Tigers of Tadoba#9 - Wagdoh family#1

[Praveen Siddannavar]

This summer, most of the forests across India had excellent sighting of tigers, leopards & of course other animals. But Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) was right on top. With temperatures soaring over 47 degree Celsius here, the animals had no choice but to soak themselves in the water holes. With no water sources especially during harsh summers, the forest dep
t has constructed few artificial water ponds and these ponds are lifers for all animals at TATR.

I am sharing an images of a family of 5 tigers ( face of tigress not in this frame), the family is known as the “Wagdoh Family”. There are also some interesting stories about the Wagdoh male tiger that you see in the image, he is not just a grumpy faced tiger, he is huge & by far the biggest tiger in Indian forests. We also don’t often see male tigers with their cubs, so seeing is believing.

It doesn’t end here, the Wagdoh male tiger also has another mate known as the Telia Tigress, she is currently raising 4 cubs and surprisingly the Wagdoh male spends time even with this family. Incredible is the only word that comes to my mind. I am really thankful to God for giving me an opportunity to see this live at TATR and photograph this wonderful family. It is rightly said the Tigers are the most beautiful creations made by God on this Earth.

Camera - Canon EOS 7D Canon 100-400mm lens
EXIF - ISO 800 Av 8 Tv 1/320 sec EC +0.3 Focal length 365mm, small crop
June 2012

[Mrudul Godbole]

Nice family photo :). He surely looks like a big guy. I had heard that tigers are mostly lonely animals, but he seems to be a family man :). Wish the water hole was more natural without the cement :(, but nothing you can do about it. Thanks for sharing.

[Murugan Anantharaman]

Dutiful dad.Typical scar on his face the Waghdoh male. Thanks for sharing this lovely image.

[Suraj Sreedhar]

Huge guy..................Nice image.On my visit to tadoba in 2010 had seen him twice,resting in water whole.The guide told us he is often seen only while cooling himself in waterhole.
Thanks for sharing.

[Sabyasachi Patra]

Tigers are solitary animals. However, they do live with their offspring as well. That has been documented in many tiger reserves like Bandhavgarh, Ranthambhore etc in recent years. Jim Corbett had shot film footage of family of six tigers from very close distance. The same story was repeated from Royal Chitwan National Park as well.

Cheers,
Sabyasachi