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Leopards yes, but so much more
Leopards and other Wildlife of Yala, compiled and photographed by Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne. Published by Jetwing Hotels and Jetwing Eco Holidays. Price: Rs. 3,500
Close encounters with leopards, elephants and birds and a wealth of information on the seemingly endless treasures of Yala combine in this book to give readers both the thrill of a visit to a wildlife sanctuary as well as a comprehensive background of scientific detail.

Yala seems to hold a strange fascination for wildlife lovers in this country and not surprisingly, given that it is the country's best known and most visited park, most books published on Sri Lanka's wildlife use it as their base. That similarity with others notwithstanding, this book stands out as a comprehensive and stimulating volume that you can see yourself returning to time and time again.

Compiler Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne is well known in conservation circles having devoted himself to this field and played no small part in popularising the subject among a lay audience. His articles and photographs have been in many magazines but he has chosen to draw in other experts in the field along with his own work in the book. Thus Leopards and other Wildlife of Yala is broad in scope; there are leopards of course and elephants, but also bear, birds, butterflies, dragonflies, crocodiles and jackals. Add to this the fact that you have an intriguing mix of authors, researchers, photographers, albeit all wildlife enthusiasts and you have a surefire recipe for success.

The list of contributors is impressive: Gehan himself, then Lal Anthonis, Karen Conniff, Chandra Jayawardana, Namal Kamalgoda, Andrew Kittle and Anjali Watson, Chandrika Maelge, Sriyanie Miththapala, Adrian Neville, Shyamala Ratnayeke, Ravi Samarasinha, Charles Santiapillai, Rajnish Vandercone and S. Wijeyamohan.

What this then assures the reader of is a diversity of writing styles. Chandra Jayawardana's chapter for instance 'An introduction to the Yala National Park presents a broad overview of the park, touching on its history and ecology, while the very next chapter 'One evening in Yala' is Gehan's colourful account of a magical visit to the park as 2003 faded away.

With its focus on leopards, the book has some excellent contributions on this magnificent feline with Sriyanie Miththapala putting forward a case for using this top carnivore as a keystone for conservation. She presents many pertinent points to argue that more research and data are needed to develop a road map for their conservation, adopting a holistic approach that includes all stakeholders.

Andrew Kittle and Anjali Watson, who are conducting research into leopards present the results of their intensive study from October 2000 to June 2002 and this is fascinating reading for anyone who loves big cats. Ravi Samarasinha, another well-known leopard researcher writes on using photographic identification to study the Yala leopards and follows it up with a thumbnail sketch of some of the leopards of Yala giving them his own unique nomenclature. And so within these pages we meet JR mc1 (Jamburagala cub) and GFc 1 who is shy but approachable and KB mc 1 and 2, the Kotabendi Wewa male and female cubs who are both bold and curious and very attached to each other.

The book progresses to the Elephant section where Charles Santiapillai, Rajnish Vandercone and S. Wijeyamohan draw a detailed portrait of the Asian elephant. Another chapter has Lal Anthonis introducing the reader to some of his favourite tuskers, Anuradha, Genghis Khan and Short Tusks to name a few.

Then it's on to Other Animals, Mammals and Reptiles, Dragonflies, Butterflies and Birds, not necessarily in that order and the reader is left with a comprehensive guide to all that Yala offers.

The average visitor to Yala is often only focused on seeing elephants and leopards and this book succeeds in opening up an entire new vista of wildife experience by highlighting the oft-overlooked reptiles, birds and other fauna and flora that Yala possesses.

Notwithstanding the excellent articles, the pictures that liberally intersperse the text are in themselves special and beautifully presented, a credit to Gehan, the photographer and Chandrika Maelge who was responsible for the design and layout.

Impressively printed, this weighty coffee table publication is however, not without the occasional typos but its value far overrides this little technicality.

Leopards & other Wildlife of Yala is available from Jetwing House (46/26 Navam Mawatha), Barefoot, ODEL, Lake House Bookshop, Hyde Park Corner and Marks Kandy). -Renuka Sadanandan

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