A tiger can be easily located in forests through several evidences like pug marks, roaring and stains of blood of the animal it might have killed etc. Every animal leaves some evidences through its day to day life style. A young male tiger has its own territory and hence it is easy to locate the animal.
The entire forest stretches of Odisha are divided into various blocks and each block bears a local name for self identification. Again, each block is divided into a number of working series on the considerations of its size, topography and composition of crops. If the size is small, it can be handled without much difficulty on consideration of homogeneity of the crop composition. The crop composition of a forest is the indicator of the soil fertility of the forests. Again the blocks are divided into various compartments and sub- compartments.
The compartments are serially numbered. The topographical as well as the surveyed maps of the forest blocks are prepared and maintained with clear distinction. A history book is maintained for each compartment, wherein every event occurred or observed in the compartment is recorded.
If any tiger is cited or any carnivore noticed within a compartment, the evidences are collected from tribal members of the locality. Usually, the tribal people moving within the forests for collection of their day to day needs sight the royal cats and inform the forest people about the animals.
Kaair, a captive tigress domesticated by Sarojraj Choudhury, was first detected in the Khair river bank of the Similipal forests. The infant royal cat had been abandoned by its mother to fend for itself. It was ill and not able to arrange its food. The Khaidia inhabitants of Similipal forest first informed about the cast off tiger cub to the forest employees and it was Choudhury, who was reared the cub.
Every carnivore must kill the herbivores for its food to survive. The animal of prey may be domestic or wild. The yelling of the herbivores when attacked, apart from the method of killing the animal and also dragging it to eat at a safer place by a royal tiger give enough evidence about the presence of the predatory animal. The royal cat always kills its prey by breaking the neck of the victim. The age of the predator, including the sex, can be ascertained from the kill itself. The method of killing, the style of eating and hiding skills say who the killer is.
The tiger roars and without doing it, the animal cannot live. It always makes its presence felt in the forests and commands its territorial identity through roaring. The young male roars a number of times, then it is followed by female and old ones. From the sound of roaring, a perfect wildlife lover can know the age and sex of the animal. The roaring signifies the ability of the royal hero of the jungle.
If a royal animal for any reason is having pain or it feels bodily discomfiture and unease, it begins to moan. As per the versions of the Nandankanan authorities, the male tiger, which was trapped after it had escaped the zoon by jumping over the massive 18-foot high barbed wire fence, got its injured. But it sounds unrealistic as the tiger would have moaned, if it had been injured by coming across the barbed fence.
The call evidence signifies the sex appeal of the wild tiger. When it requires mating, it makes a peculiar sound. Only people who are acquainted with the nature of the tiger can get a whiff of it.
The male tiger had entered into Nandankanan first to satisfy its biological needs.
The writer witnessed several occasions when Khair tigress was going inside the deep forests to satisfy its sex appetite without responding to its foster Choudhury. The psychology of every creature, whether captive or free, should be deeply studied by the professionals.
When the animals want sex, they urinate in short intervals. Their urine has a special odour. There are other evidences like foot marks on the soft soils of river beds, sand beds and other water bodies, where the carnivore can be tracked.
Recently, the male tiger, who came to Nandankanan in search of its partner failed to satisfy its sexual urge due to the intervention in the park. This prompted the animal to escape despite the high fences of
the zoo.
(The writer is a former senior forest officer and an environmentalist)