From Mumbai to the Lab: A Journey into the World of Reptiles and Arachnids

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‘Raised in Mumbai, this biologist's childhood fascination with snakes led to a career in biodiversity research. Captivated by the wildlife of Marol and the nearby Sanjay Gandhi National Park, he transitioned from a budding naturalist to a dedicated researcher through self-directed learning and field trips. Now pursuing a PhD at the Max Planck Institute, he studies developmental biology while maintaining his passion for reptiles and arachnids. His journey underscores the beauty of India's biodiversity and the urgent need for conservation amidst environmental challenges.’

Background

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I was born in Mumbai on the 12th of March 1988 and lived in Marol, Andheri, with my parents. The place where I grew up was instrumental in shaping my interest in snakes and, eventually, biodiversity research and now, in general biology. I lived in a Chalow with a lot of scrub forest around my house and had a small space available for gardening. During school, a lot of my time was spent in studies, first school and later tuition. But in my spare time, I would read mostly about snakes. Snakes fascinated me as I would encounter them quite frequently around my house.

In the 8th grade, I joined the school nature club, a program run by WWF-India with schools. We would receive the WWF newsletter, and I would eagerly wait for it as it would have one article on Indian snakes, a column written by Kedar Bhide, who would rescue snakes in Mumbai and educate people about snakes. I could not afford to buy books on snakes or wildlife, so the only option was to read books in the school library and buy old National Geographic Magazines from scrap shops near my house.

The nature club planned an outing to the Conservation Education Centre of the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS). The trip was a turning point in my life as an education officer of the BNHS led us through the forest, talking about the plants, insects and the work done at the BNHS. After that visit, I realised that people study animals and can make a career in it.

This was when I decided I wanted to follow my dreams and pursue studies on snakes. I was fortunate enough to meet others my age in the neighbourhood who were interested in snakes, and after a bit of reading, I got involved in snake rescue and rehabilitation from 10th grade.

Currently you’re a biologist working towards your PhD with a special interest in reptiles and arachnids - Can you tell us the story behind what led you to pursue Biology and why a special focus on reptiles and arachnids?

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My fascination for snakes was the main reason for pursuing biology. In India, being a scientist as a career choice is not quite common, and it came as a shock for my family, who, all this while, thought I wanted to be a chef or a fashion photographer, as I loved cooking and was interested in photography.

I was introduced to scientific publications during the 11th grade when I joined college. I was excited and would read all papers I could lay my hands on centred on snakes and their diversity. My professors at college and the staff at the library were highly supportive and encouraging. I grew up in Marol, which was close to the southern border of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park. The region between the park's boundaries and my house was Aarey Milk Colony.

This area was covered with secondary forest and plantations but retained most of its biodiversity. I started visiting the region during my spare time after college and on weekends. These trips were to try to find snakes; my friends and I would walk and try to up-turn fallen logs and boulders. While doing so, we barely came by snakes as they are not as easy to find, but we saw scorpions, tarantulas and other critters seeking refuge.

I began taking pictures of whatever we saw. The local people knew us as we would rescue snakes from their houses or societies, which was the primary source for figuring out what snakes were found in the region. We also read literature about some of the critters we found and started working on a few of the scorpions and tarantula species we found.

One of the scorpions and tarantulas we found turned out to be a new species, and a few others turned out to be rediscoveries after their first descriptions. Our short trips to this region between 2004 and 2012 ended with several interesting findings, which were my primary motivation to study groups of my interests, like reptiles and arachnids. I started stepping out of my city to venture into new territory to explore, document and describe many more species.

If a city like Mumbai could harbour so many new and exciting species, I can't stop imagining the treasure India’s biodiversity hotspots may have in store for me!

Now, coming to the sad truth. Despite having such a deep desire to study wildlife, I chose to focus on something more likely to give me a better future and, hopefully a job. Finding a job in India in the field of wildlife, especially one that details studying reptiles, is hard to come by, and even if so, the sheer amount of competition makes one's chances quite bleak.

I have been fascinated by species, their diversity and the characters that separate them. I drifted a little, and instead of studying these characters in reptiles, I now study them and their development in nematode worms. My PhD topic at the Max Planck Institute for Biology, Tübingen, focuses on how an organism can have multiple forms (phenotypes) from the same genome (genotype) in response to environmental stimuli.

The primary focus of this project is to uncover the gene network that makes these forms. In doing so, we close into the broader topic of interest: the origin of developmental plasticity and how it drives evolution.

Despite my choice to be a lab biologist, I continue to work on reptiles and arachnids. I spend my evenings after lab and weekends working on them. I visit natural history museums in Europe to examine and work on reptiles and arachnids now and then. I visit India annually and make field trips to mostly the Himalayas to add data to my ongoing projects and papers.

I understand it is a lot of work, but I enjoy each day, learning a lot in my lab, coming home and working on something I am passionate about. So, I see it as a win-win situation.

Can you describe what a typical day in your research consists of? And do you get many opportunities to study these creatures outdoors in their natural environment?

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For my lab project, I observe these organisms under a microscope, and because I am under a microscope, I can’t do any experiments in their natural habitat.

For my biodiversity-related studies, I get to observe these animals in the wild. Finding them is excellent, especially after walking for hours and cracking your back after upturning hundreds of boulders. I cannot describe the feeling of holding a species in hand, and you know that it is new to science, and your team will eventually name it!

What recent discoveries in your field have surprised you the most?

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While my journey to document biodiversity continued, with a significant focus on the Western Ghats, I was keenly interested in exploring the northeast state of Arunachal Pradesh. Arunachal Pradesh borders China, has dense montane forests, and is home to many species I always wanted to see.

That dream came true when a couple of my friends agreed to plan a month-and-a-half-long survey of this region. We travelled to this state and spent roughly 45 days exploring national parks and wildlife sanctuaries across the state. The trip resulted in the discovery of three new species of snakes, including a pit viper species, Salazar’s pit viper, that we named after the Harry Potter character Salazar Slytherin.

We also discovered a new lizard genus and three new species of other lizard species. We are in 2019, and the discovery of 6 new vertebrates is a high number, suggesting how little we know about our biodiversity. We are in a race to document species across these remote forests before these forests are axed down, and these species are lost before being documented. These discoveries surprise me and equally make me worried about biodiversity loss and their conservation.

Can you share a specific project you’ve worked on that you're particularly proud of?

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I lived in Mumbai, a city synonymous with an urban scape, but most may not know that Mumbai also has a wild side. The city has a relatively sizeable national park surrounded by human settlements. The Sanjay Gandhi National Park spans over 120 sq. km. and is home to diverse biota, including more than 35 free-ranging leopards.

The region that spans between the southern boundaries of the national park and my home is a natural habitat and rich in biodiversity. My friends and I documented the biodiversity of this region, which led to the discovery of several new species and rediscoveries from the area.

This project is my favourite, and I am proud to be a part of this work. This work was carried out from the time I was in the age group from 18 to 22, with no meteor or supervision, and I did everything that mainly included mistakes, which taught me a lot. This was my virtual laboratory and my project, my experiment that laid down the foundation for turning a city naturalist into a field biologist and a very keen taxonomist.

If you had the opportunity to study any animal in the world, what would it be and why? Further, is there a particular creature you favour the most?

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I have been fascinated by snakes since childhood, and they continue to fascinate me even further. Undoubtedly, my favourite group of animals are snakes, and among them, pit vipers a group that I would favour. Pit vipers of south and southeast Aisa are predominantly green and are crucial elements of most forested landscapes. Their sheer diversity in species and highly cryptic morphologies make them an ideal group to study their biology. In the world, I could study pit vipers; I would love to study pit vipers on islands across South and Southeast Asia.

What sort of difference do you hope to make as a Biologist? And do you have any interesting hypotheses of your own?

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I have a background in natural history and expertise in working on multiple taxa, from invertebrates to vertebrates. I am currently undergoing training in Developmental biology, which will help broaden my horizons and employ techniques to answer fundamental questions in biology, hopefully by establishing new model organisms.

These models may help us better understand developmental processes in non-established model organisms, which may have implications for therapeutics and evolutionary studies. I am fascinated by organisms with regenerative capabilities and plan to pursue my post-PhD endeavours in regenerative biology.

Words of Wisdom

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‘I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious’ Albert Einstein