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Bigcats News
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Hi Pckts,
Very interesting info. TFS Here is a study done in Bardia National Park, situated in Nepal. It is about the tigers killed in Bardia NP from 1989 to 2009. We can clearly see there is a high degree of deaths due to fighting and infanticide.  *This image is copyright of its original author
Leopard falls into well, gets out with help of ladder
 *This image is copyright of its original author A leopard, which had fallen into a well, managed to get out after a ladder was lowered in at Marne village, around 10 km from Udupi, on Saturday. The two-year-old wild cat fell into a 35-ft-deep well, near the house of Sadananda Nayak in Boginadi area. After falling in the well, the leopard settled on a small stone platform. Mr. Sadananda Nayak’s wife, Jayanti, told The Hindu that on hearing a sound, she peeped inside the well at around 3.30 p.m. “To my shock, I saw a leopard sitting on the stone platform. I was frightened. This is the first time this has happened here. I immediately called my son Rajesh and told him,” she said. Mr. Rajesh Nayak, who is employed in the pharmacy department of Kasturba Medical College, said that he informed the Forest Department. The department personnel who arrived at the spot around 4 p.m. surveyed the well and then constructed a 35-ft wooden ladder. By then, the news about the leopard had spread and a large number of people gathered at the spot. The department personnel got the crowd to move away. After the ladder was lowered in, the leopard unsuccessfully made two attempts to climb it. It managed to get out on the third attempt around 6 p.m. Some domestic animals disappeared from the village around two months ago. According to Mr. Nayak, people had spotted a leopard occasionally for the last two years. Harish Nayak, who is in the catering business, said: “Two cows, two calves and a few dogs disappeared from the village two months ago.” “Leopards do not require dense vegetation. This leopard must have come in search of easy prey such as dogs and other domestic animals. The nearest forest is at Yembattu Badagabettu, which is about 8 km from here,” Prakash Poojary, Range Forest Officer, said. There were reports of sightings of leopards in nearby areas such as Belle and Innanje. “We put up cages to trap a leopard there five or six months ago, but we were unsuccessful,” Mr. Poojary said. http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/ka...180818.ece 
China first time admits trading of tiger skins in his country
 *This image is copyright of its original author China for the first time admitted that it permits trade in skins from captive tigers, at a meeting of an international convention to protect endangered species in Geneva. "A Chinese delegate said, 'we don't ban trade in tiger skins but we do ban trade in tiger bones,' " according to a participant in the meeting. Cites secretariat sources confirmed that a member of the Chinese delegation had said this. Chinese authorities had never before reported this to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites). Between 5,000 and 6,000 tigers are believed to be in captivity in China. Wildlife conservation organisations have long demanded an end to the trade in skins. Wildlife experts believe "tiger farming" in China has fuelled demand for the poaching and trafficking of the endangered species. "After the Chinese intervention. we too intervened and made it clear that the investigations we have done with other organisations clearly show that the trade in China is happening on a commercial scale," said Shruti Suresh, a wildlife campaigner with the UK-based Environment Investigation Agency, which has investigated the illegal wildlife trade across the globe. While China has been a major market for tiger parts, wildlife experts say other South East Asian countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Lao, Cambodia, Malaysia and Indonesia are also emerging as consumers, where tiger farming is growing. Reports say that in the past two years, there have been seizures of nearly 90 tigers likely to have been sourced from, or trafficked through, captive facilities across South East Asia and China. More detail on http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-28258595  (07-11-2014, 02:50 AM)'Apollo' Wrote: Hi Pckts, Very interesting, plus we are seeing a rise in Ranthambhore. Its obviously a trait in Tigers, doesn't matter where they are from. The moment to many tigers exist in to little space, they will not accept it. TFS (07-12-2014, 12:03 AM)'sanjay' Wrote: China first time admits trading of tiger skins in his country "we don't ban the trade of tiger skin" ?????? Why??? Why is bones not ok but skin is? Its just a BS loop hole. Whats the point?
Hey All,
The 2013-2014 season has come to a glorious end at Ranthambhore and the park re-opens in October after the monsoons. Ranthambhore has been blessed with a baby boom and all its denizens seem to have pulled through the year without any fuss. Our next few posts shall highlight the current status of each Tiger family of Ranthambhore & what is expected next season. Here is an update # 2 on another family of Ranthambhore. T-24 (Ustad) : Happy & content as ever in his own domain. He is a prolific hunter and apparently, it seems he doesn't mind sharing food with either his mate Noor or son Sultan. Ustad has been a doting Dad to Sultan and looks all set to spend quality time with the new arrivals. How long both parents tolerate Sultan's presence remains to be seen. T-72 (Sultan) : Still a young brat, although he does manage to hunt on his own, he has often been sighted in close proximity to his mother Noor & her 2 new-born cubs. This grown up boy loves hanging around his parent’s area rather than seek out a territory for himself. As long as he doesn't venture out of the park, he looks all set to remain in his parent’s territory a bit longer than expected and keep putting on a show to his ardent admirers. T-39 (Noor) : A proud mother of 2 young cubs, she remains one of the star attractions of the park and we bet she will raise the new litter to adulthood without any hiccups and also impart lessons to remain oblivious to the presence of tourists. Her cubs shall be at least 7 months old by the time the park re-opens in October and she looks all set to be a show-stopper next season. It remains to be seen as to how long would Sultan, her offspring from the first litter, lurk around her territory. We wish to thank our good friend Vipin Sharma for letting us share this image of Noor feeding her cubs.— with Minh Ha and 38 others.  *This image is copyright of its original author Hey All, The 2013-2014 season has come to a glorious end at Ranthambhore and the park re-opens in October after the monsoons. Ranthambhore has been blessed with a baby boom and all its denizens seem to have pulled through the year without any fuss. Our next few posts shall highlight the current status of each Tiger family of Ranthambhore & what is expected next season. Here is an update on the first family of Ranthambhore. T-19 (Krishna) : The star attraction of the park and the current Lady of the lakes is a proud mother of 3 young cubs. Her beau Star Male (T-28) does pay her an occasional visit or two. She currently occupies a large territory and does tend to make an occasional foray into her mother Machli’s territory to imply who’s Boss. She doesn’t have a challenger to her throne as yet and looks all set to consolidate her position and rock next season as far as sightings are concerned. T-28 (Star Male) : Although he has made an area out of tourism zone his home, he does visit his mate T-19 (& cubs) at the lake area occasionally and also seems to tolerate the presence of his son from their previous litter, T-64. As most dominant males do, this guy loves putting on a show whenever he turns up. T-64 (Aakash) : Like Sultan, this Big boy does tend to hang around his mother’s territory adjoining the lake area. However, his stepping into adulthood and longing for a mate might perhaps urge him to venture into adjoining territories held by other Males. As long as he doesn't wander out towards the periphery of the park, he does look all set to establish a territory of his own. Tigress Krishna (T-19) with her 3 cubs, photographed by our resident Naturalist Subhash Gautam, June 2014.— with Minh Ha and 33 others.  *This image is copyright of its original author Swimmer of Tadoba....... Scarface or Waghdoh male....... My tiger luck continue in monsoon.........  *This image is copyright of its original author
And this is why you don't put wild animals in zoos or anywhere else other than where they belong
R.I.P Mirchani cubs. Both the brothers are gone, lost their will to live inside Bhopal zoo. Given a death sentence from day 1. They cant hurt them anymore!!  *This image is copyright of its original author
Great read on the seasons Round up
 *This image is copyright of its original author As most of the national parks have closed out for the next three months to soak in the Indian monsoons, here is a re-look at the recent sightings in the major Tiger parks of the country!SEASON ROUND UP With the famous Indian monsoons beating down a frenzy of heavy downpour through the entire season, the dense forests here and their inhabitants are best left alone during that time. Consecutively, much to the disappointment of the true jungle lover, the National Parks in India close out for visitors for the three monsoon months of July, August and September as they have right now. SO, first, a ray of hope for our readers with the information on the re-opening schedule of the parks for the next season. While the Ranthambhore National Park would be the first one to reopen on the 1st of October 2014, Bandhavgarh and other Madhya Pradesh parks will re-open from 15th of October 2014. Jim Corbett, on account of prolonged rains would re-open only on the 15th of November. If you still cannot hold your breath and are finding it difficult to wait till the re-opening time to explore the jungle and say hello to Mr Tiger, you can visit the TAR road in Tadoba National Park in Maharashtra that remains open during monsoons for tourists. You can also try your luck with Ranthambhore Zone 6-10 and Zhirna zone at Corbett and see if you do find the striped cat indulging in the monsoon fervour! Now for a re-cap of the last season’s sightings. Though most of the parks had a reasonably good sighting season, some of them did have an average show. However, by the end of the season there were bumper sightings in most of the parks across the country and it made up for the slow start, if anywhere. Ranthambhore was echoing with the purrs of a large number of cubs from the various adults and their carefree activities made the sighting season rich and delightful. Both the park favourites T39 and T19 decided to raise their new litter in the tourist zone giving the visitors an exciting sneak peak into the tiger life. Sub adult cubs from previous litters along with the orphan cubs of T17 kept the number of sightings rolling in. The legendary Machli also contributed her fair share by catching up with the visitors a number of times. Needless to say, the shutterbugs had a delightful time and indulged in some awe-inspiring photo shoots of the striped beauty. Bandhavgarh, yet another important tiger park of the country made an anxious start to the season with the news of a new male entering Tala zone and defeating Bamera. Loss of two Kankati cubs (each of the either sex) was an equal dampener as was the complete loss of Banbehi’s fresh litter. Most of the veterans had predicted the end of Bamera reign and his clan. Kankatis continued absence from Chakradhara was giving it a deserted look. However, the park surprised everyone with the cubs of Rajbehara and Mirchaini and increased the sightings count. The end of the season brought in the good news of Kankati raising yet another litter of three cubs soaring all hopes. Re-appearance of a male cub from her previous litter was also a great up lifter.  *This image is copyright of its original author The Tadoba Tiger Reserve in Central India had its own graph of highs and lows this sighting season. Most of the areas in the park were closed for tourist activities and sightings were mainly restricted to the Pandher Pauni area of the park. The ever changing park rules and a fresh levy of camera fee on tourist with long lenses could not still deter the tourists from visiting the park to catch their favourite cat in action. By the end of the season, the forest department gave a respite and decided to open some of the prominent areas that were earlier closed down like Katezari, Vasan Vandhara, Wagdoh. Naturally, that resulted in an increased number of sightings. However, the joy of being seen shifting her two cubs by her mouth brought by Maya, one of the famous Pandher Pauni siblings, was short lived as she later seemed to have lost both of them.Not having said all, the undisputed star of the show was the Corbett National Park in the hill state of Uttaranchal. Stealing all the lime light, it delivered what can be perhaps called the best sighting season in the distant history of the park. A tigress and her four cubs in Bijrani zone were the star attraction of the park giving almost daily sightings and leaving the visitors smitten. Dhikala zone was also booming with sightings of multiple tiger families with the most prominent ones of these being the Thandi Sarak family, Gairal tigress with her cubs and the Palm tigress. With so many sightings delighting the visitors all the way, Corbett sure was back with a bang after a dull last year! That was most on the tiger sightings in the season that has just gone by. In our next edition of park round up, we would share our analysis on power dynamics and sighting scenarios post monsoons for these tiger parks. Stay tuned! http://us7.campaign-archive2.com/?u=8ec3...4b671544c2
Nice to see florida panthers making a comeback
Florida panthers rebound as wildlife service offers ranchers payment planLack of land for endangered puma has US officials preparing payment plan to ranchers, many of whom resent the cats
 *This image is copyright of its original author Panther populations have tripled in recent decades, but highways and development hem their territories, and ranchers resent the animal. Photograph:ReutersThe endangered Florida panther, running out of room to prowl as its numbers rebound, may find its best chance at survival is a program to pay distrustful ranchers to protect what remains of its habitat.The payment plan proposed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service has never been tried before on a large scale with a wide-ranging predator, officials say.Landowners could receive $22 per acre to maintain the cattle pastures and wooded scrub increasingly critical as panther terrain.A growing number of panthers are hemmed into a shrinking corner of south-west Florida, where their ability to roam is threatened by ever expanding subdivisions and highways.Florida panther numbers have more than tripled in recent decades to between 100 and 180, according to government estimates. But state officials say more than twice as many would be needed, in multiple populations, before the species could be downgraded on the endangered list."It's really about buying us some time," said Kevin Godsea, manager for the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge. "We are never going to be able to purchase all the land that we are going to need to recover the species."Seventeen panthers already have died this year, mostly hit by cars, putting the year on track to be one of the deadliest for the species in recent history, according to state records. *This image is copyright of its original author Biologists with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission release a female Florida panther, rescued as a kitten in 2011, at the Picayune Strand State Forest in Collier County, Florida. Photograph: ReutersThe deaths exacerbate the struggles that panther advocates face in building on past successes. The rebound came after eight Texas pumas were introduced in 1995 to strengthen the Florida panther's genetics. The Florida panther is the last subspecies of puma surviving in the eastern United States.Continuing the progress requires help from private landowners, say wildlife officials, acknowledging that many ranchers resent the official state animal, which can prey on their livestock.Cattle, goats, chicken, turkeys – even cats and dogs – have all been known as panther prey. With only a carcass, it is difficult to prove a big cat is the culprit, complicating discussions about reimbursement for ranchers' losses.Jack Johnson, a rancher of three decades in rural Immokalee, Florida, said the payment proposal unveiled in late May did little to change his views of the Florida panther as a nuisance."Ultimately what I think is going to happen?" he said. "The three Ss are going to be come into play – shoot, shovel and shut up."It's also unclear how the payments, yet unfunded, would affect other federal farm bill programs, as well as state and private conservation efforts.Wildlife officials would start with a three-year pilot project covering 10% of the desirable terrain in private hands, at a total cost of about $1.5m.But the money would not stop landowners from selling out to development in another decade or two. Conservation groups call the short-term horizon a concern.Still, the proposal is one of the few viable options, said Alexis Meyer, who runs the Florida panther critical habitat campaign for the Sierra Club.The panther, which roamed throughout the south-east, hasn't been welcomed in other states with suitable habitat, she noted."It really is hard to try and move a large predator," she said. "There is just something about a big cat that either you love it or you hate it."http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2...d-wildlife (07-14-2014, 11:05 PM)'Pckts' Wrote: And this is why you don't put wild animals in zoos or anywhere else other than where they belong How did the Mirchaini cubs died in captivity ?
Another tiger found dead in Mudumalai reserve
A tigress was found dead in the Mudumalali Tiger Reserve (MTR) in the Nilgiris, raising concerns again about the high number of deaths of big cats in Tamil Nadu. This is the second tiger reported dead in MTR and the fifth in the Nilgiris forests in the past six months. With the latest tiger death in MTR, the total number of deaths of big cats in Tamil Nadu this year has gone up to nine. The tigress, estimated to be nine years, was found dead inside a bush in the MTR, 50 km from Ooty. Forest staff found the carcass while they were on a routine patrol on Monday evening. The body of the animal was found in a slightly decomposed state. "The animal could have been dead for at least five days," said D Chandran, Deputy Director, MTR and Mukurthi National Park. Chandran said the animal's body parts, like teeth, nail and skin, normally removed by poachers, were found in tact. The autopsy of the animal was conducted inside the forest on Tuesday as per conservation guidelines in the presence of forest officials, representatives of National Tiger Conservation Authority, and representatives of local NGOs.Forest veterinarian N Manoharan, who did the postmortem examination of the animal, said, "We found an internal injury and related complications. The animal could have sustained the injury due to a fall from an elevated spot and that could have killed it." Samples of the carcass were collected by officials and sent to a lab for testing. Later, the carcass was burnt inside the forest.In MTR, which extends over an area of 321 sq km, tigers are thriving due to effective conservation initiatives and policing. It is home to more than 75 tigers. As tigers are aggressively territorial animals, they control and guard prime areas with high density prey base. Based on locality and prey density, the size of tiger territories vary.Some of the deaths in Tamil Nadu forests were due to natural causes while at least three were due to poisoning. Autopsy reports are awaited in three cases. However, forest officials are of the view that poaching or poisoning by villagers doesn't account for a majority of the deaths. "We record and publicize the deaths of these big cats but not their births. In the past few years, their birth rates have been encouraging. The infighting over prey or territory is only an indication that their population has increased," said a senior forest official. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/...443844.cms
Madhya Pradesh tracks poachers with Nagpur links
After a lull, there was some action against tiger poachers in Madhya Pradesh on Sunday. In a raid by forest officials in Sewra range bordering Damoh and Jabalpur districts, a gang of 18-20 poachers, including women were tracked but all of them managed to escape.According to sources, the raid was led by Damoh conservator of forest (CF) HS Mohanty. The gang included two dreaded poachers Naret Pardhi, around 65 years, and his son Taliyar Pardhi (40).The poachers belonged to Khand village and had reached Sewra forest on Saturday evening. Acting on a tip-off, Mohanty raided the spot at around 5am on Sunday. However, as the raiding party was in the foothills and poachers on the top, they managed to escape.Some women were detained. Though no incriminating material was seized from them, sources said a couple of papers related to court cases being fought in Nagpur was seized from them. This indicates that the poachers lodged in Central Jail were relatives of the gang.Jabalpur chief conservator of forests (CCF) Rajesh Kumar confirmed the action and said the poachers had links to the arrested accused in Nagpur. When contacted, Mohanty said, "We seized some weapons and nets from the women. Some mobile phones were also seized." The forest area was scanned with the help of dog squad. The raiding party came across chappals and other material of poachers."Call detail records from the seized mobile phones have numbers from Maharashtra and can lead to other poachers and clues," said Kumar. The MP officials have sent pictures of some detained women to investigating officials in Nagpur for identification.Officials in Nagpur said the poachers belonging to Bahelia community never disclosed their real names and hence their links with arrested poachers could not be ruled out http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/...340266.cms (07-16-2014, 02:24 PM)'Apollo' Wrote:Its on the tigertrackers facebook page, (i think) It seemed like they died from depression. It was his caption under the photo he took.(07-14-2014, 11:05 PM)'Pckts' Wrote: And this is why you don't put wild animals in zoos or anywhere else other than where they belong (07-16-2014, 09:40 PM)'Pckts' Wrote:(07-16-2014, 02:24 PM)'Apollo' Wrote:Its on the tigertrackers facebook page, (i think) It seemed like they died from depression. It was his caption under the photo he took.(07-14-2014, 11:05 PM)'Pckts' Wrote: And this is why you don't put wild animals in zoos or anywhere else other than where they belong Died from depression, thats bad. I feel sorry for them RIP
UN panel asks India to act against poaching in Manas sanctuary
Expressing serious concern over poaching of rhinos in Assam's Manas Wildlife Sanctuary, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee has warned India of including the wildlife reserve in "the List of World Heritage in Danger" if it failed to check poaching and encroachment in the forest. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee at its 38th Session held in Doha last month expressed "serious concern" over the reported recent poaching of nearly one third of the recovering rhino population in the biodiversity hotspot, which was designated a World Heritage site in 1985. The UN panel has noted with "utmost concern" the reported deterioration of the security situation in the sanctuary, and said that further deterioration, "associated with the reported surge in poaching and concerns regarding encroachment, could create the conditions to re-inscribe the property on the List of World Heritage in Danger". 'The List of World Heritage in Danger' is designed to inform the international community of conditions that threaten the very characteristics for which a property was inscribed on the World Heritage List, and to encourage corrective action. The UNESCO has asked India to ensure that forest guards are adequately equipped and trained to protect the property against poachers and maintain effective patrolling, to secure the recovering population of rhino and other wildlife.The anticipated translocation of Eastern Swamp Deer should be carried out effectively, it has said. The UN panel has asked India to take urgent measures to address the "reported new encroachment" at Bhuyanpara Range within the property, and rehabilitate degraded areas. It also directed India to submit to the World Heritage Centre by 1 February 2015, a detailed report on the state of conservation of the sanctuary before its 39th session.Covering an area of 39,100 hectares, the sanctuary spans the Manas river and is bounded to the north by the forests of Bhutan. It is part of the core zone of the 283,700 hectares Manas Tiger Reserve, and lies alongside the shifting river channels of Manas.The sanctuary provides critical and viable habitats for several rare and endangered species including tiger, greater one-horned rhino, swamp deer, pygmy hog and Bengal florican. http://www.business-standard.com/article...180_1.html |
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