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ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris)
ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris)
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ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris)
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Peter, i'm sorry for interrupt your interesting series on Amur Tigers.
This is an interesting study on tigers from Terai Arc Landscape (TAL), that show how important is the forest corridors between the reserves. Tigers in the Terai: Strong evidence for meta-population dynamics contributing to tiger recovery and conservation in the Terai Arc Landscape Thapa et al., 2017 Abstract: "The source populations of tigers are mostly confined to protected areas, which are now becoming isolated. A landscape scale conservation strategy should strive to facilitate dispersal and survival of dispersing tigers by managing habitat corridors that enable tigers to traverse the matrix with minimal conflict. We present evidence for tiger dispersal along transboundary protected areas complexes in the Terai Arc Landscape, a priority tiger landscape in Nepal and India, by comparing camera trap data, and through population models applied to the long term camera trap data sets. The former showed that 11 individual tigers used the corridors that connected the transboundary protected areas. The estimated population growth rates using the minimum observed population size in two protected areas in Nepal, Bardia National Park and Suklaphanta National Park showed that the increases were higher than expected from growth rates due to in situ reproduction alone. These lines of evidence suggests that tigers are recolonizing Nepal’s protected areas from India, after a period of population decline, and that the tiger populations in the transboundary protected areas complexes may be maintained as meta-population. Our results demonstrate the importance of adopting a landscape-scale approach to tiger conservation, especially to improve population recovery and long term population persistence." Fig 4. A male tiger captured along the Bardia-Katerniaghat forest matrix connected through Khata corridor forest in the western part of Terai Arc Landscape.  *This image is copyright of its original author
 (06-14-2017, 06:27 AM)peter Wrote: PANTHERA TIGRIS ALTAICA 6 I have seen Russian media reports, experts believe that the murderer may be another tiger or brown bear. https://ria.ru/society/20170315/1490029427.html http://deita.ru/news/nature/15.03.2017/5190615-tigr-upornyy-pal-zhertvoy-taezhnykh-konkurentov/  
Betty, Peter, according to last news from 21 April the results from laboratory tests proved that tiger Uporny has been killed by another male tiger, not by brown bear:
http://www.zrpress.ru/society/primorje_21.04.2017_83160_eksperty-vyjasnili-prichinu-gibeli-tigra-upornogo-v-bassejne-reki-gur.html  (06-16-2017, 11:29 AM)Wolverine Wrote: Betty, Peter, according to last news from 21 April the results from laboratory tests proved that tiger Uporny has been killed by another male tiger, not by brown bear: I had the page translated, but the result was far from satisfactory. Using the Enigma-machine, I concluded that Uporny, most probably, was killed by another tiger. The photograph is interesting in that two of the three present during the autopsy seemed quite shocked by what they saw. Could have been a wound in the throat of Uporny, but that's just a guess. I did read that death was instantaneous. The canines of Uporny, a young adult male, were massive. His opponent must have been an impressive male. I also read a bit about a wild boar kill. Could be important. And that's about it. It would be much appreciated if someone would be able to improve in this respect. Good find, Wolverine. Many thanks. (06-17-2017, 02:32 AM)peter Wrote:(06-16-2017, 11:29 AM)Wolverine Wrote: Betty, Peter, according to last news from 21 April the results from laboratory tests proved that tiger Uporny has been killed by another male tiger, not by brown bear: Yes, results from laboratory autopsy are not satisfactory and that's a bit strange. Since I know Russian and you appear to have interest to this case I'll translate for you the most important passages: "The conclusion is clear: the dead of the animal was caused by attack of another carnivore. According our version such a carnivore could be another tiger, also quite a big male. ...... The larger tiger appear to be luckier causing to Uporny a wound leading to instantaneous dead." Nobody talk already about brown bear (the first version from March) but those guys from laboratory surprisingly don't state their conclusion with 100% certainty. Concerning interactions between Amur tigers and brown bears is very important to take in account the gender of brown bear. As we know there is huge difference between size and weight of male and female brown bears. Ussuri brown bear belong to relatively large subspecie with average weight of adult male of 270 kg and average weight of female of 145 kg (they are probably around 20% heavier and larger than Yellowstone brown bears (220 kg) and around 30% lighter than giant Alliaska costal brown bears (370 kg). Amur tigers often hunt female brown bears. But it could be quite suicidal for them to hunt adult male brown bear, the price they have to pay is too high. The question is not who is stronger, it would be just stupid. Carnivores are not habituated to risk their life when they hunt. So I mean the bear hunt of Amur tigers is kind of gender based. Clashes between Siberian tigers and adult male brown bears are also registered but that's nothing to do with hunting, such clashes occur around kill and right to posses a kill and the outcome of such battles is never clear. That's make Russian Ussuriland one of the most interesting places on Earth. And its probably one of the most beautyfull exactly during the autumn when all Ussuri forest cover in so many colors like a Japanese picture. Hopefully one day some very lucky and patient film director will shoot such a battles between those giants.
Interesting. But what was written about the wild boar found close to Uporny? Was it completely eaten, or partly?
As to the size of brown bears and the interactions between tigers and brown bears. At about similar head and body length (190-200 cm. 'over curves'), male brown bears average close to 600 pounds, whereas male Amur tigers, according to Miquelle, average 430 pounds. Male brown bears, therefore, are heavier and more robust. This should result in an advantage in a fight. It should also result in displaced male Amur tigers. However: 1 - The samples on adult males (6 years and over in tigers and 9 years and over in brown bears) are too small to get to solid conclusions on size. 2 - It's unclear if the brown bear averages I saw were corrected for the effects of season and hibernation. 3 - Although Krechmar, an undisputed authority on bears and tigers in the Russian Far East, thinks a large male brown bear would go unchallenged (some individuals well exceed 1 000 pounds), he also thinks there's little to choose between most male tigers and male brown bears. Fights do not produce consistent winners, he wrote. 4 - Reliable information about tiger kills, scavenging bears and conflicts suggests that most tigers are not displaced. Most of those that were displaced were females. This, indirectly, confirms the opinion of Krechmar (see -3-). 5 - A recent article about food habits of Amur tigers posted a week ago (this thread) strongly suggests that bears (black and brown) are more often hunted than was assumed. Based on the tables in the article, the bears hunted are far from small. The outcome of the study, as Kerley and the others concluded, runs counter to the widely held assumption that bears are too dangerous to hunt for tigers. 6 - Although many think that adult males of both species avoid each other, it could be quite different. There are 13 brown bears to every tiger, meaning they are bound to meet each other. For a tiger, it most probably starts at a young age. Young tigers just can't avoid bears, especially at kill sites. For a tiger, a confrontation with a bear either means hunting again or defending a kill. Some will avoid a fight, but others will not. Tiger Boris, not even a young adult male when he was released into the wild, could have been forced into fights with bears interested in his wild boar kills. It resulted in 2 dead bears. Although they were young, a 3-year old brown bear is not a joke. If Boris grows into an adult, chances are he will use his experience to hunt bears. If he tries his luck with an adult bear and the fight is not going his way, he can get out. For a bear, this is more difficult. Maybe experienced tigers avoid large bears, but there's no question that some tigers attack larger (heavier) bears at times. If a tigress is able to kill a heavier bear (referring to the 1951-incident near the Tatibe River), so is a male tiger. Although the outcome of a fight between adults could be unclear (no consistent winners, Krechmar wrote), there's no doubt that adults meet and engage at times. Statistics published by Russian researchers show that male tigers have been wounded and killed by male bears and the other way round. Psychology could be a factor. Adult male Amur tigers are survivors that don't take an offence lightly. If they are displaced by a larger male brown bear, they might develop a grudge that could result in an all-out fight one day. The outcome of fights depends on many factors. Two factors that need to be considered are the effects of crop failure and the effect of hibernation. If bears can't fatten up in autumn, they can't hibernate. Most non-hibernating bears don't survive the long winter in the RFE. Those able to hibernate lose 25-35% of their autumn weight. The bear killed by a tigress near the Tatibe River was estimated at about 170 kg. in early May meaning he could have been well over 200 kg. in late autumn. A few years ago, an article was published about Amur brown bears. Two adult males of 8-10 years of age were 180 and 235 kg. in autumn. Weightwise, they could be vulnarable in early spring. Something else to consider is inborn dislike and instinct. Captive tigers don't fight other animals for food or domination. They fight animals they dislike. Time and again I noticed that captive Amur tigers dislike bears. They will never really let go of it, until a decision has been reached. Some trainers say that tigers often get involved in fueds, but it could be more primitive than that. If we add planning, which seems to be typical for tigers in particular, the most usual result is an all-out at some stage. The animosity between Amur tigers and brown bears, if it can be described in this way, is way more intense than the animosity between lions and tigers. Apart from large male bears, I'd say that things are unclear between adult male Amur tigers and adult male brown bears. I'm sure they meet and I'm also sure they engage at times. The outcome of these bouts is anybody's guess. As Kerley wrote in her mail to 'Jungle Sprout' recently posted in this thread, anything is possible between tigers and bears. Maybe a researcher could get lucky on day, but most clashes will go unnoticed. The Russian Far East, although no longer a 'sea of forest', still is a very large region with few people.  (06-20-2017, 08:18 AM)peter Wrote: Interesting. But what was written about the wild boar found close to Uporny? Was it completely eaten, or partly? @peter thanks a lot for your valuable information
PANTHERA TIGRIS ALTAICA 7
7a - The AMUR TIGER PROGRAMME Before returning to tigers and bears, I decided to post a bit more about the Amur Tiger Programme (ATP). As far as I know, there are now two organisations active in the Russian Far East: the Siberian Tiger Project (STP) and the Amur Tiger Programme (ATP). The Siberian Tiger Project was started in 1992. Although many excellent Russian researchers participated, the Miquelles, Kerleys, Goodriches and Schleiers in particular featured. One reason was a lot of reports. Another was airplay (referring to a number of documentaries and books). They're still going strong. The Amur Tiger Project was started in 2008. It's an all-Russian project and it strongly supported by the Russian government. Although mainly directed at research and creating new reserves, developing awareness in Russia is an important goal as well. Based on what I read and saw, I'd say it has succeeded in many ways already. Some years ago, I contacted the STP about the cooperation with the ATP. They said it was excellent. Have a look at the last two pages in particular. A tigress with cubs needed 900 square km. to survive. Her territory was 9-12 times as large as in India! What more do you need to know about habitat and prey depletion? In spite of that, I think the commitment to improve the situation has had significant results. Amur tigers now have 160 000 square km. at their disposal and the number of wild tigers is slowly rising. In spite of the tough circumstances (abandoned and/or starving cubs and youngsters are still quite common), Amur tigers, in contrast to Indian tigers, seldom attack humans. Remarkable. The next step is improving the conditions. In Russia, this means getting to a settlement with hunters (the number of large prey animals is limited), increasing the number of rangers and adapting legislation. Poaching is far from over (see the previous posts). So much for the introduction. Here's the info on the Amur Tiger Programme from their site. I don't like copy and paste, but in this case it couldn't be avoided. It's a bit of a read, but it's well-written, clear and interesting:  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author And here, to finish the post, is the link to the site of the Amur Tiger Programme. It's updated at regular intervals: http://programmes.putin.kremlin.ru/en/tiger/news# (06-20-2017, 08:18 AM)peter Wrote: But what was written about the wild boar found close to Uporny? Was it completely eaten, or partly? In this article is written that the wild boar was partially eaten: "Close to the tiger were found remains of wild boar which the tiger didn't succeed to eat completely". But the article is from March when still dominated the point of view that Uporny was killed by brown bear. http://amurmedia.ru/news/575358/ Yes, Russian Far East is no more "sea of trees", in same time its the only place in the domain of the tiger where human population is decreasing but not increasing due to harsh Russian demographic crisis. This is unique opportunity for tigers. For last 25 years the population of Russian Primorsky Kraj declined from 2,258 million (1989) to 1,956 million in 2010 (see the graphics with red digits), that mean human population declined roughly with 16-17% due to falling birth rate and internal immigration to more prosperous economic regions. https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9F%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%BC%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D0%BA%D1%80%D0%B0%D0%B9 In same time the human population in tropical Asia increased 1,5 times.... (06-23-2017, 08:30 AM)Wolverine Wrote:(06-20-2017, 08:18 AM)peter Wrote: But what was written about the wild boar found close to Uporny? Was it completely eaten, or partly? OWNERSHIP IN TIGER SOCIETY In tiger society, the rule regarding food is 'finders, keepers' or, more accurately, 'killers, keepers'. Territorial males displace females at times in India, but it doesn't happen often. In hard times rules might change, but fights over ownership seem to be rare anywhere. Ownership is important in tigers. A kind of basic rule. As to Uporny and the wild boar. My guess is the wild boar was killed and partly eaten by Uporny. He couldn't finish the boar because he, most probably, was attacked by another tiger. They didn't find traces of a fight, but Uporny was killed on February 17 this year. Death was instantaneous. His opponent must have been quite a tiger, as Uporny's canines were long and large. A TOUGH LIFE RESULTS IN TOUGH RULES - THEFT IN TIGER SOCIETY As the winner didn't finish the wild boar, it isn't likely that the fight was about food. As it happened in winter, when Amur tigers mate, it could have been related to mating. Maybe Uporny, following a tigress, entered the territory of another male and maybe he stayed too long. Maybe his long stay resulted in illegal hunting, which is a major offence in tiger society. The reason is simple: it is difficult to make a living in the taiga. When a young tiger leaves his mother, he has to learn how to survive on his own. In a region with few prey animals, long distances, long winters and a lot of competition, it isn't easy to survive. Not seldom, adolescents end up hunting dogs in or near villages. Some of them are shot or starve, whereas others are caught and rehabilitated. When a tiger finds an empty place with enough game, he can settle down. From then on, he needs to patrol his territory. Every now and then, ownership will be questioned. When he survives these clashes, he has to learn how to deal with scavengers. There are no easy days in the taiga. Those who make it to adulthood are hardened survivors. This is especially true for males. The territory of an adult male usually has 1-4 adult females. They, to a degree, are protected by males, but males are on their own. Always. They rule until they go down. At times, they perish past their prime, but Uporny was killed before he reached five. A century and a half ago, when the Russian Far East had been added to the Russian Empire, people moved east. Many cof those who settled down in what's now the Russian Far East hunted for a living. In spring, they had collected enough pelts to go to a market. This was the time that many of them were robbed, and often killed, by those who had watched them unseen for months. In the taiga, theft was considered a major offence. Worse than murder. Thiefs often were condemned to death. In summer, they were buried alive. In winter, when the ground was frozen, they were tied to a tree for the tigers. No wonder that Manchuria had plenty of man-eaters back then:  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author TIGER SOCIETY AND HUMAN SOCIETY Maybe the first settlers compared to tigers to a degree. Both were on their own and both had to work hard to make a living. Both had to watch their back all the time and both hated scavengers. My guess is their policy towards thiefs and scavengers (no mercy) also compared. When you live in an unforgiving region for a long time, your attitude will change. These early hunters, like tigers, most probably were guided by a mix of permanent apprehension, elusiveness, distrust and a 'shoot first, no matter what' policy. You need to stay on top of a situation. One mistake could be your last. The stress, as Baikov wrote, no doubt resulted in superstition of some kind in most. Those able to relax in spite of that, like poor Dersu, paid sooner or later. SO WHAT HAPPENED TO UPORNY? All this to say that Uporny was a thief? I don't know. I do know he wasn't killed by a brown bear, but by another male tiger. His opponent didn't care about the wild boar and Uporny, as far as I know, wasn't mutilated (male tigers killed during the mating season often are mutilated). So it wasn't about the wild boar and it also wasn't about mating. That leaves a fight over territory or a warning for all involved in illegal hunting. It could have been territory, but it isn't likely. The reason is that Uporny had settled down in the region in which he was found some time ago. He met a tigress, who had cubs in autumn. If there would have been an owner, he would have found Uporny after some months. I can be wrong, but my guess is that he was the rightful owner. That leaves illegal hunting or an attempt to enlarge his territory. Uporny, now father of a family, could have decided to enlarge his ranch. Maybe the legal owner had been challenged and maybe he was on his way to Uporny. Mature, experienced male tigers know when to keep a low profile and when to act. Maybe the owner of the ranch found Uporny off guard and killed him without a fight. Maybe this is why death was instantaneous. Instant death can be a result of luck, but it can also be a result of an ambush. Planning. Instant death also points towards experience. Those who saw the lethal wound in the throat during the autopse seemed a bit surprised on the photograph. I though I also saw something reminding me of shock. All in all, I don't think his death wasn't a result of a fight or bad luck. Anything can happen in a fight, but what we know doesn't point towards a fight. It most likely was something else. I propose 'ambush' for now, but would also agree with 'execution'. My guess is Uporny was attacked when he was eating. His opponent first targeted his back and when Uporny turned round to defend himself his throat was penetrated by large fangs. One bite and one hold, that also could have crushed his windpipe. Could have been a matter of seconds. That's why no evidence of a fight was found. YOUNG MALES AND OVERCONFIDENCE Young adult male tigers not seldom overplay their hand. Close to their prime, they often feel invincible. They don't seem to realise that they can be vulnarable. Same in many other mammals (humans included). Most male tigers killed by male brown bears were young adults. Although not much information was available, the evidence strongly suggested that they had been killed in lengthy fights. This means that they could have left the fight at some stage. Although their opponents were described as 'large' or 'very large', the young male tigers decided against it. Overconfidence is expressed in many ways. A lack of caution is one of them. Uporny didn't see it coming. Young adult male tigers need confidence in order to score a few points in life, but an all-out isn't the best way to get there. Not without experience. Confidence is a result of experience. This means that caution also is important: at times, you need to leave a fight in order to have a better chance another day. Male tiger 'Umarpani' could be an illustration. He was involved in many lengthy clashes for quite some time before he struck. When his day came, he was able to get a decisive advantage. Must have been a result of experience as well. And, maybe, strategy. The battle with his new opponent seems similar to the battles he had before in that he and his opponent often collide, but avoid an all-out. So far, no decision has been reached. Anyhow. Uporny is no more. As he was rehabilitated and collared when he was released into the wild, we know a lot about him. We know he mated and we also know the tigress had cubs last autumn. What we know, will be used in order to get to more insight. Last but not least, Uporny featured in a number of posts in this thread. He won't be forgotten.
JIM CORBETT AND OLD INDIA - 1
I had prepared a number of posts on tigers and bears in Russia, but when looking for recent information on the internet I stumbled upon a number of videos I want to post right now. The reason is the never know when these videos will be removed. Some of the videos are old, but that doesn't mean they were posted a long time ago. Some, in fact, were posted recently. They are unique. When I had seen a few and tried to find a few more, I ended with a few videos of Jim Corbett. And a movie in which he features. It was broadcasted on the BBC a number of years ago. I'm not saying the books are better, but a full length movie about Jim Corbett is something special. 1a - Videos of Himalayan tigers Before moving to Jim Corbett, I want you to see a few old videos in which Himalayan tigers feature. Those who read books about tigers in India written a long time ago know that many of them had reports about large tigers. This was in particular true for the northern part of what was then British India, where tigers of ten feet and over seemed to be quite common. Most biologists, as you know, didn't take these stories very serious. This, as Ullas Karanth wrote, was a result of the rumours about 11-inch tapes, Maharajahs demanding giant tigers, unreliable methods and all the rest of it. When I posted the 20 tables about the size of tigers in old India a year and a half ago or so (this thread), the arguments used to dismiss these records out of hand were discussed at length. Here's a few old videos in which tigers shot in northern India feature. Large males: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghnCdYooF5U https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snJ77yWVD1w https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vbtP4FzN9yY Here's a recent video of a tiger shot in the same region: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcC8hkOAlDM 1b - Jim Corbett Here's the movie in which Jim Corbett features. A must see, I think: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMo2d1b1cP4 In his book 'Man-eaters of Kumaon', Corbett wrote he had filmed a number of tigers himself. Here's one of the films he shot (16 mm.). He is seen at the start: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxnZraYwymo There is a Jim Corbett Museum in Uttakaranth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNhXBpUSm7E https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNhXBpUSm7E 1c - Hunting a man-eating tiger In contrast to what you may think after reading a few books written by those who hunted them, hunting a man-eating big cat is not easy. Many hunters were convinced that experienced man-eaters were able to foresee their actions. If we add that wild tigers are thinking animals, you can imagine the pressure on those hunting them for a prolonged period of time. Many hunts ended with a blank and not a few man-eaters died of old age back then. Every now and then, the tables were turned. Some decades ago, an experienced hunter from Austria wrote a book about a hunt in Orissa. The man-eating tigress he was after had killed and eaten scores of humans and was as experienced as they come. It didn't take him a long time to concluded that he faced a lot of disadvantages. The most important of these was that the tigress had contacted him on more than one occasion without him knowing. It took Werner Fend, on the other hand, many months to contact her. This no doubt weighed on his soul. During the period he hunted her, he had to abandon the hunt as a result of a combination of sickness and stress. In his books, Jim Corbett wrote about his experiences. I read his books more than once and concluded he had been lucky on more than one occasion. Corbett knew and in the end he had no other option but to call it a day. Stress is a killer. Here's one example of what I mean. During one of his hunts, Corbett followed a tigress. When he was completely vulnarable (coincidence?), he suddenly saw her right in front of him. She had been waiting for him, that is. At a distance of a few yards only, she waited for him to make a move. He didn't move, because he had eggs in one hand and the heavy rifle in the other. He knew he was very much disadvantaged, that is. Corbett could have panicked, but was able to turn the tables. I can hear you say he had no other option. True. But how many would have acted in the best possible way? But what if the tigress had been a tiger? Most man-eaters were described as wily, cunning and elusive, but that doesn't mean that all were like that. The tiger in the video below was a beginner in the man-eating department and was captured right at the start. I wonder what would have happened when a hunter would have met him at close range. Big cats often roar and growl when insecure, but they also use it to intimidate their victim. How many of you would have responded in the right way when this big male would have showed himself at a few yards? Remember that a tiger shot in the heart can still move forward and completely destroy you. The tiger also knows. This means that a confrontation at close range is about something else: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlCn2qkQeuk (07-03-2017, 07:24 AM)peter Wrote: JIM CORBETT AND OLD INDIA - 1Tiger of the third video was huge
TIGER POACHING STATISTICS
Found this quite by accident. Very informative in many ways: http://www.poachingfacts.com/poaching-statistics/tiger-poaching-statistics/
MALE TIGER KILLED IN GUDALUR
I'm not sure about the details, but the tiger in the video apparently killed a worker at a tea estate. The video, just over a minute in length, shows the estate and the parade often seen when a tiger is shot in India. Although quite large and big-skulled (go to 1:42), the tiger seemed a bit below par for weight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFMpDQWFwQo Gudalur, by the way, is about 100 km. northwest of Coimbatore (in Tamil Nadu). EPAIVA Although details are lacking, the tiger in the first video (referring to post 1,208) could have been the largest. It was a very long and heavy animal. The male in the second video almost compared. Tigers in that part of India often are longer and taller than in other parts of India. They're also more robust than they appear. The tiger below, accused of killing an unknown number of people, was shot in Corbett (Kumaon, Uttakaranth) some years ago. He was long, very tall and most probably well over 500 pounds:  *This image is copyright of its original author  *This image is copyright of its original author
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