Meet the Author
Field Guide to the
Marine Life of India
Unbelievably,
Apte had a tremendous fear for water. However his curiosity about underwater
life got the better of this fear and at the age of 15 he jumped into the sea.
Since then, the study of underwater life and popularizing marine biodiversity
conservation has become his life long mission.
Ms
Savita Bharti interviewed Shri Deepak Apte on behalf of Education for Change,
about the making of this first of its kind field guide on Marine Life of India.
Savita Bharti, EFC: What was
the inspiration for making a field guide on marine life especially looking at
the little research work available in this area and the difficulties of
underwater exploration?
Deepak Apte: The very lack of a
good quality field guide on marine life in India was main driver to develop a
handy, easy to use field guide. The book “Field Guide to the Marine Life of
India” was in making for a decade. When I first got interested in sea life in
the early 1970s, I started exploring sea shores with a view to learning new
facets of marine life. However, I quickly realized that there was a lack of
easily available literature and field guides which can guide amateurs to learn
and identify the fascinating creatures in our seas and coasts. As time passed,
numerous field guides appeared for different groups of terrestrial biodiversity,
but not a single one on marine life. Thus the passion which I nurtured for four
decades, of having a handy to use field guide for amateurs started taking shape.
EfC: What were the difficulties
you encountered during the compilation of this book?
EfC: Tell us about your sea
adventures and the learnings?
Deepak Apte: My sea adventures
were fascinating. ‘Respect the space of wild animals’ has always been my mantra
or first precautionary principal which I follow even now. This had saved me from
any unpleasant encounters.
However,
only recently, when you start believing you are the best in the business,
nature shows you how little you know. During my last trip to Lakshadweep, a
little casual search under the stones could have cost me my life. For the first
time ever in my quest to learn about marine life, I was stung by a stone fish, a
near fatal one. Fortunately, it was a juvenile and it was not a full blown
sting. But for three days, the pain was unbearable. Again a lesson to remember!
No matter how much experience you have, never ever let your guard down and
learn to respect wilderness.
I
captured that small pretty stone fish on my camera and is part of one of the
illustration in the book. Forty years of field work of course has numerous
interesting experiences. It would be worth writing another book on it.
EfC: Who is your target
audience for this fi eld guide?
Deepak
Apte: The book has been my dream project primarily made for young and amateurs
but will be very handy for researchers as well as graduate and post graduate
students, college libraries and personal book shelf.
 |
| The Field Guide to Marine Life of India is 504 page all in colour book illustrating 1200 species commonly found along Indian shores. |
For more information contact:
Deepak Apte, E-8, Poorva society
Panchpakhadi, Thane – 400602 Maharashtra Website:www.deepakapte.com Email: spiderconch@gmail.com
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