Agumbe ಆಗುಂಬೆ
—  village  —
A fog-filled valley, view from sunset point A fog-filled valley, view from sunset point
Agumbe
Coordinates: 13°30′31″N 75°05′45″E / 13.5087°N 75.0959°E / 13.5087; 75.0959Coordinates: 13°30′31″N 75°05′45″E / 13.5087°N 75.0959°E / 13.5087; 75.0959
Country	India
State	Karnataka
District	Shimoga district
Elevation	826 m (2,710 ft)
Population
• Total	1,000
Languages
• Official	Kannada
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
PIN	577 411
Telephone code	08181
Vehicle registration	KA-14

Agumbe (Kannada: ಆಗುಂಬೆ) is a village located in the Shimoga district in the state of Karnataka, India. Lying in the Thirthahalli taluk and the Malnad region, Agumbe is among the places in India that receive very heavy rainfall earning it the sobriquet, "Cherrapunji of the South".^[1] It is also the home of the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station, the only permanent rainforest research station in India.^[2] The renowned herpetologist, Romulus Whitaker called Agumbe the capital of King Cobra.^[3] An area near Agumbe has been converted into a protected area for Medicinal Plants to help in their conservation.

Since 2005, Naxalite activity has been observed near Agumbe and hence, a lot of Karnataka State Police personnel have been deployed and checkposts created in all intersections. This however has not hindered visitors from visiting the region to enjoy the natural beauty of Agumbe and its surroundings.^{[citation needed]}

Attractions[link]

Sunset Point

Agumbe has a sunset point which receives lot of visitors. On a clear day, one can see the sun setting over the Arabian Sea though the sea is at quite a distance from Agumbe. It's located on the 14th hair pin bend on the mountain ride to Agumbe.

Waterfalls[link]

Kunchikal Falls

Important Info: Kunchikal Falls are not the highest waterfalls in India. Rumors have been spreading all over internet about this being a 455m falls, thus claiming it is the highest in India. 455 meters is the height of the top of the falls above sea level, not the height of the waterfalls.

Kunchikal Falls is a small waterfalls also known as Kunchikal Abby, located about 20 km from Thirthahalli. It is formed by the Varahi river.

Barkana Falls

Barkana Falls is the 10th highest waterfall in India with a height of 850 ft/259 mts. It is formed by the Seeta River.

Onake Abbi Falls

This is another waterfall near Agumbe. In the Kannada language, "Onake" means a pounding stick which is used to pound grains in villages.

View from top of Onake Abbi Falls

Jogigundi

This is a small water fall which is very near to Agumbe, it takes about 10 to 15 min to reach this place.

Koodlu theertha falls

A beautiful waterfall just 20 km from Agumbe, includes a Trek of 3–4 km and you will reach the most beautiful falls in the entire state.

Koodlu theertha Waterfalls

Getting there[link]

Agumbe is near the town of Thirthahalli which lies on the National Highway NH-13. From the state capital of Bangalore, Agumbe can be reached by taking NH-4 till Tumkur, then NH-206 till Shimoga and then NH-13 to Thirthahalli (a total distance of about 380 km.). Udupi on the Konkan Railway is the nearest railhead. The nearest airport is the Mangalore International Airport.

It can also be reached from Bangalore via Hassan ~ Chikkamagalore ~ Balehonnur ~ Jaipura ~ Sringeri ~ Agumbe. As of today, this is the best route to reach Agumbe. In this route you will be crossing the best possible hilly regions of the western ghats. And this being the shortest route.

If you are interested to cover another tourist destination, you can choose a route from Bangalore via Hassan ~ Belur ~ Chikkamagaloor ~ Sringeri ~ Agumbe.

There are private buses plying from Mangalore to Shimoga via Udupi, Hebri and Agumbe at regular intervals. The approximate time taken from Mangalore to reach Agumbe is three and half hours.

Rainfall[link]

Agumbe receives the second highest annual rainfall in India, next only to Cherrapunji (or the nearby Mawsynram).^[4] It receives a mean annual rainfall of 7,640 millimetres (301 in). The absolute maximum rainfall recorded in Agumbe in a single month is 4,508 millimetres (177.5 in) (in August 1946).^[5]

Biodiversity[link]

Being a part of Malnad and Western Ghats, Agumbe and its surroundings are rich in biodiversity. It is adjacent to one of the last surviving lowland rainforests in the Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary and the Kudremukh National Park.^[2] Many new species of flora and fauna are found in this region. Agumbe lends its name to the following species which were discovered here:

• Selenops agumbensis: A spider of genus Selenops
• Tarenna agumbensis: A shrub
• Drosophila agumbensis: A species of small fly
• Irenopsis agumbensis: A fungus
• Hygroaster agumbensis: A fungus
• Dactylaria agumbensis: A fungus

Other species discovered around Agumbe include:

• Caudalejeunea pluriplicata: A liverwort plant.^[6]
• Notothylas dissecta: A plant of type Hornwort earlier found only in Central America, was discovered in Asia for the first time in Agumbe.^[7]
• Cyclotoma alleni:A beetle discovered in Agumbe.^[8]

Some of the Spectacular Agumbe Fauna[link]

• King Cobra
• Lion-tailed macaque
• Cane Turtle
• Tiger
• Dhole
• Hornbills
• Sambhar
• Atlas moth
• Flying lizard
• Leopard
• Myriads of birds and amphibians
• Indian Gaur

Agumbe Rainforest research station (ARRS)[link]

King Cobras are found in the thick and moist forests of the Western Ghats in areas such as Agumbe.

Agumbe is the location of the only permanent rainforest research station in India which was established by the herpetologist, Romulus Whitaker.^[2] Whitaker chose Agumbe as the location for this station since this was the area where he spotted the King Cobra in the early 1970s.^[3] Financial help to build this station was provided by Whitaker’s mother, Doris Norden who willed him money that helped him purchase 8 acres (32,000 m²) of land in Agumbe. The main goal of the research station is to study and conserve the rainforests of South India, using King Cobra as the flagship species. One of the main goals of this research is to help the state of Karnataka establish the world’s first King Cobra Sanctuary.^[2] Experts from various fields were invited to aid in the research and understanding of the basic biology of the King Cobra which is an endangered species.^[2] For his efforts in setting up this station, Whitaker was awarded the United Kingdom's top conservation prize — the Whitley Award in 2005.^[2] Whitaker used the £30,000 cash prize that came with the award to set up cottages, buy basic scientific equipment, and a vehicle. The research station is eco-friendly and is not connected to the state's electricity grid and uses solar power and a micro hydel unit. Even the fencing around the station is of smooth wire so that it does not hurt the deer and leopards passing by. The station consists of two cottages for researchers and a refurbished farmhouse that serves as the hub. The station follows three-pronged approach involving research, education and conservation. Regular visits to schools are made and lecture demonstrations on snakes and conservation are given to students.

Medicinal Plants Conservation Area[link]

Established in the year 1999, Agumbe Medicinal Plants Conservation Area (MPCA) is an area created for the conservation of Medicinal Plants.^[9] This area is located at an altitude of 600 to 700 mts above Sea level. Some of the species of plants found here are Garcinia, Myristica, Litsea, Diospyros, Holigarna, Eugenia and Ficus. An organisation called the Foundation for Revitalisation of Local Health Traditions (FRLHT) conducted a survey in the MPCA and identified 371 plant species of which 182 were medicinal.^[9] Some of the species of plants that are found here are RLs (Red-listed and hence endangered):

• Adenia hondala
• Celastrus paniculatus
• Garcinia gummi-gutta
• Myristica dactyloides
• Persea macrantha
• Vateria indica

Salacia oblonga is another medicinal plant endemic to the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka but found only in this MPCA.^[9]

Malgudi Days[link]

Malgudi Days is a famous television serial which was directed by Shankar Nag and is based on the novels written by R. K. Narayan. Many episodes of this serial were filmed in Agumbe in 1985.^[10] In 2004, a new set of episodes of Malgudi Days have also been filmed at Agumbe under the direction of Kavitha Lankesh.^[11]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Agumbe

• Camping and Trekking at Agumbe
• Agumbe
• Agumbe Travel Information
• ये AGUMBE क्या चीज़ है?
• Kunchikal Falls does not exist

Notes[link]

v t e  Karnataka topics Overviews Architecture Cinema Climate Cuisine Demography Economy Education Folk Arts Geography History Media People Sports Transportation Wildlife History Aihole Alupas Amoghavarsha Badami Banavasi Chalukyas Chitradurga Nayaka Gangas Halmidi Hampi Hoysala Empire Kadambas Keladi Nayaka Kittur Chennamma Manyakheta Pattadakal Pulakesi II Rashtrakutas Srirangapatna Tipu Sultan Unification of Karnataka Vijayanagara empire Western Chalukyas Mysore Kingdom Geography Cities and towns Districts Rivers Taluks Villages Bayaluseeme Malenadu Karavali Western Ghats Culture Bharatanatya Bhuta Kola Bidriware Channapatna toys Chitrakala Parishat Gaarudi Gombe Ilkal saree Kamsale Kannada Karnatik music Kasuti Khedda Mysore Dasara Togalu Gombeyaata Udupi cuisine Veeragase Yakshagana Mysore musicians Literature Haridasa Hoysala Kannada (Medieval Modern Poetry Vijayanagara Western Chalukya) Kannada Sahitya Parishat Kannada Sahitya Sammelana Karnataka Rashtrakuta Vachana Vijayanagara Western Ganga Mysore Society Karnataka ethnic groups People Akka Mahadevi Aluru Venkata Rao C. N. R. Rao U.R. Ananthamurthy Anil Kumble Rahul Dravid Basavanna Bhimsen Joshi K.M. Cariappa Chandrashekhara Kambara Da Ra Bendre Kuvempu Vi Kru Gokak Masti Venkatesh Iyengar Shivarama Karanth Gubbi Veeranna Jakanachari Kengal Hanumanthaiah Kuvempu H. Narasimhaiah N.R. Narayana Murthy S. Nijalingappa Pampa Prakash Padukone Purandara Dasa Rajkumar Vishnuvardhan Sree Sree Shivakumara Swamiji Visvesvaraya Tourism Beaches Dams Forts National Parks Temples Waterfalls Awards Karnataka Ratna Pampa Prashasti Basava Puraskara Rajyotsava Prashasti Jakanachari Award Varnashilpi Venkatappa Award

Romulus Earl Whitaker (born May 23, 1943) is a herpetologist, wildlife conservationist and founder of the Madras Snake Park, The Andaman and Nicobar Environment Trust (ANET), and the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust. In 2008, Whitaker was selected as an Associate Laureate in the 2008 Rolex Awards for Enterprise, for his efforts to create a network of rainforest research stations throughout India. ^[1] In 2005 he was a winner of a Whitley Award for outstanding leadership in nature conservation. He used this award to found the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station in Karnataka, for the study of King Cobras and their habitat.

Work in India[link]

Gharial and Turtles at the Crocodile Bank

Whitaker was the founder director of the Snake Park in Chennai. The park was conceived to rehabilitate the Irula tribe who are known for their expertise in catching snakes. The tribals were left jobless after the ban of snake trading. Whitaker helped the Irula tribe to get involved in extracting snake venom used for the production of antivenom drugs. Rom is the Founder-Director of the Madras Crocodile Bank Trust Centre for Herpetology, actively involved in crocodile breeding and conservation programs. ^[2]

Whitaker is currently coordinating an effort to save the Gharial, a Critically endangered species of Crocodilia on the brink of extinction with less than 250 individuals left in Indian waters. ^[3]

King Cobra at Agumbe Rainforest Research Station

On December 27, 2010, the Minister for Environment and Forests, Jairam Ramesh, during a visit with Rom at the Madras Crocodile Bank, announced the formation of a National Tri-State Chambal Sanctuary Management and Coordination Committee for gharial conservation on 1,600 km² of the National_Chambal_Sanctuary for Ghariyals along the Chambal River in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. The Committee will comprise representatives of the states Water Resources Ministries, State Departments of Irrigation and Power, Wildlife Institute of India, Madras Crocodile Bank Trust, the Gharial Conservation Alliance, Development Alternatives, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, Worldwide Fund for Nature and the Divisional Forest officers of the three States. The Committee will plan strategies for protection of gharials and their habitat. This will involve further research on the species and its ecology and socio-economic evaluation of dependent riparian communities. Funding for this new initiative will be mobilized as a sub-scheme of the ‘Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats’ in the amount of Rs.50 million to 80 million (USD 1 million to 1.7 million) each year for five years. This project has long been advocated by Rom Whitaker. ^{[4] [5]}

Professional affiliations[link]

Rom is Honorary Consultant, International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources/Species Survival Commission (IUCN/SSC), Vice Chairman (Western Asia), IUCN/SSC Crocodile Specialist Group, Member, IUCN/SSC Indian Subcontinent Reptile and Amphibian Group and Member, IUCN/SSC Sea Turtle Specialist Group.

He is a Member of the Advisory Committee and the Editorial Board of the Bombay Natural History Society, as well as Correspondent, The Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, USA; Advisor, Irula Tribal Women's’ Welfare Society, Afforestation Project; Member, Centre for Science and Education, New Delhi; Member, Centre for Environment Education, Ahmedabad and Founder-Member, Tamil Nadu Society for Social Forestry Research. He is also Chief Technical Advisor, Irula Snake Catchers’ Industrial Cooperative Society; Convenor, Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), Andaman and Nicobar Islands Chapter; and Founder – Member, Palni Hills Conservation Council.^[6]

Popular culture[link]

He was producer of the 1996, 53 minute, Super 16 mm wildlife documentary The King and I made for the National Geographic Channel Explorer program. This film on the natural history of the King cobra, the largest venomous snake in the world, received the Emmy Award for Outstanding News and Documentary Program Achievement, 1998. It also received Best Photography Award, Progetto Natura 8th Stambecco d'Oro Nature Film Festival, Turin, 1997; Nominated for Best Cinematography, Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival 1997; Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Individual Achievement in a Craft-Cinematographers and News & Documentary, 1998 and nominated for Best Animal Behaviour, Wildscreen Film Festival 1998.

In February 2007, he was the subject of a critically acclaimed documentary produced by Icon Films and WNET (and broadcast as Supersize Crocs on PBS's Nature series) on oversized crocodiles, which was filmed in India, Ethiopia and Australia.

In January 2009, Whitaker was in another Nature documentary on real-life reptiles such as Komodo dragons and Dracos that inspired tales of dragons.

A February 2011 BBC Natural World followed Whitaker during his ongoing research into the causes and prevention of snake bites in India.

He has authored several scientific articles and popular books on reptiles, especially on snakes, including the comprehensive field guide, titled "Snakes of India - The Field Guide" in 2004.^[7] on the Snakes of India. ^{[6] [8]}

Personal[link]

Rom and his sister Gail (born 1939) grew up in New York City. After the birth of his sister Nina, his mother Doris Norden and his stepfather, Rama Chattopadhyaya moved the family to India when Rom was seven. Rom's stepfather was a pioneer in color film processing in Bombay (now Mumbai) for Bollywood. His brother Neelkanth was born in Mumbai in 1953. Rom continued his education (begun in New York) at the Kodaikanal International School (class of 1960). He studied briefly at Wyoming University. During the early Vietnam era he was drafted into the U.S. Army, where he trained and was a medic on a military base hospital in Japan.

After his Army tour of duty, he apprenticed from 1963 to 1965 at the Miami Serpentarium with Bill Haast, whom he affectionately calls his "guru". A short career in the Merchant Navy brought him back to India. He married his ex-wife Zai Whitaker in 1974, they have two sons, Nikhil (Wildlife Management) and Samir (Conservation Biologist). In 1986, He earned a B.Sc. in Wildlife management from Pacific Western University. He briefly dated the famous Odissi dancer, Protima Bedi. Rom is a naturalized Indian citizen. Rom currently lives in Chengalpattu town in Tamil Nadu with his life partner, Janaki Lenin, on a farm south of Chennai. Janaki Lenin is a wildlife writer. ^[9]

References[link]

External sources[link]

• I married a croc man - Romulus Whitaker Whitaker, Zia. Dec. 1994. National Wildlife Federation
• Agumbe Rainforest Research Station (ARRS) Web Portal