Male tiger ustaad T-24 killed forest gaurd in Ranthambore

[peter]

A detailed, very informing, well-written and interesting report on why male tiger T-24 was arrested, tried and sentenced. The charges were four counts of first degree murder and he was found guilty on all. No question whatsoever. The judge had no other choice.

Good find and many thanks, Shardul. Dicky not only has the experience and intimate knowledge needed to write a report like this one, but also knows how to do it right. Same for the other reports I read. I'm interested. You can tell him he can start right away in the blog department, Shardul. This is what we need. Make him an offer he can't refuse.   

The report confirms the observations on captive tigers. Trainers and keepers think about one in every 8 (I also heard 10 and 12) is dangerous. They will kill you given the opportunity, no matter how you treat them. Others, however, will never harm you. Most trainers think that man-killers are born that way. They should know, as they watch them all the time from the day they are born. It often shows at an early age in a lot of interest and stalking. All cats like to do that, but some take it very serious from the start. You can feel the intentions. One of the most experienced Dutch trainers was killed by a 13-month old captive tigress in Italy some years ago. I noticed that most animals 'unfit for work' in the circus are not high-ranking animals, but loners. They're not interested in communication. Not aggressive, but moody.         

Corbett (and others) thought wild man-eaters were driven to this habit by injury, old age and chance. The recent reports I read confirm many man-eaters are man-made, but there's also no question that chance and character are important as well. During the last century many were taken out. Although this resulted in a decrease in the number of victims, it dind't affect the genes. There's no doubt that it is an inborn habit in quite many. It also it a fact that humans fit the diets of most big cats. Tigers top the lists in this department. Always did and always will. Even today, they still kill more humans in India than one would expect. This in spite of relocated villages and well-stocked reserves.

There are regional differences, though. Amur tigers seldom attack humans and there are more regions. The most likely reason is few humans. Could be more important than we think, as captive Amur tigers are very different from their wild relatives. The two keepers killed in John Aspinall's zoo were killed an Amur tigress. She had a cub, but went for the neck immediately. I wonder what would happen in India when all villages in tiger reserves would be relocated and privacy would be respected everywhere. Reply