Lion census from April 24, count could go beyond 400

Found this article in The Times of India website

AHMEDABAD: This is going to be a census that will be closely watched by many, given the fact that it is being conducted after a period that saw poaching incidents for the first time in Gir and when neighbour Madhya Pradesh became more aggressive in its demand for a share of the Asiatic lions.

The once-in-five-years census will be carried out for four days from April 24 in a direct-sighting method which will involve nearly 1,500 staffers. Teams will be equipped with 130 cameras and they will hover around the watering holes where lions are bound to come to quench their thirst during this hot summer period. It will take at least two months before the results are out, after careful tabulation of data and matching it with the photographic evidence.

Stray accidental deaths notwithstanding, the going has been good for the lion in its exclusive abode in Gir, with the Gujarat government promising expansion of its protected habitat and a Rs 40-crore corpus for its conservation. Sources say this time the lion count is likely to go up to 400 from the last figure of 359 of 2005.

Besides, the lion is poised to be one of the state’s biggest draws in the soon-to-be launched campaigns featuring Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan.

The Gujarat government has told the Supreme Court that there could be 400 lions in and around Gir, a clear evidence of good conservation measures.

MP government, which has prepared Kuno Palpur as the lion’s second abode, had a dig at Gujarat recently in its last affidavit filed before the SC, stating that if at least 10 lions died unnaturally in Gujarat, then the state could surely afford to part with five lions. It is another matter that the gangs of poachers arrested in Gujarat have all come from MP.

Article can found at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/c...ow/5758844.cms

The word Census in the wildlife context, has been thoroughly misused and abused. It is atbest an estimation. The methodologies adopted for lion census, based on direct sighting is questionable at the best and the "overenthusiastic" interpretations in the present context cannot be ruled out.

Cheers,
Sabyasachi

Dear All,
The results of the Lion census is out. As expected the official numbers is more than 400. :D

Sharing the news story that appeared in Deccan Herald.
Sabyasachi

411 lions in Gir forests, population up by 52
Gandhinagar, May 2, PTI:

The population of lions in Gir forests has gone up by nearly 14 per cent in last five years, with the latest census revealing the presence of 411 of the big cats as compared to 359 in the 2005 census.


Giving details about the census, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi said the population of Asiatic lions in Gir forests of Junagadh district and adjoining areas has doubled in last 30 years. “Contrary to the general trend of dwindling lion population across the country and the world, the result in Gujarat is totally reverse and we have seen a healthy and encouraging growth rate in their population here,” Modi told reporters here.

The 2010 census said that Gir forests, the last abode of the Asiatic lion, have a total of 411 lions which includes 77 cubs, 120 males, 185 lionesses and 29 lions whose sex could not be ascertained. The census was conducted in Gir National Park Sanctuary and adjoining areas, Girnar sanctuary, Mitiyala Sanctuary, coastal areas in Una, Kodinar, Sutrapada, Savarkundla, Lilia (in Junagadh) and adjoining areas of Bhavnagar and Amreli districts.

“This census has given interesting details of the age-wise ratio of lions. There are 77 cubs of less then one year age,” Modi said.

The source article can be found here:
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/...opulation.html