Dholes (Cuon alpinus)

[peter]

KAILASH SANKHALA ON TIGERS AND DHOLES

a - Introduction

In 1977, 'Tiger! - The Story of the Indian Tiger' was published. I bought it a few years later. A good one, I think.

Sankhala was born in Jodhpur (Rajahstan), on the fringe of the desert. Rajahstan is derived from Registhan, which means 'land of sand'. About half of Rajahstan is part of the Thar desert. His father was a forest ranger. The area he worked in, the Aravali Hills, was famous for sloth bears and leopards. Many years later, he was appointed Director of the Jodhpur zoo.

Living in the forest in primitive conditions for extended periods of time and frequent moves from one area to another have disadvantages, especially for children. According to Sankhala, children of foresters never learn to compete in life. Poverty (forest officers do not earn a lot of money) also has consequences. Sankhala's parents had four children, of which only one could go to college. Sankhala was the lucky one.  

At college, he joined an expedition to cross the Thar Desert in the hottest month (May) as a botanist and photographer. Although the expedition didn't result in a lot of credit at college, it put him in head of the queue for selection to the Forest Service. This was quite something, as appointments in those days were given to the 'chosen few'. This was in the days Maharajahs still had quite a bit of influence.  

After college, Sankhala joined the Indian Forest College at Dehra Dun: 

" ... I have never regretted my time in the Forest Service, with it's fine century-old tradition of conservation. This training, augmented at intervals by short courses on ecology and park administration both in India and the USA, made me a purist. The unlimited opportunities of studying nature ... I only got as a forester. And above all I was able to live with tigers in the wild for days and nights on end, often in full presence of each other's presence but probably even more often in ignorance of it ... " (pp. 15).

His first posting (in April 1953) was in Bundi, a former princely State. Later, he took charge of Khaiwara, a small forest in the south-west of Udaipur. Four months later, he was in charge of a Bharatpur forest division. This posting in particular affected his outlook and career. Between 1965-1970, he was Director of the Delhi Zoo. In 1970, he was awarded the Jawarhalal Nehru Fellowship. This enabled him to increase his knowledge on Indian wildlife.

For a period of two years, Sariska and Ranthambore (in Rajahstan) were his study areas. He also studied tigers in Kanha National Park in Madhya Pradesh in 1971. This was the park selected by George Schaller in 1964-1965:

" ... I found that the information he had collected was mostly from one family of conditioned tigers, which had been provided with baits for more than one-and-a-half years. The group only included one male and was confined to a small area of 10-15 sq km. Vital aspects such as reproduction and the behaviour of a tigress and her infant cubs had not been studied in depth. Schaller's work was valuable in being the first ever to be fully recorded in the field, but it was insufficient to justify wider application. At that time the real facts about tigers' distribution, numbers and the conditions under which they were surviving in other parts of the country were not known ... " (pp. 18).

The first part of 'Tiger! - The Story of the Indian Tiger' is based on what he saw in Bundi, Khaiwara, Udaipur, Sariska, Ranthambore and Kanha in the period 1953-1972. In the second part, the focus is on the relation between tigers and humans. One chapter in this part is about the famous white tigers of Rewa. If you want to know a bit more about white tigers, I recommend Sankhala's book:

*This image is copyright of its original author

b - On tiger 'Jim'

In the fifties and sixties of the previous century, killing tigresses and collecting their cubs was a flourishing business in India. The cubs fetched $ 1.000,00 a piece in the foreign market. Sankhala proposed to introduce a system of providing a certificate of origin for the export of tiger cubs during the fifth session of the Indian Board for Wildlife in 1965. After his proposal had been accepted, the trade in tiger cubs collapsed. 

In spite of that, tigresses with cubs were still shot or poisoned quite often. One day, the Delhi Zoo, headed by Kailash Sankhala in the period 1965-1970, got a cub from Kanha National Park. Although suffering from gastro-enteritis, the cub made it. Jim, as he was named by the local politician who got the cub from villagers, was adopted by the Sankhala family. When he was about two years of age, he was moved to the Delhi Zoo.

Sankhala's first attempt to introduce 'Jim' to a tigress with a similar background from the Dehra Dun forests ('Rosy') failed. A fight erupted. Tigers raised by humans respond different than tigers raised by tigresses. They need more time to adapt to tiger society. 

Sankhala recorded lengths and weights of captive tigers in the Delhi Zoo. These records showed that white tigers often were longer, taller and heavier than others. A white male tiger at the Delhi Zoo ('Raja') was 100 cm. at the shoulder while standing. Male tiger 'Suraj', a normal-coloured tiger, was 90 cm. 

Compared to some of the tigers discussed in this thread, tiger 'Jim' was moderate in size. His standing height was 93 cm. at the shoulder and his total length (most probably measured 'over curves') was 282 cm. His weight was 426 pounds (192 kg.). 

The bond they had never was completely lost: " ... He and I do not meet as we used to do, though when I go to see him he will hold my hand in his mouth to remind me of the old days ... " (pp. 171). Here's a nice photograph of both:

*This image is copyright of its original author

          

c - On dholes

When studying tigers in Kanha National Park in 1971-1972, he noticed they were difficult to find when wild dogs were around. Sankhala thought the animosity created by wild dogs reduced the chances for leopards and tigers.

In Kanha, he saw a cheetal doe wounded by a pack of 18 wild dogs entering a compound. In the evergreen forests of the Western Ghats, Sankhala saw a pack of 21 wild dogs chase a sambar fawn into a deep channel, where she was killed.

In Sankhala's opinion, wild dogs do not fear other predators. At times, they will even chase a tiger from its kill or send it up a tree:   

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

   

Some of us consider a lot of old stories about tigers and dholes as exaggerated interpretations of reports close to hearsay. There are no recent reports about tigers harrassed or wounded by dholes, they say. There are, however, reliable reports about dholes chased, killed and eaten by tigers.

True.

That, however, doesn't mean that all old stories about tigers and dholes are unreliable. It also doesn't mean that dholes can't be dangerous for cubs, youngsters and incapacitated individuals today:  

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Tiger-cub-killed-by-wild-dogs-in-Chanda/articleshow/14512292.cms

d - Tigers and muggers

Sankhala saw a tiger crossing a river between Rajahstan and Madhya Pradesh. A mugger met the tiger halfway. Here's the rest of the story:  

*This image is copyright of its original author

e - Tigers and pythons

In some time, I will discuss a few books that have reliable accounts of severe struggles between tigers and pythons. Here's two stories from Sankahla's book:

*This image is copyright of its original author

*This image is copyright of its original author

f - Conclusion

The natural world is quite something. Predators in particular as special to many. Not a few consider big cats as the culmination of evolution. Although an adult lion, tiger, jaguar or leopard is impressive no matter what, many forget that it takes time to get there undamaged. A lot of time. 

In the first months, cubs of solitary big cats often are on their own for many hours, even days. When discovered by other predators, they wouldn't stand a chance. This is without floods, thunder storms, heat waves, angry villagers and too many diseases to even start counting.

When they survive the first year, they learn what it means to be a predator eating meat only. Most of the animals they hunt, can be dangerous. This is why many of them are disabled by mom when they start hunting. When they, after a year or so, survive hunting school and graduate, they are kicked out.

The period between adolescence and adulthood is as dangerous as the first months, if not more so. Homeless and on the move all the time, they need to avoid mistakes of any kind. The reason is any mistake could be their last. Every hunt is concluded by a life and death struggle with an animal not seldom able to hurt or even kill a big cat. And they most definitely will given half a chance. 

Although some say that about half of all tiger cubs reach adulthood, others think that estimate is way too optimistic. Talking severe selection here.

Adult wild big cats, first of all and foremost, are survivors. They didn't get there by attacking animals able to kill them at every opportunity, but by thinking and learning. Trial and error. Male lions need to learn how to interact the hard way from the start, but solitary big cats often are selective and wary. As careful as it gets.  They just don't have another option, as an injury can result in starvation and death. Solitary cats need to be careful all the time all their life. Anyone who says a wild big cat is a 'coward', for this reason, is a total nitwit.

When big cats reach adulthood and a territory, they graduated. With honour and then some. This means that every discussion on intelligence is a result of a total lack of understanding. And respect. Respect they perhaps deserve more than anyone. 

Adult tigers, on account of their size and power, do not fear wild dogs. But wild dogs are great hunters and they are truly wild. They can't be 'tamed' and are known for their determination and courage. Their nickname, mad dog, is a result of their courage and their behavior, which can be unpredictable at times. Every now and then, they do something that surprises all. In times of need, they have been known to chase even tigers. When a big cat runs, he will be attacked in the way they attack a deer. A single dog is unable to seriously injure a tiger, but a pack can hurt any tiger if they decide to go all out. A suicide mission, no?

I've been in the famous zoo in the eastern part of Berlin on a cloudy and gloomy day. After seeing the big cats, we visited the wild dogs. Apart from us, there were no visitors. We were circling the enclosure, but didn't see anything. Then one of the dogs was right behind us. One yard at most. When we turned, they came from all directions. Small, they were, but they were fully alert and it wasn't a game. Did it have an effect? We had seen an Amur tigress with quite large cubs known for her temper. Her demonstration was impressive, but she was behind bars wasn't she. A good show, it was. After the dogs had talked to us, however, my companions said it was time to go. They were intimidated. By animals known to avoid humans anywhere.   

Would these mad dogs consider a suicide attack in some conditions? No question, I concluded. But that's just an opinion. Reply