A one-of-a-kind workshop that takes you into the fascinating world of reptiles. Led by expert herpetologists, this experience will help you understand reptile behavior, adaptations, and their important role in the ecosystem.
Key Highlights
- Monsoon herping and immersive outdoor exploration
- Learning reptile and amphibian diversity during peak activity season
- Night trails and habitat-based herp observation
- Understanding monsoon ecology, behaviour and habitat associations
- Ethical wildlife observation and field safety practices
- Experiential learning in the forests of the Western Ghats ecosystem
- Discussions on coexistence, conservation and natural history
- Outdoor learning through direct engagement with nature and biodiversity
Program Team
P Gowri Shankar. PhD.
Herpetologist, TED Speaker, TEDFellow 2020
Gowri Shankar is a wildlife biologist working on king cobras for close to two decades. He was instrumental in initiating the pioneering radio telemetry study on king cobras and was able to discover the secret life of king cobras.
He is an authority on the ecology of king cobras. He has been featured in several wildlife documentaries like the ‘King and I’, ‘Secrets of the King Cobra ‘, ‘Asia’s Deadliest Snake’, and ‘Wildest India’ by BBC, National Geographic Channel, NatGeoWild , Discovery Channel ‘Mysteries of Wild India’ and ‘The Cobra King’ by channels like the BBC, Discovery, NatGeo Wild, Animal Planet, Smithsonian and National Geographic Channel.
He completed his PhD from at North Orissa University and is former exchange student at Uppsala University, Sweden.
He was awarded the herpetologist of the year-2015 by the Swedish Herpetological Society. He is a TEDFellow 2020, TED speaker and a TEDx speaker.
Priyanka Swamy
PhD Scholar, University of Mysore.
Program Manager, Kalinga Foundation
Priyanka has diverse experience across ecological field and laboratory work. As part of the Phylogeography of king cobras project, she has travelled to king cobra habitats across the world and has experience with phylogenetic and population genetics tools to understand evolutionary and biogeography patterns and assist conservation prioritisation. She has also addressed questions related to diversity pattern, population structure and drivers of diversification of the Ranids of the Western Ghats and other herpetofauna.
An excellent environment educator, she has co-conducted a wide range of outreach programs for diverse audiences from school and college students, to forest officials, researchers, and enthusiasts.
She is now pursuing her PhD project on Malabar pit vipers.
Venue and Location Information: Mulshi, Maharashtra 
To ensure the safety of the local wildlife and minimize ecological impact on sensitive habitats, the exact workshop location details within will be shared post-registration.
Includes:
- Accommodation on a sharing basis.
- Organic Vegetarian meals, snacks, and beverages on both days
- Stationery and program materials
- Program charges
Excludes :
- Personal expenses
- GST @18%
Travel to the venue
