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by Jeremy Hance on 12 February 2013 Bengal tiger in Rantgambhore National Park. Photo by: Bjørn Christian Tørrissen.

After tigers, elephants receive the next greatest amount: $4 million or 6 percent of the total. Combating the illegal wildlife trade—one of the gravest threats to many of India’s species—is funded with just $1 million. Many of the nation’s species receive no government funding whatsoever.

“The Great Indian bustard was a priority species for action for which we even developed a species recovery plan (along with the Bengal florican, the lesser florican, Jerdon’s courser, the giant clam, the hangul, the Bastar wild buffalo), but funds were not allocated by the government,” Asad Rahmani, the director of the Bombay Natural History Society told Live Mint.

The Great Indian bustard (Ardeotis nigriceps) is down to only about 250 individuals. The hangul, or Kashmir stag (Cervus elaphus hanglu), has fallen to 160 individuals. After being thought extinct for 80 years, Jerdon’s courser (Rhinoptilus bitorquatus) may be down to just fifty birds.

Worldwide, there are around 3,000 tigers surviving in six distinct subspecies. The Bengal tiger is generally considered to be the most robust. In 2010, all 13 tiger range countries met for a Tiger Summit and pledged millions to protect the world’s largest cat from extinction. Some conservationists argued that protecting flagship species—such as the tiger or elephant—translates into protections for other species in the same habitats. While this is somewhat true, many of India’s imperiled species, for example, are found outside of tiger habitat. In addition, more-and-more threatened species require targeted conservation actions if they are to survive. Illustration of the Great Indian bustard which stands about one meter (3.3 feet) high. From Thomas Hardwicke’s Illustrations of Indian Zoology.


Claim of human and tiger ‘coexistence’ lacks perspective (01/29/2013) Nepal’s Chitwan National Park was the site of a study, published in September 2012 by Carter and others, which concluded that, tigers coexist with humans at fine spatial scales. This paper has ignited a scientific debate regarding its implications for large carnivore conservation worldwide, with scientists at institutions worldwide questioning the validity of claims of coexistence. At the foundation of this debate, perhaps, is the unresolved question, “what is coexistence?”

Living beside a tiger reserve: scientists study compensation for human-wildlife conflict in India (01/21/2013) During an average year, 87% of households surrounding Kanha Tiger Reserve in Central India report experiencing some kind of conflict with wild animals, according to a new paper in the open-access journal PLOS One. Co-existence with protected, free-roaming wildlife can be a challenge when living at the edge of a tiger reserve. “Local residents most often directly bear the costs of living alongside wildlife and may have limited ability to cope with losses” wrote the authors of the new paper.

Leopard poaching is a bigger problem in India than previously believed (10/31/2012) A recent study conducted by wildlife trade monitoring group TRAFFIC uncovered unnerving statistics about the illegal trade of leopards (Panthera pardus) in India: at least four leopards have been poached every week for the past decade in the country. The study, entitled Illuminating the Blind Spot: A study on illegal trade in Leopard parts in India, highlights the severity of leopard poaching from 2001 to 2010, despite preventative measures established in 1972 by the Wildlife Protection Act (WLPA) that prohibit the sale of leopard parts in India.

Appreciating elephant individuality: a new approach to preventing conflicts with humans 

Livelihoods depend on the environment in the Western Ghats

Recommendations to save India’s Western Ghats creates political stir 

Animals, Archive, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Birds, Carnivores, Cats, Charismatic Animals, Conservation, Critically Endangered Species, Elephants, Endangered Species, Environment, Funding, Governance, Government, Green, In-situ Conservation, Jeremy Hance, Mammals, Predators, Tigers, Top Predators, Wildlife


