Throughout our travels in India, talk of the monsoon has prevailed. This year, the summer in India was quite hot and dry, and the monsoon rains were two weeks late in reaching the parched North. In a country where a large amount of agricultural land is not irrigated, a late rain or below-average rain can spell disaster for the food supply, despite the incredibly productive soils of India.

The day after our return to Dehradun, the very first of the monsoon rainfalls occurred, stunning us with both its suddenness and force. Although I had heard stories about the intensity of rain during the monsoon, I had never witnessed it before. After a short, hard gust of hot wind, the drops started bouncing off of everything, booming on the tin roofs and puddles instantly began to form. Since then, these rain bursts have become more common, now happening in morning, afternoon, and during the nighttime. As the monsoon progresses, they will lengthen and become even more frequent until there are several days of constant rain. As suddenly as they appear, they will stop, leaving flowers and mud behind.

The change in the behaviour of the animals during monsoon is legendary, as shelter must be sought and flooding of habitats claims lives. Here at the Wildlife Institute, the wildlife reaction to the monsoon is dramatic as well.

Dotting the campus are large red-brown peaks of termite mounds, some reaching up to 1.5 m in height. Although I hadn’t seen any evidence of life in these mounds during the summer, the first monsoon rain brought on an impressive emigration of the reproductive caste, which are winged for dispersal. After a short flight, the reproductives land, bite their own wings off, and burrow into the nearest crevice. Most perish before they can establish a new colony, meeting a very different fate.

Walking to the mess hall past the street lamps, I could see clouds of awkwardly-flying termites, but sudden movement drew my eye to the ground. Frogs and toads had emerged from their underground lairs to dine, some so fat with termites that hopping was almost impossible. The next day, flocks of birds clustered around the base of the street lamps, where many of the reproductives had fallen, pecking delicately through the grass. Even the monkeys could be seen picking in the crevices of trees and in the underbrush for these tasty snacks.

Seeing such a mass emergence and the effects on the wildlife made me realize that perhaps humans are not the only ones who are happy to see the start of the monsoon.

(Photos will be uploaded at a later date, owing to technical difficulties)

We left Dehradun for our last adventure, heading for Delhi and then to the state of Kerala. The motivation for taking this long journey was to seek contrast. In a country as diverse as India, to spend all your time in one area won’t give you any hint of the differences that lie within.

From Delhi, we took a day trip to the city of Agra, home to the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort. The preservation efforts at the Taj Mahal were evident in the bag searches for sharp objects, the booties one wears while walking around, and the careful scrutiny by many guards. The magnificence of this stunning building was overwhelming from the stunning setting of the gleaming white dome to the intricate latticework carved in marble. Inlays of semi-precious stones depicted graceful flowers and leaves along the base and front, giving it a more delicate appearance up close.

Our arrival in Kochi took us to the ancient town of Fort Kochi, at the mouth of the famed backwaters of Kerala. This beautiful enclave of European influence is being actively restored and clearly caters to the tourists. It was a pleasure to ride the commuter ferry across the straits and see the port and fishing boats, many of which are still built in the traditional manner, with high bows and sterns.

The backwaters of Kerala are a fascinating natural phenomenon – thousands of kilometers of connected freshwater streams, lakes, and sloughs, fed by several rivers that drain the Western Ghats into the Indian Ocean. Many communities along the backwaters are only accessible by boat, and make their living growing rice in paddies on reclaimed land that is 2 m below sea level.

But there are sociological features that set Kerala State apart as well. Boasting the highest literacy rate (98%) in all of India, historical culture in Kerala was one of the few examples of a matrilineal society.  The evidence of Christian influence is very prominent, with many churches and biblical names in the population. There is also a more temperate pace to the traffic and a fastidious cleanliness to the streets. Cooking employs the use of the abundant coconut and banana trees, which grow wild and in cultivation. Even the rice is different!

After our short stay in Kochi, we traveled to the Periyar Tiger Reserve, investigating the spice plantations along the way.