Chickmagalur, Chitradurga, Davanagere, Hassan, Shimoga and Tumkur. 

 Amrithmahal cattle were kept by the armies of medieval rulers to move ammunitions. Farmers used them as draught animals for long. They selectively bred and reared them over the centuries. Today these animals are maintained by the department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services of the University of Agricultural Sciences, which act as a Nucleus Breeding Station for production of seed stock. 

Encroachment of land at Konehalli

The original extant of the grassland might have been up to two thousand acres: today a lot of it is encroached upon. These grasslands are grazed by the Amrithamahal cattle only for a short duration every year. As a result it has become an ideal habitat for several grassland species. Blackbucks also thrive here in good numbers. Manu and friends in their earlier visits have counted up to 130 antelopes. 

It kept on drizzling all through the day and we worked in drenched clothes. We trekked on several transects and collected specimens of grass. Incidentally Amrithmahal cattle were also residing on the grassland. About six hundred strong heads roamed free without any leash or binding. There were only a handful of males, whom we had to be watchful and maintain some distance. By night fall all of cattle were put in a pen specially made for them. There were two similar pens made of strong chain linked mesh. Each one of them enclosed a spacious concrete shed made of asbestos roofs. Their walls were about six feet high and the sheds were thoroughly ventilated. Every evening there would be a ceremonial ordeal of homing the herds into the pen. The cows that had calves had to be separated from the rest. Further the very young ones kept were even locked up till the following morning. This isolation was to avoid any stray predators like a leopard or a wolf. Some times there could also be a stampede within the pen when males tugged and butted one another.

Amruthamahal being herded out.

We took shelter in such a shed where the calves and their mothers stayed. We spread out on two large polythene sheets and arranged the grass specimen on to herbarium sheets in the dim light of the kerosene wick lamp.

Specimen preservation.

A Grass specimen.

We exchanged stories with friends Srikanth and Manohar. They, and the cattle herdsman had a lot of stories about Konehalli and Amrithmahal. In fact they both were working upon the issue since the past couple of years. The night was chill and the supper cooked on wood was too tasty and kept up the spirit of the team. The rain fell all night, embalming the shed in a constant hushing noise. Occasionally when rain stopped munching sound made by the sleepless cud chewing beasts prevailed.

Clitoria sp.

Carissa congesta.

We had to finish off our morning chores before the day break as we had to set out to different destinations. Our greatest difficulty was to walk past the hundreds of silent beasts enclosed in the small pen. We had to sneak through the hundreds of horns scattered all round the shed. The master of the beasts helped us to navigate through the slush, heaps of fresh dung minding the horns and tails. With some special language they gestured them to calm down and we carefully whisked past them. The familiarity with the animals that their masters had was amazing. To our astonishment, they knew each one of them by name and their behavior as well.

As the sun played between the clouds we made more collection of samples. The depression in the eastern coast had kept up its repute and we had to set off soon after lunch so that we could reach Mysore by night fall. The three days expedition had yielded more than fifty species of grass and several shrubs. 

Pellet pile of a Black buck.

Hoof mark of a Blackbuck.

Blackbuck pair.