White tigers to be re-introduced into the wild

White tiger couple playing at the New Delhi Zoo

After a gap of over four decades, famed white tigers are once again set to roar in Madhya Pradesh’s Rewa forests.

At a recent meeting of the Central Zoo Authority (CZA), Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh has given a go-ahead to the state government’s proposal to start a rescue centre and captive breeding of highly-endangered white tigers at Maand reserve near Govindgarh Fort.

White tigers are historically associated with the Central state. Way back in 1951, the Maharaja of Rewa had found the first white tiger cub, later named Mohan, and kept it in Govindgarh fort till his death in 1970.

Mohan’s off-springs were born there and now its lineage can be traced in various zoos in the country. Unfortunately Madhya Pradesh has no white tigers today.

“White tigers were first found in Rewa forest and because of that reason, locals are emotionally attached with these feline beauties,” said Chief Wildlife Warden H S Pabla.

“Moreover, since they are the centre of attraction at zoos, we are planning to have this breeding centre in an area spread over 100 hectares,” he said.

“After the approval from the Centre, we will now approach the Supreme Court for permission for establishing the breeding centre,” he added.

Meanwhile, Ramesh has suggested that the project could be in collaboration with the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) which is presently overseeing conservation and management of tigers in the wild.

NTCA member secretary Rajesh Gopal said that contrary to popular belief, white tigers are not albinos. “They are the expression of the recessive mutant gene. The breeding programme would ensure that they are back in their natural habitats,” he said.

“If two white tigers breed, 100 per cent of their cubs will be homozygous white tigers. After captive-breeding, they can be released in the wild as has been done successfully with the Bengal tigers in Sariska and Panna reserves,” Gopal added.

Delhi Zoo and Nandankanan Zoological Park in Orissa have been successful in captive breeding of these rare species.

White tiger breeding programme will be the part of the CZA scheme under which it has identified 58 different critically endangered wild animal species for increasing their numbers, such as the Asiatic lion, the Bengal tiger, the Snow leopard, the Clouded leopard, the Asiatic cheetah and the Golden cat.

Asiatic lion count goes up, so does Gir National Park’s pride

At a time when tiger population is on the wane all over the country, the Asiatic lion count in its last natural habitat — the Gir jungles in Gujarat, INDIA — has increased substantially.

It was  proudly announced on Sunday that the lion population in the Gir National Park and its surrounding areas has touched 411, a significant rise from the 359 in 2005.

Compared to 205 in 1979, the Asiatic lion population in Gir has doubled in 30 years to reach 411 in 2010,  it’s   Gujarat’s gift to the global community struggling to find ways and means to effectively conserve wildlife.

The lion census, called ‘population estimation’ by forest officials, is conducted every five years to assess the efficacy of the various conservation measures taken in the 1,412-sq-km protected area and adjoining places. This census was conducted in two phases, on April 24-25 and April 26-27.

Not only have the big cat numbers increased, certain other parameters have also shown positive trends that assure growth in numbers of the lions in future too. Nearly 40 per cent of the 411 big cats are in the ‘sub-adult’ category, equivalent of youth in humans.

Of the 411 Asiatic lions counted this time, 297 were inside the designated Gir National Park and adjoining areas while others were found in the neighbouring places of Girnar, Mitiyala and Paniya as well as in the coastal areas of Una, Kodinar, Sutrapada and Chhara. As many as 53 Asiatic lions have made their new habitat in far-off places like Savarkundla and Liliya in Amreli district and also in Bhavnagar.

lions had settled down peacefully far outside the sanctuary areas. It was a good sign of success of the conservation efforts, he added.

The rise in lion population is  thanks to the cooperation of the Maldharis, pastoral people who live in harmony with the big cats. The local Maldharis do not mind their cattle being occasionally killed by lions and are happy with a modest compensation.

Another factor contributing to the rise in lion numbers was construction of parapet walls around village wells, which often proved to be death traps for cubs. “On an average, 10 cubs were lost every year after falling into wells, but erecting walls around these reduced such deaths to just one during the last year.

The incidents of adult males killing the cubs have also reduced due to the increase in female population.

No Tigers = No Forests = No clean Air & Water = No You & Me = No Blogging = That sucks man!

EU, China and India thrash out deal on illegal trade of tigers parts

An agreement reached at a UN meeting on wildlife trade in Doha could see countries treating illegal trade in tiger parts as seriously as arms and drug trafficking, but campaigners have cautioned that words must be turned into action.

The UK-brokered deal, which was the result of lengthy negotiations between the EU and the tiger range countries, should see increased intelligence sharing against the criminal networks behind the trade, and will build on recent training provided by INTERPOL.

Parties to the UN Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), agreed to develop a database to monitor the illegal trade in tiger, leopard and snow leopard parts.

Securing the involvement of the professional enforcement community is essential to protecting Asia’s big cats, which are poached for their skins, bones and body parts. CITES called for an urgent meeting of senior police and customs officers before a Head of State tiger summit to be held in Russia later this year.

The news came as welcome relief for conservationists in a week that has so far seen attempts to protect bluefin tuna, polar bears and coral defeated.

Alongside enforcement measures, countries supported an existing decision to ensure that tiger farms did not supply the illegal market for big cat products.

“There have been many promises this week, but getting countries to actually use these new enforcement tactics will be the real test of the commitment to ending tiger trade, and saving the species”, said Debbie Banks, Senior Campaigner at the Environmental Investigation Agency, and Chair of the Species Survival Network’s Big Cat Working Group.

“Time is running out for tigers and other big cats. Tiger range countries and consumer nations need to work together to reduce demand for their parts and stamp out the illegal tiger trade”, said Avinash Basker, Legal Consultant to the Wildlife Protection Society of India.

END TIGER TRADE

the eyes of the world
are watching.

Amitabh to promote ‘Save our Tigers’ initiative

Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan on Thursday announced that he will lend his face and voice to save the majestic tiger from becoming extinct.

As ambassador of “Save our Tigers” campaign initiated by NDTV and Aircel, Mr. Bachchan will use his charisma and popularity to drive home the message to save the tiger.

Mr. Bachchan said the tiger is symbolic of our country’s wildlife wealth and is in danger because of rampant poaching and ineffectiveness of our systems to stop its killing. “Collective action is the need of the hour. It is for the government, wildlife experts, the media and the public to come together and effect a change. It is our responsibility to not only initiate a public movement but also to ensure that it gains momentum across the nation.”

The campaign will enable all stakeholders to take affirmative action for tiger conservation in each State based on the common agenda.

When Mr. Bachchan received a call from Dr. Prannoy Roy about the campaign to save the tiger from getting extinct, he immediately agreed as the cause concerned “our nature and environment”. “If my face and voice can be used to impress people about a national cause then I am all for it. I liked the fact that the electronic media has started this campaign as its penetration is more. It was important that awareness to save this beautiful animal was propagated across our country,” added the senior actor at a press conference in the Capital.

Pointing out that tiger is our national entity, Mr. Bachchan said: “We should leave the tiger alone so that it doesn’t feel entrenched. In the coming months if I can convince even one person about the need to follow this righteous path then I will be extremely happy. As artistes our faces are used to endorse products that attract consumers and if they can be converted into a national cause then I will be the extremely gratified.”

Mr. Bachchan, who had flown in from Mumbai to spearhead this campaign, said he had gone to NDTV studio to shoot for successive campaigns that will hopefully be in the market soon.

Dr. Roy said when he explained what the campaign was all about, Mr. Bachchan didn’t take a second to give his nod. He is inundated with so many such requests but he took out a great deal of his time for the tiger campaign. “Two years ago we were the first ones to draw the attention of citizens and the government to the rapid decline of tiger population in India. Our signature campaign ‘Save the Tiger’ led to the formation of Special Tiger Protection Force by the Prime Minister.”

WWF India secretary general and CEO Ravi Singh said the campaign was centred round creating awareness about the present status of tigers in India. As a principal issue, the tiger needs all the help that can be focused at this juncture.

A special show anchored by Vikram Chandra will engage all key stakeholders and tiger experts to voice their opinion on what needs to be done to protect the tigers. Hard hitting stories and documentaries on the threats and issues concerning the survival of tigers will be aired. There will also be a live non-stop programming for a day disseminating facts about tigers with the aim to create public outcry and help raise funds to protect the tigers from disappearing from their traditional homeland.

Tiger census begins in West Bengal’s Buxa Reserve, INDIA

The first phase of the tiger population census in West Bengal’s Buxa Tiger Reserve, INDIA has started, officials said on Friday. A Wildlife Institute of India (WII) estimate suggests that there may be just 10 tigers left in the reserve.

The National Tiger Conservation Authority has identified the reserve as one of the seven reserves, where the tiger density is critically low.

Human activity due to the presence of 37 villages within the demarcated area and constant erosion of the grasslands owing to nearby mining activity are cited as the main reasons for the declining numbers. The grasslands within the reserve were scanty to begin with as large areas were converted into teak plantations before it was declared a protected area.

“In the first phase, field surveys will be conducted. These will include direct sightings and observations of pug marks, scratch marks on barks of trees and collection of scat,” field director of the reserve R. P. Saini told The Hindu over the telephone.

After every observation, GPS (Global Positioning System) records would be maintained and the data would be sent to the WII. Experts at the institute will then use it to indicate probable areas where tigers may be sighted and, accordingly camera traps would be set up, Mr. Saini said.

“By September, the trends in tiger populations will start emerging and an estimate of the number of tigers in the reserve should hopefully be available by the end of the year.”

Forest Department officials have collaborated with six non-governmental organisations for the survey and 160 teams would carry it out, he said.

No Tigers = No Forests = No clean Air & Water = No You & Me = No Blogging = That sucks man!

More info –>> http://www.SaveOurTigers.Com

https://projectsmileindia.wordpress.com/2010/02/06/www-saveourtigers-com/

India’s 38th tiger reserve opens

Feb 21, 2010

Tigers at the Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary, Kerala. 

PALAKKAD (Kerala): India’s 38th tiger reserve and Kerala’s second was Friday declared open by environment and forests minister Jairam Ramesh. It would be known as the Parambikulam Tiger Reserve. 

There has been a sharp decline in the number of tigers in India, with only 1,411 of them left, according to official estimates. 

The tiger reserve was known as the Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary when it was set up in 1973 in a 285-sq-km protected area in Chittur area of Palakkad. 

Another 358 sq km of forests were added, and the tiger reserve now has an area of 643 sq km. 

It has a rich diversity of animal life. It also has a variety of trees, including teak, neem, sandalwood and rosewood. 

Kerala’s first tiger reserve — Periyar Tiger Reserve — is situated in Thekkadi in Idukki district.

For More info –>> http://www.SaveOurTigers.Com

Save Our Tigers…. Hope shines bright !

Hi everyone,

I’m completely overwhelmed to see so much support from all of you. I know India is where we belong and the people of our country will do everything to help us tigers survive. I just don’t know how to thank you!

I’ve read all your comments and it’s really great to see everyone not just stopping at showing support, but also giving ideas and suggestions to help us. With more people joining us every day, I hope you’ll spread our message far and wide.

I can’t wait to hear more suggestions and see the people of India lead the change!

Looking ahead with pride,

Asam Bangia

Our national animal is fighting for its life.

From around 40,000 at the turn of the last century, there are just 1411 tigers left in India.

If we don’t act now, we could lose this part of our heritage forever.

Speak up, blog, share the concern, stay informed… Every little bit helps.

www.SaveOurTigers.com