The Soul of the Rhino A Nepali Adventure with Kings and Elephant Drivers, Billionaires and Bureaucrats, Shamans and Scientists and the Indian Rhinoceros

by Mishra, Hemanta; Fowler, Jim; Babbitt, Bruce; Ottaway, Jim

• ISBN13: 9781599211466
• ISBN10: 1599211467
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-01-01
• Publisher: Lyons Press

Summary

The story of a Nepalese who has spent his entire life safeguarding an endangered species This new release is a spirited yet humble account of one man's scientific career and personal journey to save the endangered rhinoceros in his native Nepal. Fresh out of university, Mishra began his work with aboriginal tribes, the Nepalese royal house, the World Wildlife Fund, and the World Bank to protect the animal in its Himalayan habitat. In spite of decades spent political arm-wrestling, traveling and fund-raising, Mishra is still fearful to this day that Maoist insurgents and poachers will kill off the Asian rhinoceros for gooda tragedy after all his hard-won gains. This is the first book about saving the Asian one-horned rhinoceros, and the only one to delve into the multi-layered political labyrinths of wildlife conservation in South Asia. Filled with candor and bittersweet humor, Mishra recreates his journey on behalf of the rhino, an ugly yet enchanting, terrifying yet delicate creature. In the tradition of Leakey and Fossey, Mishra will be hailed by the media as the animal's advocate, and SOUL OF THE RHINO will quickly engage the soul of the reader. Hemanta Mishra now lives in Virginia. This is his first book.

Author Biography

Hemanta Mishra has worked with the Smithsonian Institution, the World Wildlife Fund, the World Bank, and Asian Development Bank and other major conservation groups. He was a key player in the international team that preserved and stabilized the habitat and is credited with halting the extinction of the rhino and Tiger populations in Nepal. He lives in Vienna, Virginia.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. ix
Foreword	p. xi
Preface	p. xv
Prologue: A Tryst with Destiny	p. xxi
Close Encounters with the Unicorn Kind	p. 1
Cheating Yama, the God of Death	p. 11
A Tale of the Terai	p. 21
Rhino Roots	p. 29
Clash of Cultures	p. 35
Medicine or Myth?	p. 45
Learning from the West	p. 57
Wilderness Blues	p. 67
Poverty, Rhinos, Tigers, and Tourists in Chitwan	p. 77
George of the Jungle	p. 89
Killing Mothers to Snatch Babies	p. 101
Science and Shamanism	p. 107
Kidnapping Baby Rhinos for an American Zoo	p. 113
Taming Texas Rhinos	p. 123
Popes, Kings, Queens, and the Rhino	p. 137
Palace Intrigues	p. 147
Rookie at the Royal Rhino Hunt	p. 157
Rhino versus Royalty	p. 169
Prayers in the Dusk	p. 179
Moving Rhinos	p. 187
A New Home for the Rhinos	p. 197
Epilogue: Hope or Uncertainty on a Himalayan Scale	p. 205
Selected Bibliography	p. 217
Index	p. 225
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