IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Joslin, P. | |
| Conserving the Asiatic Lion in: Eleventh technical meeting, Papers and Proceedings, New Delhi, India, 25 to 28 November 1969 | |
| 1970 Conference Proceeding | |
Once distributed over most of India, all of Persia, and the Middle East the Asiatic lion is now confined in the free living state to a 500 square mile reserve in the northwestern part of India, known as the Gir Forest Wildlife Sanctuary. In June of 1968 the government of Gujarat undertook a census of the lion population, and found it to number about 180 or drastically less than the population estimate made in 1963. At about this time The Royal Society sponsored a one year study of the lion's ecology and the reason for decline. This paper summarizes the results of these investigations up to September 1969. The lion population appears to have undergone a significant reduction in recent years; the greatest reduction has probably occurred outside the Sanctuary. Lions both inside and outside the sanctuary are living almost entirely on domestic stock. Appropriation of lion kills by Harijans is a major factor in limiting the utilization of this prey. Significant reductions have also occurred both in the size of the Gir ecosystem and in the available sources of energy in the lion's food chain |
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