Sunderban records highest number of tiger straying incidents in recent years
Experts say the increase in the number of tiger straying incidents could hit conservation efforts. The authorities of the Sunderban Biosphere Reserve (SBR) have started a probe to find out the reasons behind the sharp increase in such cases.
KOLKATA: The Sunderbans has recorded the highest number of tiger straying incidents in 2021 after witnessing a decline over the past few years, with such cases dropping to zero in recent years, data shared by officials of the Sunderban Biosphere Reserve (SBR) revealed.
While the authorities have already started a probe to find out the reasons behind this sharp increase, experts apprehend that with sea level rising due to global warming and the delta being increasingly hit by cyclones, such incidents are bound to increase in the future. This may even take a toll on the conservation efforts to save the only mangrove tiger in the world, they have warned.
Data shared by the SBR authorities reveal that while the Sunderbans recorded three cases of tiger straying in 2014-15, there were no cases of straying for four years between 2015-16 and 2018-19. In 2019-20 two such cases were reported while the following year in 2020-21 only one case was reported.
“In 2021-22, however, the number of straying cases shot up to seven in the Sunderbans. There may be multiple reasons, all of which are speculations at the moment. We are examining to find out as to why it has shot up again after coming down to zero,” said Piar Chand, director of SBR.
Villagers, however, said that this number can be much more, as on several occasions tigers have strayed into villages crossing rivers and later returned to the forest on their own. The forest department records only those cases where tigers had to be trapped after they strayed and released back into the wild.
The Sunderbans is the world’s largest mangrove delta and spreads over India and Bangladesh. The Indian part is located at the southern tip of West Bengal and sprawls over 4200 sq km. According to the last census held in 2020-21 there are around 96 tigers, up from 88 in 2018-19.
Experts said that the rising number of tigers could be one of the reasons for the increase in straying incidents.
“Male tigers always move out of their mother’s territory to establish their own territory. It is a part of their evolutionary process and inherent behavioral need. They would also move out if the area has reached its carrying capacity,” said Qamar Qureshi, scientist of Wildlife Institute of India (WII).
Also, Sunderbans has been hit by two major cyclones in two consecutive years – Amphan in May 2020 and Yaas in May 2021 – which took a heavy toll on the Sunderbans. Nearly one-third of the mangrove forest suffered extensive damage. The nylon net fencing set up by the forest department along the forest edge to prevent tiger straying also suffered extensive damage.
“This could also be one of the reasons, as gaps might have been created in the fencing through which tigers may have come out and strayed into human territory. The situation got further complicated as the funds for Project Tiger was slashed due to the Covid-19 pandemic,” said a senior forest official, who didn’t wish to be named.
According to data placed in the Lok Sabha on March 28, 2022 by Ashwini Kumar Choubey, union minister of state for environment and forest, the funds for Project Tiger was cut down from ₹350 crore in 2018-19 to ₹282 in 2019-20 and further slashed to ₹195 crore in 2020-21. In 2021-22, it was raised to ₹220 crore.
Experts said that sea level rise due to global warming could also be posing a threat as the sea is gobbling up land along the shores. West Bengal has a coastline of 534 km out of which around 323 km or 60% of the coastline is undergoing erosion.
“There could be multiple reasons behind the rise in tiger straying. But with sea-level rising and erosion of land going on, pressure is building on the Sunderbans. Where would the tigers go if land was eroded by the sea? They would have to move out. So, man-animal conflict is bound to increase and this would definitely affect conservation efforts in the long run,” said YV Jhala, tiger ecologist.
Experts also said that if human interferences inside the forest increase, then too stray tigers may increase. They pointed out that during the pandemic thousands of migrant labourers had returned to the villages in the Sunderbans during the pandemic after losing or quitting their jobs. At that time, many had illegally entered the forest for fishing.
“We have record of only one person who had entered the forest with valid pass issued by the forest department. He would get compensation. The forest doesn’t maintain data of illegal entrants,” said a senior official.
Even though data shared by SBR reveals that human casualties have dropped sharply over the years and only one casualty was reported in 2021-22 from 14 in 2019-20 and 5 in 2020-21, villagers said that the number is much more.
Even though tigers often maul and kill humans when they enter the forest in the Sunderbans for fishing and colleting honey, there has been no incident of tiger attacks inside the villages. Experts have, however, warned that with increasing incidents of tiger straying and man-animal conflict in the delta, conservation may be hit.
“Thanks to the efforts taken by the forest department over the years and the joint forest management initiatives taken by the authorities along with the locals, tigers have not been killed by villagers when they stray into the villages. But if tigers repeatedly enter the villages and human territories and if they kill cattles, it would be the worst possible thing. The moment a tiger enters a village, chances are there that it could be harmed. This is not a happy situation,” said PK Vyas, former chief wildlife warden of West Bengal.
