CAN YOU see it?” I asked my fellow researcher one evening in the summer of 2022. “Not yet,” the researcher replied, “but I am sure it is hiding somewhere inside. There is no way for it to escape.”
The two of us, along with three other researchers, were looking for Dritto, a male garden lizard (Calotes versicolor) that had escaped from our experimental plot at the campus of the Gandhi Krishi Vigyana Kendra in Bengaluru. I was certain that the lizard had escaped from the fenced plot.
For the last five days, the lizard had been frequenting one area of the plot. We suspected that it had found a way out through here. Dritto eventually returned to the plot, but five days later, it escaped again. This time, we confirmed its escape route. This indicated that in the three months since it was under observation, the lizard had gained a spatial understanding of the plot.
Dritto was one of the nine garden lizards my team and I had been studying as part of a project with The Rufford Foundation, UK, to understand how the spatial learning abilities of reptiles help them forage for food. The fenced plot, a 2 m by 2 m vegetable cropland, was divided into patches with different pest infestations. We explored whether the lizards would be able to identify patches based on the location of pests. The results showed that reptiles indeed had the ability to choose a “better” foraging patch and remember it.
Denne historien er fra July 01, 2024-utgaven av Down To Earth.
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Denne historien er fra July 01, 2024-utgaven av Down To Earth.
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A SPRIG TO CARE FOR
Punarnava, a perennial herb, is easy to grow and has huge health benefits
DIGGING A DISASTER
Soapstone mining near Dabti Vijaypur village has caused many residents to migrate.
REVIEW THE TREATMENT
Several faecal sludge treatment plants in Uttar Pradesh suffer from design flaws that make the treatment process both expensive and inefficient
MAKE STEEL SUSTAINABLE
As India works to double its GDP by 2030, its steel industry must balance growth with sustainability. By embracing policies like the Steel Scrap Recycling Policy 2019 and adopting green technologies, India is paving the way for a more sustainable future in steel production
Can ANRF pull off the impossible for India?
Anusandhan National Research Foundation is expected to reorient India's innovation goals but funding issues, old mindsets remain a drag
TROUBLED WOODS
Forests are a great bulwark against climate change. But this is fast changing. AKSHIT SANGOMLA travels through some of the pristine patches of the Western Ghats to explore how natural disturbances triggered by global warming now threaten the forest health
BLINDING GLOW
The science is clear: increased illumination has damaging consequences for the health of humans, animals and plants. It’s time governments introduced policies to protect the natural darkness and improved the quality of outdoor lighting.
GROUND REALITY
What happens when the soil loses the ability to grow healthy, high-yield crops on its own?
GM POLICY MUST BE FARMER CENTRIC
On July 23, the Supreme Court of India directed the Union government to develop a national policy on genetically modified (GM) crops for research, cultivation, trade and commerce through public consultation.
Vinchurni's Gandhi
A 96-year-old farmer transforms barren land into a thriving forest in drought-prone region of Satara