ON THE EDGE OF EXTINCTION - A - THE TIGER (Panthera tigris)

[Rishi]

(09-02-2018, 08:11 PM)Suhail Wrote:

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Is nagarjunasagar-sri venkateswara landscape landscape a part of central indian landscape?.as there is no corridor to central india.and why not be in southindia?

seshachalam biosphere reserve(sri venkateswara nationa park)has direct link towardsnagarjunasagar(10000 sq km landscape).
https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/c...nsstr.html  seshachalam inturns connected towards the nilgiri biosphere reserve,through some forest paches.these forests patches are important elephant corridor aswell.nearly 100 elephants inhabits in this corridor.besides 50 elephants in seshachalam.which suggest the corridor is not bad at all.
Seshachalam biosphere reserve is a region to which elephants have returned after 200 years. In the last decade, elephants have been migrating more than ever before, looking for habitable forests. From 1983 to 1986, a sizable number of elephants began their journey from the forests of nilgiri biosphere reserve to seek alternative homes in sehechalam reserve ,which connected to nagarjunasagar.
Figure showing elephant dispersal corridor from nilgiri biosphere to sri venkateswara national park:

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 So nagarjunasagar tiger reserve has a potential to be a elephant habitat in future .as well as the two large metapopulation of tiger(nagarjunasagar and nilgiri biosphere)to be connected by this corridor.

You are quite right... 50 years from now South India might become a single conservation unit. (Which state are you from btw?)

Actually as NagarjunSagar (NSTR) region is the northernmost part of southern section of Eastern Ghat before it's bifurcated by Krishna-Godavari basins, those parts were fairly well connected to forests of Telengana/Gadchiroli that's the largest wilderness complex in Central India.
Understandably those tigers had a lot of genetic similarity, especially because to the southwest scrubland seperated it from the western ghats. 

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When the tiger populations south of Gundla Brahmeswaram (GBM) Sanctuary dried up, only they remained. Only very recently tiger population has grown enough to migrate out of NSTR. With north not an option, they are swiftly spreading south...

Quote:Tigers in 12 more grids outside protected areas in Andhra Pradesh, finds survey
U Sudhakar Reddy | TNN | Jun 7, 2018

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HYDERABAD: Tiger presence is seen in 12 grids outside protected areas in Andhra Pradesh, according to the latest survey by experts hired by the AP Forest department.

Based on the study, experts recommended that the existing Gundla Brahmeswaram sanctuary should be declared as a separate tiger reserve as it is challenging to manage the Nagarjunsagar-Srisailam tiger reserve along with it.  
They also proposed that the newer areas of Nandyal, Giddalur and Prodattur Division should be declared as another new wildlife sanctuary.

The recent report revealed the presence of tigers in at least 34 grids out of the total 206 grids. This has added at least 1,228 square kilometre of tiger habitat to what was previously known in the Eastern Ghats.

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Lankamalleswara wildlife sanctuary already has tigers, who have made this sanctuary their transient home as one of them is breeding.
A narrow corridor between Lankamalleswara & Seshachalam hills exist at the backwaters of Somasila.  
Sri Venkateshwara National Park (SVNP), the core area of Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve, is a highly protected area sans villages or human activity & is considered to be the best one in Andhra Pradesh.

Tigers are expected to occupy this area within 2020.
So in the next decade we can expect genetic exchange between Eastern Ghat & Nilgiri though Koundiya Wildlife Sanctuary. 
The place already resident elephants that have come in from Cauvery WS in Tamil Nadu which link Nilgiri to Eastern Ghats.

@parvez can you find out if NSTR is still connected with Papikonda NP & Kawal TR? Reply