Maya the Tigress of Tadoba

Maya's Maya माया 

You met Waghdoh the oldest tiger of Tadoba in the previous story. He was seen cooling himself in a water tank. May is the hottest month in Tadoba with day temperatures crossing 45 degrees Celsius. Water is essential for their survival. Ghumakkad was fortunate to have sighted some more tigers and other wild life at Tadoba in May 2016.

This is the story of Maya the tigress and her three cubs. Written beautifully by my son Ankush. We did this wildlife trip together as a family. Before we take you to Ankush's story, here is a picture of water hole No. 2 in Tadoba as seen by the naked eye. Wide, rocky, barren, depleting water surrounded by bamboo thickets-- this is where action unfolded. You can barely spot a tiger sitting at the far edge across the safari vehicle in the foreground.

See the video footage of tiger cub entering the water hole. This was shot without a telephoto lens on purpose-- to give you a feel not only of the tiger but its surroundings as well. See the rocky slope, fallen tree branches and depleting pool of water! All in one frame.

For those of you who have not yet experienced a Tiger reserve, here is a one-minute video with Cheetal the Spotted Deer giving a warning call. In the video, you don't see the deer, but can only hear the call of the deer. It is their way of alerting other animals that beware-- the king of the jungle is on the prowl!

Resuming Ankush's story titled 'Magnificent Maya and her Cubs', his opening lines are:
"Words can't describe the excitement and feeling that can best be termed as 'smallness' that takes over when you see a tiger in the wild. It's a feeling that makes you forget life outside the forest. Everything else becomes inconsequential and only the forest matters.

Maya is a magnificent specimen of a tiger and we were lucky to see her and her 3 9-month old cubs - one female and 2 males - in front of a watering hole that would turn out to be a theatre for the next 2 days. Can't imagine what goes through a poacher's mind when they hunt a tiger down. Was a heart warming pleasure to see her thrive in her habitat. and her territory. May her tribe grow and flourish! 

Rest of the experience in the picture comments. Happy reading!"

Click here to see 60 brilliant pictures with a gripping narration by Ankush.

After seeing the telephoto shots in Ankush's story, here are two 

wide angle shots by Neeta to give you a perspective of action at 

the scene. Let the pictures speak.

Tadoba can be visited again and again. Apart from Tigers, Tadoba 

has lots to offer. You have to be patient. Read the story 'Tiger 

Ahoy!' to get a feel of other wild life there.

Those looking for directions and other details, please read the 

previous story here. 

Hope you got a feel of Maya and her cubs. Did Maya cast her maya on you?

Special credits to Ankush and Neeta for their pictures as Ghumakkad was laid off for a day at Tadoba with a sprained back! He did bounce back the next day. That is where the videos came from!

Thanks for browsing

   Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with Ankush Bhargava/ 31st May 2016