Situated on the fringes of the vast expanse of the Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary along the Western Ghats in the serene and picturesque region of Agumbe, is a research station and its team of people who have been rising every morning for the past four months to an experience that can simply be called exceptional. The lush green rainforests presents more than what meets the eye. Agumbe is home to the magnificent King Cobra and the Agumbe Rainforest Research Station (ARRS) that works towards conservation of this elusive king of all snakes in India.

Romulus Whitaker's (a herpetologist) vision for ARRS, since he initiated its set up in 2005, took yet another optimistic turn this March with the country's first radio telemetry project on snakes (tracking snakes through radio transmitters implanted in them). Moving beyond rescues of King Cobras in and around Agumbe along with imparting education and awareness among locals on conservation of the same, ARRS took the giant leap of getting a step closer to studying the various facets of the King Cobra.

"Little is known about several aspects of this species such as nesting (this is the only species of snakes that is known to build a nest), courtship, combat and even cannibalism. This effort is to record the observations made through tracking that will facilitate a better understanding of the snake. The behaviour pattern will also be useful in fuelling the process of conservation of this species," says P Gowri Shankar, conservation officer, ARRS and a King Cobra researcher who is also overseeing the project at present.

Currently tracking a single 11-ft male King Cobra, the team that works in collaboration with the Karnataka Forest Department, includes students of environmental science from universities across the country along with a few wildlife enthusiasts (all with prior training) taking time off from work. These volunteers lend their support by assisting in recording and maintaining daily reports and leg the long distances taken by the snake. "The task is a strenuous one and extremely demanding, especially since our objective is to monitor the snake from a distance, giving him his space. Tracking is mostly by the radio signal and not by visual sighting. Yet we need to always be sure he's in good health," shares Gowri Shankar who has also been instrumental in the setting up of ARRS.
Another interesting and important aspect that the team intends to work on through this project, adds Gowri Shankar, is to study the effect of rescue and relocation of snakes. With no specific information or data on the same, it is a question that they hope will be answered through this project.

"Snakes are very territorial in nature and it is a concern for us to be able to ensure that when we rescue and release these king cobras, we are not endangering their lives. In fact, the male King Cobra we are tracking is at present very close to the place he was rescued from. It is for us to wait and see if he goes back to where he came from or attempts to create a new territory for himself," he says.

It's been a long journey since early March for the male King Cobra who, till the end of May, covered a distance of nearly 56 km.  With the onset of monsoon in Agumbe's rainforests, he has now decided to take his much needed break. It is also a time for the team at ARRS to lay low and wait for the king of this forest to plan his next move.