Tigers and lions used to live together in the state of Gujarat, India. However tigers disappeared from this state in 1980s whereas lions could manage to survive. The last tiger seen in Gujarat is reported from Dang district bordering Maharashtra!
The Satpuda mountain range is spread up to Dang district of Gujarat where it meets Western Ghats and Arawali mountain! The tiger habitat continuity link is considered from Kanha-Pench (Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh)- Satpuda- Melghat and Yawal. Yawal was the western most protected area in Satpuda mountain where tigers were reported till 2002. However in the last few years, there were some claims made by Khandesh Nature Conservation Society of Jalagaon about tiger sightings in and around Yawal and towards west of Jalagaon district in Muktainagar. The Forest department was investigating these claims.
However a local birdwatcher Mr. Anil Mahajan (Varangaon, Dist: Jalgaon) has sent a picture of a dead tiger cub (above0 to Satpuda Foundation which is a substantial proof that tigers are breeding in Jalagaon district and earlier claims made by Khandesh Nature Conservation Society of Jalagaon were also valid! If it is so, it's a remarkable piece of news for the tigers in central India.
Tiger conservationists were dreaming for the last 20 years that tigers would again disperse towards the west to Melghat. The state expert committee for declaring Critical Tiger Habitats (CTH) Mr. B. Majumdar, Dr. Nandkishore and Kishor Rithe had recommended a compact cluster of Wan, Ambabarawa and Narnala sanctuaries adjoining Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR) should be included in to MTR- CTH which was accepted by the state and the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA). The committee had discussed the future possibility of restoration of degraded corridors towards the west of Melghat to bring back the tiger population in Jalagaon and Dhule district (further west to Yawal).
"In past few years the newly added Wan, Ambabarawa and Wan cluster (to MTR-CTH) has improved a lot in protection and management. Several evidences of breeding tigresses have been recorded in camera traps from this cluster of protected areas," said Kishor Rithe, member of the National Board for Wildlife.
The unconfirmed tiger sighting reports in the past two years by villagers and local nature lovers in Jalgaon district shows that the tigers are dispersing towards the west in Jalagaon district. The forest range Kurha (Vadoda) includes Kurha, Charthana and Dolarkheda rounds. The area of three beats North Dolarkheda (2100ha), South Dolarkheda (1500ha) and Sukali beat (1450 ha) of Dolarkheda round in Kurha range is a good potential area for tigers having 10 perennial waterholes.
Satpuda Foundation has requested the Government of Maharashtra to provide necessary management to this area urgently.
Kishor Rithe
President,
Satpuda Foundation
2 comments:
I am surprised we find it surprising. Where will all the dispersers and animals that do not have place in our little pockets of forests go to? They are not going to stack themselves one of top of another and will obviously go out. And they do not knwo that Melghat Tiger Reserve is a border for them - it is a border only for us humans.
We need to start putting serious pressure on policy makers to ensure that such animals (which probably contribute a lot to gene flow between parks) are not endangered due to conflict.
I think I know some place in Gujarat they have tiger but it's totally secret place bcoz of too much hunting of tigers
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