IndiaWilds Newsletter Vol. 3 Issue VII
This issue of IndiaWilds Newsletter Vol. 3 Issue VII examines the Man vs The Big Three namely the tiger, leopard and elephant, including examining the so called man-eating phenomena among tigers and much more. This newsletter is available online. To view and to post your comments check at:
Man Vs all others:
If one scans the news pages, one is likely to see a few headlines like this: “Train runs over pachyderm”, “KSRTC bus runs over bear and says it is a first of its kind”, “tourist bus runs over tiger in Corbett”, “Tiger captured from core area and relocated”, “Leopard wanders into town and beaten to death”, “elephants die of pesticide poisoning” etc. Increasingly it is becoming a continuous battle between Man and other species, a battle likely to the finish with the decimation of all other species.
Born Free but
A few days back two young wild tigers from Bandhavgarh were captured and transported to Bhopal Zoo. A human death and a half eaten body was enough to convict these two tigers into a lifelong imprisonment. The authorities succumbed to pressure from the villagers and immediately declared the siblings born to the Mirchahani tigress as man-eaters. It was never established whether the tiger really killed the person, and if so which of the two tigers killed the person and what was the provocation.
It would also be pertinent to mention that there are many instances where a person is murdered and the body thrown in the forests for the scavengers to consume a major part of the body obliterating any sign of murder. This is then conveniently passed off as the work of a man-eating tiger. Often some dubious justifications are given to support their claims. For example, in one case in Corbett Tiger Reserve, they killed a tiger and to justify it as a man-eater produced a chappal claiming it to be found inside the stomach of the slain tiger. Unfortunately, no body questioned how footwear can be found in the stomach of a tiger as contrary to popular belief the tiger is a fastidious eater and doesn’t gobble up and swallow meat. I am not sure if the tiger reserve authorities have considered this scenario where someone could have been murdered and the body dumped in the forest and the blame apportioned on the tigers. The hasty manner in which the two tigers were branded as man-eaters and packed off to the Bhopal Zoo precludes any detailed investigation of all possibilities.
The number of villagers entering into our premier National Parks either to collect wood, NTFP etc is high. In 2008, one woman had illegally entered into the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve and was killed by an adolescent tiger. The Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve authorities had immediately wanted to capture the tiger and shift it to Bhopal zoo but were forced to wait due to the protests of the local guides, drivers, hoteliers etc. Later the tiger was branded as a man-eater, when another killing happened at a distance of about 30kms from its area. It was never ascertained as to who killed that man and the blame was apportioned on the tiger who had killed the woman probably by an accident. To prevent these kinds of knee jerk reactions, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) had created guidelines and it suggests that a tiger needs to kill and eat a minimum of three human beings before being declared a man-eater.
The Field Director of Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve choose to completely ignore these guidelines and captured two tigers and shifted them to the Bhopal zoo. The Field Director has justified his actions by saying that if the two tigers were not sent to the zoo then the villagers could have killed them. When one tries to defend the indefensible, the result is such kind of absurd statements. By that logic, all the people in Z+ category whose life is in danger from extremists or other such miscreants should be captured and placed in a jail.
This young tiger was captured by Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve authorities and shifted to Bhopal Zoo
It is a known fact that man is not the natural prey of tiger. Various theories abound starting from the supposedly salty and mangy taste of human beings – which none of us can verify – to the fear of man as it has been persecuted by humans for too long. One of the theories, which appear plausible, is that since time immemorial human beings have started the practice of last rites either burial or consigning the body into flames or water etc. The rituals involved in this require the body of a human being killed by a wild animal to be retrieved. Since the body is retrieved time and again often going against great odds – when there the forests used to team with wildlife and man didn’t have sophisticated firearms – the signal that is sent is that there is no point spending time and energy in killing a man as the body is likely to be retrieved. This has been programmed into the minds of tigers and leopards and hence they don’t readily take to human killing.
One can support this with facts from some of the well known cases of man-eating tigers and leopards. The man-eating leopard of Rudraprayag was supposed to have killed 125 people in 5 years. With the bodies of the victims mostly being retrieved, one can easily understand that the animal has to depend upon its natural prey rather than preying on humans.
If the Tiger Reserve authorities would have given sufficient time to pass then I am sure an informed decision could have been taken after carefully verifying the facts. Neither of these two adolescent tigers can be branded as man-eaters. In the worst case, they could have been relocated to another range of the reserve or to another tiger reserve within the State or out of the State. At a time when, Rajasthan is crying to get tigers, relocating one of the so called man-eaters or problem tigers to a large reserve like Sariska could have been thought off.
If the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve authorities had the willingness to not resort to shortcuts, then they would not have succumbed to the pressure of villagers.It is important to explain the situation to the villagers to banish superstitions, fear and rumours.
Too much activity: No inviolate spaces
Unfortunately, Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve authorities have been known to take many short cuts. At any point of time there are too many people inside the park either creating speed breakers on the roads to stop over speeding of tourist vehicles, or road building, digging waterholes etc. There is simply too much activity and it disturbs both carnivores as well as herbivores. Also, when a tiger cub during its growing up phase is watching human beings on foot everyday, it would lose on its inherent fears of man. There is always a possibility of a person who is bent down to collect wood, cut grass or doing some digging to resemble a herbivore and can be attacked by a tiger. This is also observed by R L Eaton while working with Cheetahs in Africa as well as many of our own hunters and naturalists.
It is important that the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve authorities try to work on the basis of a long term plan which has got a sound ecological basis rather than simply digging waterholes and altering habitats.
Over the years, the forest has become less dense due to wood cutting and also for feeding the captive elephant population. Though the official number of cheetal population has varied between six to seven thousand, however, by visual observation one can feel that the prey density has decreased. One also finds cattle grazing and mahua collection. With anthropogenic pressures, it becomes difficult for the prey base to multiply increasing the challenged the tigers face to eke out a living. Their home range increases bringing them into conflict with one another and forcing the adolescents to be pushed out of the Tiger Reserve into the buffer area.
According to the late Kailash Sankhala “..in a good habitat in dry deciduous forest, a population of 10,000 chital would need an area of 30-35 sq. miles. The optimum figure of 30 tigers in such an area is confirmed by several estimates. In 1830 there were 26 tigers in 20 sq. miles in Booronpur; in 1941 there were 75 tigers in 250 sq. miles of forest in Bundi. The present forests of India are not good forage areas as they are over grazed by domestic cattle which are constantly guarded by their owners. Only if cattle grazing is eliminated along with other disturbing factors and an optimum number of prey built up can we expect to achieve a population of one tiger per square mile rather than the present state of one per ten square miles”. Wish Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve authorities give importance to these words of the man who was the first Director of the Project Tiger.Also, there have been some good studies done about the impact of prey population on tigers by Dr.Ulhas Karanth. All these studies and knowledge mean nothing when it is not put to use by the forest department authorities.
From Tiger Reserve to Zoo:
The Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve authorities also need to look at their own actions and tell us why they are intent on converting the tiger reserve into a zoo. They have erected a wire fencing in the boundary.
I wish the authorities would have studied the impact of such wire fencing on the lives of animals. They should have at least looked at the case studies from Africa. Today there are only a few places where the animals can breach the wire fencing and get out of the park to the buffer zone and vice versa.
Adolescent tigers are often pushed into the periphery by the dominant tigers and had to eke out an existence till they can establish their territory. They often sneak back into the main park into the dominant tiger’s area and sneak out when the dominant tiger is in the vicinity. The wire fencing doesn’t allow that. So the adolescent tigers have to stay in the buffer zone for a longer time increasing the chances of killing livestock. And while killing livestock or eating if there is a sudden and unexpected provocation like someone stumbling upon a sleeping tiger, then the person is more likely to get killed. Lesser carnivores are known to feed on the corpse and the blame is placed on the tiger. At times the tiger can come back to the scene and eat a portion of the human corpse, not for food, but as a sign of dominance over the vanquished which is dictated by its animal instincts. In such a situation, there would definitely be a hue and cry from the villagers including calls for killing the tiger based on myths that a tiger who has tasted blood will always kill etc. Wish the authorities understand this simple truth and dismantle the chain link fence immediately. It is a grave injustice to sentence the two young tigers permanently into a lifelong imprisonment.
I urge you all to raise your voice against this by writing to the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Sri Shivraj Singh Chouhan, email: cm@mp.nic.in, Fax: 0755-2540501
Unwarranted Tiger Capture in Sunderbans:
In another sad case, it is reported that a tiger from the core area of Sunderbans was captured and relocated by the field director without permission from the Chief Wildlife Warden. It is reported that the Field Director was told not to capture the tiger and was asked to see written permission, however, he choose to ignore it.
It’s a fashion and even remunerative to use the word tiger in the brands like Tiger Beer, Tiger balm and what not but it’s a really a tough time being a real tiger in the wild. Merely branding the tiger as a National Animal won’t suffice. If we seriously want to save the tiger, then we need to act now. Unfortunately, the seriousness is nowhere to be seen.
Leopard Killed in Siliguri Village:
With the focus on tiger, the Leopard continues to swiftly move towards extinction. In another example of our general level of intolerance bordering on war on all other species, a leopard was found near a village in Siliguri in West Bengal. Immediately an alarm was raised and the startled leopard – which would have come close to the house in search of food – tried to flee in the wrong direction. Immediately, there was a huge crowd baying for its blood. The leopard, as it happens in such situations, tried to pounce on a policeman while running away to safety. The leopard was finally captured but succumbed to the beating by lathis, knife wounds and gunshots by the police. Unfortunately, we are yet to place a firm protocol of handling such situations and clamping Section 144 so that there are no people crowding and disturbing the animal. For further details please check here: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7187
Leopard death invites 2000 rupees fine:
The Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court has fined the forest department two thousand rupees due to its improper handling of a leopard and use of expired medicines. This reinforces the structural deficiencies in our forest department. Wish the Hon’ble Minister for MoEF tries to look into these and remove the structural deficiencies so that the forest department officials are better equipped in terms of knowledge as well as equipment and facilities.
The two thousand rupees fine for the death of a leopard also symbolises the apathy towards this magnificent species. This issue also brings to the fore how irrelevant are the penalties for any wildlife crime or mishandling of a situation. I am not sure if anyone is willing to look into these issues. For further details please check here: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7207
Elephants Electrocuted:
It is reported that three elephants have been electrocuted on the Nighasan-Palia road near Dudhwa. Though it is said that the elephants were electrocuted when a high tension cable fell down on them when they uprooted a pole, it is highly unlikely as the elephants are able to hear infrasound frequencies emitted by high tension power lines. There may be some foul play as the farmers had previously demanded compensation for crop damage by elephants. I remember housewives offering rice to captive elephants and then taking back the few leftover grains of rice and keeping it in their vessel as it is considered auspicious to feed the elephant as it is the vehicle of Goddess Lakshmi. From being revered as the vehicle of Goddess Lakshmi to being murdered due to crop damage, we have indeed come a long way away in decimating this species. For further details please check here: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7154
Forest Officer Killed by Smugglers:
One more brave foot soldier has lost his life while protecting our Natural Heritage. There has been a recent spurt in attacks on the forest officers near the Tirumala hills culminating with the killing of Shri Srinivasulu who was working as an assistant beat officer. With little protection, lack of facilities, overwork due to posts lying vacant, the morale is not always high. This brutal murder should wake up the authorities.
Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary as Tiger Reserve:
Will Mhadei wildlife sanctuary be declared as a tiger reserve? Shri Jairam Ramesh before being moved away from the MoEF had urged the Chief Minister of Goa to declare this as a Tiger reserve due to its good habitat and its contiguity with the forests of Karnataka. Unfortunately, as predicted, there have been many voices raised by ministers of the Goa Government saying that this is an anti-people move. Given the rampant mining activity in Goa and the general nexus, it would be tough to declare it as a tiger reserve unless there is sustained pressure. I hope the present minister of MoEF Ms.Jayanthi Natarajan will do her best to ensure that Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary is declared as a Tiger Reserve.
For further details please check the discussion here: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7118
It would be good if all of us can raise our voice in support of this by writing to the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Goa Shri Digambar V. Kamat
Address: Sanrit Apartments, 1st Floor Near Masjid, Malbhat, Margao, Goa – 403601
Email: mla-marg.goa@nic.in
Fax: 0832-2223648
Phone: 0832-2419841, 2411049
Nagarjuna Sagar Srisailam Tiger Reserve:
And finally some good news from NSTR, where tigers are supposed to have made a comeback. A short report by Prashath.Gokul.Dwarapu can be found here: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7169
Nilgiri Elephant Corridor Case:
The Hon’ble Supreme Court of India has granted a stay on the High Court order in the Elephant Corridor case. It has asked status quo to be maintained for two months by ordering “stay of dispossession and demolition of buildings of the petitioners for a period of two months”. For further details please check here: http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7220
Wildlife Photography:
Images shared by our members between 10thJune 2011 – 9th July, 2011 that depict interesting animal behaviour or are just plain beautiful.
The Head turn by Dipankar Mazumdar
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6939
Leopard with a Hare by Praveen Siddannavar
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7043
Life on a Wire by Mrudul Godbole
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7099
Jackal Pups by Amit Kalele
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6917
Ant Aphid Mutualism by Abhishek Jamalabad
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7017
The Monsoon by Ruben Alexander
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7088
Beautiful petals by Raviprakash S S
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7015
I look forward to your inputs and your support in preserving the last tracts of wilderness and wildlife left in this beautiful country. For other interesting articles and photographs please check:
http://www.indiawilds.com/forums/
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Regards,
Sabyasachi Patra
www.indiawilds.com
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That was a wonderful read ….
Ajay