Naturalist
Specialty: Herpetology · Ornithology
During a bird survey in Pench Tiger Reserve, Ashutosh Singh and his team were on foot inside the forest when they unexpectedly came face to face with a tiger at close range. The silence, the tension, the realisation that they were sharing the same space with such a powerful predator — it’s something he says he’ll never forget.
As a Zoology graduate specialising in herpetology and ornithology, Ashutosh works across the tropical forests, wetlands and urban green spaces of the Western Ghats and Central India, with a focus on forest schools. His spirit animal is the Indian leopard — not for strength, but for the way it adapts, observes quietly, and moves through forests, mountains and even human-dominated spaces without ever losing itself.
How Ashutosh Singh Teaches Forest Respect
The lesson he most wants to pass on is that nature demands respect before it reveals itself. You can sit in a forest for hours and see nothing if you’re careless — making noise, chasing animals, moving impatiently. The forest, he’s found, reacts to your behaviour: the calmer, more patient and more respectful you are, the more wildlife begins to behave naturally around you. Some of his most unexpected sightings came the moment he stopped trying to ‘find’ wildlife and simply respected the space he was in.
“Nature wants respect — observe quietly, wait patiently, and learn humbly.”
