Weekly Feline News

Welcome to this week's edition of cat-related news. Some mixed news this week, mainly emanating from India. Some disturbing statistics and some good projects to look forward to - regarding the two big feline predators there - the Bengal Tiger and Asiatic Lion. But first the straying tiger that has been keeping the wildlife officials in northern parts of India occupied for the greater part of the last month..

The young male tiger that came out of its forest into adjacent sugarcane fields, possibly in search of prey, a few weeks ago has now traveled close to one hundred and fifty miles. All attempts to capture and relocate the big cat have failed so far and the tiger has been moving constantly, passing close to human habitats, taking cattle and wild prey, and staying ahead of wildlife officials. It almost seems as if the tiger is searching for a perfect new habitat for itself. And even though it has altered its course to deviate from the major city it was heading towards in the past to a jungle, the animal is still not safe from potential conflict with locals of that region. Let's hope that this charmed passage of the tiger continues until it reaches some place safe, of its own accord or at the hands of the wildlife authorities. A news piece about the tiger here.

Some more somber news relating to the Bengal Tigers. There are roughly fourteen hundred of the great cats left in the forests of India, according to latest figures from the Indian government. This is perhaps the lowest figure ever reported for tigers in India. It seems that the numbers keep dwindling with every passing year despite the conservation moves and funding allocation seen on paper there. My understanding is that while some of the reserves in India are doing well to sustain and even increase their tiger numbers, most forests have a static or gradually declining population of tigers. This may be owing to poaching, limited forest land and ungulate numbers and competition with the human population. Whatever the case may be, it is clear that more needs to be done if Bengal Tiger numbers are to rebound - and as if to reinforce this point - news emerged this past week that one of the tigers has gone missing from one of the foremost reserves in the country, Ranthambore National Park. The tiger is question is three and a half years old and has not been spotted now for the last two months. A similar situation arose last year in Ranthambore when a tiger went missing during these months and was later found to be killed by poachers. Let's pray that the fate of this particular animal is different! More on the above two stories here and here.

Still there are encouraging signs for the future. Latest include the allocation of funds for tiger conservation in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu by the government. Uttar Pradesh is to get new sanctuaries whereas Tamil Nadu, the only state that reported an increase in the number of tigers in its forests last year, is to get funds amounting to twenty million Indian rupees for tiger conservation. More here and here.

Now moving to lions. Troubling statistics here too. According to the Environment Minister, seventy nine Asiatic Lions have died in the Gir Forest of India in the past two years. Whilst the majority of animals have died of natural causes, it seems that there are still some who continue to die at the hands of poachers, electrocution by illegally erected electric fences by farmers, and by falling into any of the thousands of open wells dug in and around Gir. More on this here.

But again there is some good news too for these lions. They are to get a new sanctuary as plans are being made to relocate villagers from a sanctuary known as Barda Dungar and move the lions to there. The process might still take one year before some of the lions may be moved to the new reserve - but still a glimmer of light for the overcrowded lions at Gir. The full story here.

And talking about lions and tigers - wonder who'd win in a confrontation? - this time it was the lion that fatally bit a tigress that accidentally came in contact with him at a Korean zoo. Quite a tragic incident that just goes to show the unpredictable behavior of animals. I've always felt that animals in captivity are more aggressive than their wild cousins. If this was a jungle the animals would have probably given each other a wide berth. Similarly big cats usually avoid humans in the wild and seldom attack them. However once you enter their enclosure in a zoo they usually go after you. Maybe it has to do with the invasion of space or territory but I personally feel that the stress associated with a lifetime of captivity is responsible for the animal's aggression. The full report of the incident is here, albeit with a somewhat graphic image.

Before I go here is something I got in the inbox. There is a pet photo contest going on at Anamigo and you can participate in it by going here. All the best!

I think this is about all for this week's main feline news. Have a safe and happy week and see you all next Sunday :)