IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Shah, S.; Nayak, S.; Borah, J. | |
| Tiger dispersals in the semi-arid landscape of north-west India | |
| 2015 Cat News (62): 24-26 | |
The Western India Tiger Landscape WITL is a term coined by WWF-India under its Species and Landscape Programme to describe the semi-arid landscape of north -west India that varies from dense forests to human-dominated corridors. To understand the historical and present dispersal of tigers _Panthera tigris,_ we carried out a thorough investigation, walked and drove through each forest block, and interviewed as many individuals as possible to understand movement of tigers and other cats in the landscape in the past. We also considered secondary information from the state forest departments, princely state members, ex-poachers and media news of large cats. The basic methods we used were semi-structured interviews and discussions with stakeholders like forest department officers and community leaders. A basic map has been prepared to show the areas of dispersal used in the past. Although the response from forest department officials and analysis of media news have given similar results, discussions with members of princely states revealed many untold stories of the historical distribution of tigers. Ranthambore Tiger Reserve has a higher tiger population than its carrying capacity and undoubtedly acts as a source population for neighbouring protected areas. Records of tiger dispersal from Ranthambore only exist since 1999-2000. However, many cases of dispersal have not been written down. The landscape is fragmented with multiple land-use practices, from gorges to croplands and ravines to mining zones, and the tributaries of the Chambal River are important for tiger dispersal. |
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