White, Black & Golden Tigers

[Rishi]

White tigers in wild? WII reconsiders its stand
TOI | Dec 15, 2019

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BHOPAL: Almost seven years after Wildlife Institute of India (WII) vetoed the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government’s plan to re-introduce white tigers in the wild in Sanjay Tiger Reserve, WII has reversed its stand and suggested NTCA get a detailed technical proposal from Madhya Pradesh “if it is still interested”.
WII director Dr G S Rawat has written to NTCA, with a copy marked to MP’s chief wildlife warden, for “further perusal” to reintroduce white tigers in their last confirmed place of origin in Vindhya region where the first such big cat was first captured 65 years ago.

While a section of senior forest officers is excited by this development, many others doubt its feasibility, pointing out that all white tigers in India have been born and bred in captivity and it’s doubtful if they can be rewilded to hunt well enough to survive in the forest. Also, white tigers cannot camouflage as well as normal Bengal tigers, especially in the dark, and that could hamper their chances at hunt.

When this proposal first came up in 2013, WII rejected it, saying “White tigers are a variant of Royal Bengal Tiger and not a separate species. It has no unique conservation value.” Now, it seems more open to the idea, but top MP forest officials are cautious.
Chief wildlife warden of MP, U Prakasham, told TOI that the government has not taken any decision yet. “We have only received an opinion. Nothing has been decided yet,” he said. Dr Anup Nayak, member secretary NTCA and ADG (tiger project), said a “lot of brainstorming has to be done before embarking upon this proposal. We have forwarded WII’s correspondence to MP government and now it’s their call. If they are interested we will decide further steps,” he added.
Retired IFS officer Suhas Kumar strongly advises against it. “This project was abandoned for valid reasons. Now, some people are trying to revive it to promote tourism. There are many other compelling issues in wildlife conservation which need urgent attention, rather than this totally undesirable proposal,” said Kumar, former PCCF of Madhya Pradesh and member WWF-India.

Rawat, the WII director, acknowledges that the organisation had earlier opposed releasing white tigers in the wild. In his letter, he makes a case for revival of the project: “Since restoration of genetic diversity of a species is one of the objectives of restoration ecology, it would be appropriate to consider reintroducibg the white allele within the gene pool of white tigers. This is especially relevant since the allele has been lost from the gene pool by selective removal from humans through trophy-hunting.”

White tiger allele is now only available in captive ones, he points out. “If this allele were to be reintroduced into the wild tiger gene pool, then it would have to be from the captive tiger. This is where planning would be required,” says his letter, adding that WII can prepare an appropriate proposal once MP’s chief wildlife warden “shows interest to peruse this further”. Dr. H S Pabla, who retired as MP’s chief wildlife warden in 2012 after 35 years in the Indian Forest Service, is confident about the success of this project. “Of course, it is feasible. But care must be taken to find an animal with unquestioned Indian pedigree. White tigers have lived in Indian forests for centuries, without there being any protected areas and hunters gunning for it. It will be much easier for the introduced animal in a tiger reserve, with the forest department to look after its security. We have successfully re-wilded many captive tigers in MP in the last 10 years. That experience will guide this project also.”
“Rehabilitation of white tiger in its natural habitat, which is Sanjay Tiger Reserve, will help conserve the genetic variant. Now that WII is ready, the MP government should send a proposal to NTCA at the earliest so that this project can be taken up,” said Dr R G Soni, retired IFS officer and former field director of Pench Tiger reserve. He believes it will not only conserve the white tiger variant but also boost tourism .

Vaibhav Chaturvedi, a conservation professional, however, warns that such a project is fraught with complications and pitfalls. “White tigers are leucistic tigers, selectively bred by back-crossing of individuals within the same blood line. All living white tigers are in captivity and all of them are believed to trace back their lineage to a single mutant individual. 
Most are highly inbred animals and this inbreeding results in a lot of associated health issues. Many zoos across the world have therefore stopped breeding white tigers,” he pointed out, suggesting that the forest department rather focuses its resources on reintroduction of lion, cheetah and wild buffalo in MP. “I think it (white skin) will be a big disadvantage for a predator that relies on stealth to hunt,” he said. Reply