Novel and refreshing

It was most refreshing to pick up some attractive tourist brochures and booklets from the ‘Virama Mandiraya’ down the Southern Expressway about which I wrote last week. They are different to most brochures we had gotten used to seeing, released by the State authority promoting tourism. Among them were several promoting different aspects of our culture and natural resources.

Identifying Sri Lanka as “one of the best wildlife travel destinations in the world,” one of the booklets is a guide for eco-travellers. Titled ‘Sri Lanka Wildlife Itineraries’, it is written and illustrated by the well known writer and photographer Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne – an authority on the subject. It will certainly “enable wildlife enthusiasts to plan a holiday which makes the best use of their time in line with their particular interests,” stated as the objective by Sri Lanka Tourism.

It introduces Sri Lanka as being amongst the world’s 25 biodiversity hot spots as well as being amongst the much fewer hyper hot spots. Sri Lanka has a high rate of endemism (species found nowhere else in the world). In terms of species density (species per square kilometre) it is amongst the highest in the world for many faunal groups including birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians.

It has also been described as the best place in Asia for seeing the leopard and the best in the world for the Asian elephant. It is mentioned that the largest concentration of wild Asian elephants – the Gathering of Elephants – takes place every year in August and September in Minneriya.

Sri Lanka also provides an ideal place to see blue whales – the largest animal to have ever lived in this planet – off the shores of Galle during January to April. The Sinharaja Bird Waves are claimed to be the largest mixed species bird flocks in the world and have been subject to one of the longest field studies.

A wildlife calendar details – month-wise – what can be seen and where. February, for instance, has been picked as a good time of the year to visit Horton Plains National Park for spectacular views from World’s End and to see montane endemics. A brief overview of seasonal highlights is given in the calendar.

A useful itinerary has also been provided under popular themes – bird-watching, leopard and elephant safaris, primates, butterflies, dragonflies, wildlife photography, rainforests, big game and whales, and whales and dolphins.

‘Buddhist Excursions’ offers the tourist a general idea of Buddhist places of worship indicating their significance in the context of the long history of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. ‘Festive’ is the title of another booklet showcasing the multicultural heritage of Sri Lanka. It covers a whole range of festivals – starting with Independence Day in February – highlighting the religious and cultural festivals held throughout the year. Another general guide discusses the rich variety Sri Lanka offers the tourists.

Apart from the reader-friendly text, the highlights of the publications are the high quality photographs used and the attractive layouts coupled with quality printing. They have a ‘Triad touch’ though no name is mentioned anywhere. Hope I am not wrong!