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Bigcats News
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Sundari Back To Core Area Of Satkosia
Sarmeeli Mallick Oct4, 2018 BHUBANESWAR: Are much hue and cry due to movement of tigress Sundari in areas near the outer periphery of Satkosia Tiger Reserve and death of a woman and some cattle after allegedly being attacked by the tigress, Odisha's forest department today informed that the big cat has been chased away into the core area of the forest. Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) Panda informed that despite formation of teams and preparedness for relocation of the tigress with assistance of aids like tranquilizer and trap, the big cat moved into the core area of the jungle by itself. Panda further stated that the tigress is moving nearby the male tiger, which was relocated to Satkosia from Kanha National Park in Madhya Pradesh few months earlier. Earlier, four teams of the officials of Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Satkosia Forest Department, Kanha Tiger Reserve and Nandankanan Zoological Park were deployed to monitor the movement of Sundari and relocate her to deep jungle after its presence triggered panic in several villages near the vicinity of the tiger reserve. 
Snow leopard faces extinction in Pakistan, warn experts
Wildlife experts have expressed concern over an alarming decline in the population of snow leopards in Pakistan, citing climate change and lack of eco-friendly tourism as the leading factors behind threats to the species. Speaking to Dawn, wildlife ecology scholar Shoaib Hameed said that climate change was the biggest threat to survival of snow leopards and other rare species in the northern areas ... Source: https://www.dawn.com/news/1437365  *This image is copyright of its original author
Buxa Tiger Reserve: Ahead of plan to repopulate tigers, over 300 deer translocated
October 7, 2018 Express photo by Subham Dutta  *This image is copyright of its original author As a part of its programme to augment tiger numbers, the state wildlife department is in the process of translocating deer from different parts of the state to Buxa Tiger Reserve in Alipurduar. If the translocation is a success, the department will then procure its first tiger next year. The Buxa Tiger Augmentation Programme is the first of its kind in the state. Sinha says that according to the official count, carried out by protocols set up by the Centre, there is only one tiger in the reserve. The state wildlife department, on the other hand, believes that there may be up to six tigers living in the reserve near the northern border. The department is looking at procuring anywhere between three to 10 tigers over the coming years. The Detailed Project Report for the programme had been approved by the Centre and the state wildlife board last year. The Buxa programme was developed by the department with the assistance of the Global Tiger Forum and the National Tiger Conservation Authority. As many as 250 spotted deer had already been moved to Buxa Tiger Reserve, and another 50 sambar deers are now to be translocated from Jaldapara Sanctuary.  *This image is copyright of its original author “We will be the third tiger reserve (in the country) to attempt this. The tiger population has been decreasing in Buxa over the past few years for a number of reasons. Inbreeding among tigers here is one reason. The others include human incursions, shortage of food and migration of tigers towards Bhutan,” said the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and state Chief Wildlife Warden Ravi Kant Sinha on Saturday. “The translocation will take place as soon as Durga Puja is over. In order for tiger augmentation programme to succeed, we have to make sure that there is enough prey. We have had a very high success rate in translocation of deer. Out of 250 spotted deer… only two have died. Whereas the norm is that during the translocation of deer, at least 50 per cent of the deer die. This is because deer are extremely sensitive creatures and have weak hearts. This was a 600-km-long journey. We made sure we would transport only at night under darkness, when there was little noise, to ensure that the deer has as little stress as possible,” said Sinha. “If all goes well and the deer adapt to their new environment, we will be procuring our first tiger from Assam in January next year,” he said. 
[]Hello. I didnt know where to post this. Its specifically about the lions mane and its ability to protect it in fighting, and from wounds and injuries. I think this may end the debate that the lions mane protects the lion (in any way), it confirms common sense beliefs (that its just a bunch of hair).
Lioness kills male lion in a zoo yesterday, with a throat bite, suffocation, the lioness killed the male lion on the spot. (CNN) A lioness killed the father of her three cubs at the Indianapolis Zoo this week. In a statement Friday, Indianapolis zoo staff said they heard "an unusual amount of roaring" at the lions' outdoor yard early Monday morning. When they arrived, they saw a female lion, Zuri, in a physical confrontation with their adult male lion, Nyack. "Zoo personnel made every effort to separate the lions, but Zuri held Nyack by the neck until he stopped moving," the zoo said in a statement. Zoo veterinary staff conducted a necropsy on Nyack and found that the 10-year-old male died of suffocation from injuries to the neck. The two lions were housed together at the Indianapolis Zoo for eight years and produced three cubs, zoo officials said. According to staff logs, there were no previous examples of aggression between Zuri and Nyack. "We know many people loved visiting Nyack. He was a magnificent male lion and left his legacy in his three cubs," the zoo said in a statement. The Indianapolis Zoo said it will investigate the incident and there are no current plans to change how they manage the lions. The attack occurred before the zoo opened to the public Monday morning. https://edition-m.cnn.com/2018/10/20/us/...gle.com%2F The lion.  *This image is copyright of its original author
 (10-20-2018, 08:52 PM)paul cooper Wrote: I think this may end the debate that the lions mane protects the lion (in any way), it confirms common sense beliefs (that its just a bunch of hair). I don't think it qualifies to "end" any kind of debate about the issue, considering that this is not the first "news" I've seen redacted in the same way, with the same outcome. How comes that it never, ever happens in the wild?... Now, I'm not saying that the post is worthless or anything like that, but I moved it here because it fits better with the theme, instead of looking like a (kind of) provocation to those that like lions. We leave it as news, regardless of its accuracy. (10-21-2018, 06:31 AM)Tshokwane Wrote:(10-20-2018, 08:52 PM)paul cooper Wrote: I think this may end the debate that the lions mane protects the lion (in any way), it confirms common sense beliefs (that its just a bunch of hair). I never seen that before, a lioness getting throat bite on a male lion with a big mane and killing him? If it ever happens in the wild is unclear, but it makes no sense for a lioness to go for a kill with a big male lion in the wild. Captivity they can act weird.. just like you sometimes see the animals kill each other for no reason. (10-21-2018, 01:20 PM)paul cooper Wrote: I never seen that before, a lioness getting throat bite on a male lion with a big mane and killing him? The news report, I mean. Which is why I lean on it being fake, because this kind of stuff has already been "reported" several times; it makes no sense, and even with the mane "not being" a neck defense, a lion has enough strenght on his own to get off the female's grip. Unless, of course, they aren't telling us details of it like that he got stuck in the bars and couldn't move or something that would explain this happening. But you can see that, reallistically, it makes no sense.
Oh its real alright, credible sources (not a newspaper from 1876), they interviewed the zoo. Even Craig Packer talked on this, hes got something interesting to say.
The sudden attack, which happened before the zoo was open to the public, has left staff and lion experts completely baffled: Why would a female lion attack a male she was not only familiar with but who also fathered her cubs? A definite reason may never be known, but lion expert Craig Packer, director of the University of Minnesota's Lion Center, told The Washington Post that Nyack's death may be linked to his "unusual relationship" with Zuri. Nyack, the 10-year-old African lion. (Indianapolis Zoo photo) "She apparently dominated him for the whole time they were together," Packer said. "That in itself is almost unheard of." He added, "I've never heard of a female that was that dominating of a male, ever." For eight years, Nyack and Zuri coexisted without incident and had "done really well together" during that time, Hagan told WIBC. "We don't know what the precursor to the fight was," he said. In a Facebook post announcing Nyack's death on Friday, the zoo wrote that it will conduct a "thorough review to attempt to understand what may have led to this." Zuri and her three cubs, one of whom was present during the deadly clash, are all OK, the post said. Zuri will remain at the zoo, WIBC reported. According to Reuters, there are no plans to change how the lions are being managed. Part of the zoo's efforts to figure out what happened included calling Packer, who has extensively studied lions in the Serengeti. He described the attack as "surprising" and "so unexpected." "They called me because they were puzzled, and I agree it's puzzling," Packer said. He added of the attack, "It was completely unprovoked and it was certainly not typical." Zuri killing Nyack is bizarre for two reasons, Packer said: He was the father of her cubs and she engaged him one-on-one. Though the details of the incident are shocking, female lions attacking males is not unprecedented. In September, video footage showed a pack of lionesses attacking a male lion at the West Midland Safari Park in England, the BBC reported. That lion had been introduced to the pride only last year, according to the BBC. In the wild, Packer said he has also observed females attacking a nomadic male, but only in an attempt to chase the "strange" lion away and protect their cubs. They might be trying to harm the male, but the intention is not to kill, he said. Sukari, the lions' 3-year-old daughter, was in the enclosure during the attack and Zuri is described as an "attentive and protective mother," who is usually keeping an eye on her cubs, according to the zoo. But Packer said Sukari did not appear to be "at risk from anything." Rather the incident, he said, may stem from the "unusual combination" of a "meek male" and an "all-powerful female." "I don't usually associate this kind of personality with a female lion," he said. "The fact that it developed at all is fascinating." Nyack was described by the zoo as "laid back." Zuri, however, was "large and very dominating," Packer said. According to the zoo, Zuri only weighed 25 pounds less than Nyack. Male lions are usually much larger than females and more aggressive, and "being next to a large male is like living next to a keg of dynamite," Packer said. "The females will be annoyed with the males sometimes and will kind of swat at them, but they're pretty careful not to provoke them too much," he said. That did not appear to be the dynamic between Nyack and Zuri. Given Nyack's meekness, Packer said it was likely Zuri didn't receive the "usual pushback from the male that would be normal in this species," which in turn allowed her to exercise dominance over him. "Apparently, the male was always very subordinate to her, which is totally strange," Packer said. During last week's brutal fight, Packer said Zuri attacked Nyack twice. The first time, Nyack managed to escape, but Zuri followed him, he said. "It was the second time that she got him that she seems to have crushed his throat," he said. Nyack's death left the zoo's staff devastated, Hagan told Reuters. On social media, many who visited Nyack shared photos and paid tribute to him. "My heart is broken," one person wrote on Facebook. "He was the best part of the zoo." Another user reminisced about going to the zoo early in the mornings just to hear Nyack roar. One person shared a photo of Nyack "calmly" leaning against the glass of his enclosure just days before his death. Zuri was laying just a couple feet away and "all seemed well," the person wrote. Packer said it still remains a mystery why Zuri only attacked recently, adding that animals are "very unpredictable." "The female just seemed to be having a bad day," he said. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-lion-indiana-zoo-20181022-story.html  (10-23-2018, 03:08 AM)paul cooper Wrote: Oh its real alright, credible sources (not a newspaper from 1876), they interviewed the zoo. Even Craig Packer talked on this, hes got something interesting to say.It's nice that Packer gave his 2 cents, but I think he carries his personal experience from the wild into this instance. In the wild, I could never imagine a Lioness doing this to a male Lion, they are too small and wild Lions are battle hardened, not like captive cats who have little to no fighting experience and don't live by survival of the fittest. I have also seen a few captive Lioness that were definitely larger than some Male Lions I've seen, it's not common but I have seen it with my own 2 eyes, so I don't find it that hard to believe that she was essentially the same size Nyack. 
THE EFFECT OF CAPTIVITY IN LIONS
MALES Many cubs of wild lions never reach adulthood. Those that do, learned to deal with lion reality at an early age. Most cubs know about starvation, heavy rains or droughts, pressure of other predators, scavengers, humans and competition within the pride. Adolescent males often are kicked out when they know next to nothing. The most lucky join small groups with other youngsters, enabling them to survive and learn a few things. After some years of hardship, the best of them might get a chance to breed. Before they do, they have to overcome tough opposition of experienced males. I'm not saying that all of those that got to adulthood and a pride graduated with honour, but most did. On the way to adulthood, characters are developed. More often than not, it results in tough characters. Most adult males don't take no for an answer, that is. The males we see in documentaries often really are the most able in most departments. Selection. Male lions born and bred in captivity don't know about the essentials of life. They also don't know about timing, planning and cooperation. Although they inherited all crucial treats, potential if different from a result. A result often realized the hard way. I never read anything about laid back wild male lions. The reason is they perished on their way to adulthood. This is why Packer never saw them in Wild Africa. As they didn't do selection, captive males are different from wild male lions. I'm not saying that all captive adult male lions are parodies on wild male lions, but you might encounter the occasional pride male interested in a debate and good music. When he meets an older lioness with outspoken opinions, trouble is close. When she's large as well and he's on his own, abuse is not that far away. LIONESSES Only very few captive adult male lions meet their end in the jaws of a lioness, but I've seen captive male lions dominated by females. It's rare, but not extra exceptional. In captivity, one only very seldom meets a lioness on her own. In the great majority of cases, a captive 'pride' has at least two, more often three or four adult lionesses. Very often, they're related. As a result of numbers, captive lionesses have more and more intense relations than males, meaning females, and not males, carry the culture typical for lions. If males do not fit in, they can be rejected. In captivity, it happens every now and then. In one facility, quite some years ago, the females refused all young adult males introduced to them when the boss of the pride perished. The only one they, after a long time, accepted was a 17-year old male who had lost all his teeth and had a bit of trouble walking as well. When he had to move, he had a female on both sides. They also chewed his food. But he still had a bit of magic. Within a year, all lionesses had produced healthy cubs. Wild lionesses can reject new males after a takeover. At times, females leave the pride. Every now and then, females are wounded or even killed. One could say that wild male lions and violence are good friends and be close. Intraspecific violence, however, isn't typical for lions only.   *This image is copyright of its original author Today, an article about the tigers in the Swiss newspaper, "Le Temps". Interesting, I try to sum up it. Introduction: a fact: 97% tigers disapeared since the year 1900 ago. Main factor: the man. Because of 1) hunting, 2) tiger's habitat reduction, 3) their preys's impoverishment, 4) poaching because of the "Chinese medicine". Development: The "Current Biology" magazine from the 25/10/2018, published the results of an international study about the tiger's history, its migration paths and its local adaptations. This study is funded on the entire 32 wild or captive tigers' genome. These 32 tigers are representative from the different Asian regions where the tigers are living. This study confirms there are, indeed, 6 tiger subspecies: South China tiger, Sumatran tiger, Bengal tiger, Indochinese Tiger, Malaysian tiger and Siberian tiger. In 2004, a partial study of this genome already told there were 6 tiger subspecies. But other researchers in 2015 advanced a lower figure, but now thank to this study, the 6 tiger subspecies are confirmed. 6 tiger subspecies in addition to 3 extinct tiger subspecies: Bali tiger, Caspian tiger and Java tiger. But, very interesting, this study of the tiger's genome reconstitutes the "geological story" of this felid. The oldest fossils date from 2 million years and were located China and Indonesia. But the genome analysis allows only to go back to 110.000 years, thus linked to a weak genetic diversity. End of the Pleistocene era, bad period for the tiger, "genetic bottleneck period" for the tiger that lasted till the end of the last glaciation i.e. 11700 years before JC. 75000 years ago: the super volcano Toba (Sumatra) eruption provoked several winter decades and more than 1000 years cooling of the Earth. 53000 years ago: The Bengal tiger is an isolated subspecy. 45000 years ago: a new East Asian tiger lineage is born. This new lineage split in two: the Malaysian tiger and the Indochinese tiger. After the last glaciation (11700 years ago I presume ?): birth of the last tiger subspecy, the Siberian tiger. This study also stresses on 14 strong pressure-submitted tiger's genes. Among these ones, the ADH7 gene, ruling the size of the big cat that ranges from 2,30 meters (Sumatra tiger) to 3,80 meters (Siberian tiger). Conclusion: "all the tigers don't look alike" ! Hence the necessity to respect their singularities and to not cross different subspecies.  (10-23-2018, 03:32 AM)Pckts Wrote:Now Nyack is removed from website of Indianapolis Zoo. Zuri is still there. Day or two after this incident those were both there. But what I find odd is, that zoo has no article about this incident in website. I find it odd, that only good news are published, but if something unpleasant, silence.... Newspapers told about that anyway, so it feels strange.(10-23-2018, 03:08 AM)paul cooper Wrote: Oh its real alright, credible sources (not a newspaper from 1876), they interviewed the zoo. Even Craig Packer talked on this, hes got something interesting to say.It's nice that Packer gave his 2 cents, but I think he carries his personal experience from the wild into this instance. In the wild, I could never imagine a Lioness doing this to a male Lion, they are too small and wild Lions are battle hardened, not like captive cats who have little to no fighting experience and don't live by survival of the fittest. I have also seen a few captive Lioness that were definitely larger than some Male Lions I've seen, it's not common but I have seen it with my own 2 eyes, so I don't find it that hard to believe that she was essentially the same size Nyack. Anyway what comes to incident, things just happen time to time. I don´t find it odd, that a female lion can kill a male lion. Sometimes leopard can kill a tiger, not often, but all animals have sometimes bad luck. That is nothing special to anyone, who look situations with common sense. These animals aren´t invulnerable programmed robots. Sometimes one swipe ends fight, sometimes prolonged fights ends to dispersion. Anything is possible. (10-26-2018, 04:24 PM)Spalea Wrote: Conclusion: "all the tigers don't look alike" ! Hence the necessity to respect their singularities and to not cross different subspecies. Unfortunately I'm not well versed in genomes, but my understanding is that all Tigers still came from one species and it was the effect of Climate and Terrain that caused certain subspecies splits. So if that is the case, than it doesn't matter if we recognize a subspecies split or not, you can take any Tiger now and breed it in any location Tigers are found and eventually that species will become a "Sumatran" or "Bengal" or "Amur" etc. depending on where it lives. I know "subspecies" matter when discussing size, prey preference or personality, but I'm not sure it matters for conservation. (10-26-2018, 10:02 PM)Pckts Wrote:(10-26-2018, 04:24 PM)Spalea Wrote: Conclusion: "all the tigers don't look alike" ! Hence the necessity to respect their singularities and to not cross different subspecies. I don't know, either. I'm simply quite amazed to see how we can reconstitute the story of an animal specy through the times and to learn that the tiger specy was already on the verge on extinction 110.000 years ago (weak genetic diversity). Perhaps this big cat is a very tough specy. I hope it is of good omen as concerns the future.
This is really bad news for wildlife: China has announced that it will allow hospitals to use tiger bone and rhino horn from captive-bred animals for traditional medicine. We’re urgently calling on China to maintain the 1993 ban on tiger bone and rhino horn trade and to extend it to cover trade in all tiger parts and products.
In an enormous setback for wildlife conservation, China announced it will allow hospitals to use tiger bone and rhino horn from captive-bred animals for traditional medicine. The decision reverses a decades-old ban that has been instrumental in preventing the extinction of endangered tigers and rhinos. “China’s decision to reopen a legalized trade in farmed tiger bone and rhino horn reverses 25 years of conservation progress in reducing the demand for these products in traditional Chinese medicine and improving the effectiveness of law enforcement,” said Leigh Henry, director of wildlife policy, WWF-US. “This devastating reversal by China runs completely counter to the image of wildlife champion the world had come to expect with China’s ivory trade ban, which was such a positive development for the world’s elephants.” WWF urgently calls on China to not only maintain their 1993 ban on tiger bone and rhino horn trade, but to also extend it to cover trade in all tiger parts and products, regardless of whether they’re from captive-bred or wild animals. The new regulations say hospitals can obtain parts from captive facilities within China—excluding zoos—where tigers and rhinos are bred for commercial purposes. Experts estimate that more than 6,500 tigers live in China’s tiger farms, far outnumbering the roughly 3,900 remaining in the wild. The 1993 ban significantly curbed the demand for tiger and rhino parts from what has long been considered the worlds’ largest consumer market for such products. Over the years, China has taken significant steps to implement and enforce this ban through public education campaigns, promotion of effective substitutes for tiger and rhino medicines, and strengthening law enforcement. Allowing the legal market for such parts to resume will be detrimental conservation efforts, potentially fueling the demand for these products and increasing poaching of wild tigers and rhinos. China has been a leader in the conservation of majestic species such as elephants, and WWF is optimistic that the country will recognize its role in the illegal tiger and rhino trade and maintain the ban. https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/in...cebook.com  *This image is copyright of its original author
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