THE year 2024 has begun with unfortunate news for wildlife enthusiasts, as reports confirm three tiger deaths —two in Telangana and one in Uttar Pradesh — within the first nine days. Adding to the concern, two adult tigers are also reported missing in Telangana. State forest officials have initiated a search to locate them, with fingers crossed.
In the previous year, the country recorded a staggering 179 tiger deaths, marking the highest in the past five years. Maharashtra reported the highest number of deaths, with 45 fatalities, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 40. Interestingly, Telangana had no reported tiger mortalities in 2022 and 2023. However, 2024 has begun on a cautionary note for Telangana forest officials. Within the first three days of this month, two royal cats have succumbed to death, and a female adult tiger and another sub-adult tiger are currently missing.
In the first incident, a
sub-adult tigress was discovered dead in Daregaon, Kagaznagar, with Wildlife wing officials initially suspecting a territorial fight, given that the skin, claws, and teeth of the deceased big cat remained intact.
Two days later, the body of the second tiger was found in the Kagaznagar Tiger Corridor, located in the Asifabad district of Telangana, according to reports. The search is ongoing for two missing tigers, both sub-adults from the same family.
However, there is now suspicion that poisoning of a cattle carcass could be the reason behind these deaths as locals were dissatisfied with the compensation provided to them for relocation from the tiger reserve.
The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests in the State, RM Dobriyal, has said that the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has dispatched a member and experts to the spot. Both deceased tigers were resident tigers of the Kawal Tiger Reserve, and they were sub-adults.
According to reports, it is estimated that there are seven tigers in the corridor area near the Kawal Tiger Reserve.
Three days after the carcass of a female tiger was found in Daregaon forest under Kagaznagar forest division, another male tiger was discovered dead just two kilometers away on January 8. Forest officials, including veterinarians, are investigating the cause of death. The Kagaznagar forest division is estimated to have eight to ten tigers, while four to five big cats migrate from the Tadoba Tiger Reserve in neighbouring Maharashtra through the Pranahita river.
Uttar Pradesh reported its first tiger death, involving a full-grown adult male whose carcass was discovered in Barauchha Nullah in the Gola range forests of the South Kheri forest division on January 8.
Sanjay Biswal, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of the South Kheri forest division, ruled out foul play in the tiger’s death, stating that no apparent injuries or loss of limbs were observed on the body. All vital organs, including nails, jaws, and canines, were found intact, he added.
However, the actual cause of death can only be ascertained after the autopsy of the tiger, following NTCA guidelines, said Biswal.
Although NTCA data reports 178 tiger deaths in 2023, including 31 cubs, the Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI), a non-profit organisation, claims a record 204 striped cats succumbed to various reasons during the same period.
According to NTCA, Maharashtra registered the highest number of deaths at 45, followed by Madhya Pradesh at 40, Uttarakhand at 20, Tamil Nadu at 15, and Kerala at 14 in 2023. Additionally, 54 percent of these deaths occurred outside tiger reserves.
“While the average lifespan of a wild tiger is around 10-12 years, 40 percent of tiger deaths in 2023 consisted of cubs and subadults, age classes with naturally high mortality rates due to tiger land tenurial dynamics.
“Of the cases where the cause has been confirmed, the trend is evident, with more than 77 per cent attributed to natural causes or causes not related to poaching,” said a senior NTCA official when asked if these higher numbers of deaths call for better conservation and monitoring.
He also mentioned that wild tigers in India are growing at a healthy rate of 6 per cent per year, balancing the loss of tigers due to various natural causes and maintaining the tiger population according to the carrying capacity of the habitat.