A light, pre-morning rain is falling as Vivek Ramachandran climbs on his motorcycle and careens on to the fog-shrouded dirt track that winds through the Kalakkad-Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve (KMTR) in Tamil Nadu. The forest seems at times to close in on the track, the dense tangle of undergrowth cutting across it every once in a while. Above, layer upon layer of tree canopy forms a dense patchwork that masks the sky. Ramachandran’s destination is a patch of dense evergreen forest c