Category Archives: life stories

Hugh Karunanayake, courtesy of THE CEYLANKAN, vol XXI/1, January 2018 where the title is “A Naturalist’s Paradise–Colombo in the 1940s”

Padda boats along the Negombo Canal

Growing up in mid twentieth century Colombo was a fascinating experience to any young person.  That was the era when urban growth was taking place  at a pace that afforded local fauna to thrive at will without any restrictions.  Colombo South  with its tree lined avenues  and  homes with spacious gardens  provided sanctuary to a wide range of fauna ranging from avi fauna to reptiles. As a five year old  just admitted to Royal Preparatory School  I was mesmerised  by the “golden beetles” that lived in the Andara trees that stood on the perimeter of the school grounds on Racecourse Avenue. Many of us five year olds fascinated by the shiny green gold sheen of the beetles, with great delight collected the beetles some of them dead and  others still alive and took them home. The live ones did not live long, they were away from their natural surroundings, and  we innocents knew nothing about their sustenance requirements. Also, keeping beetles was done in secrecy as our parents would not have countenanced it. Looking back on those childhood days I  believe that my interest in natural history may have had its beginnings in the school yard. Not long after my interest turned into rearing and breeding tropical fish. That interest  was abiding and lasted through my adulthood even into retirement in Australia where I  kept koi carp and other tropical fish for many years.

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