Male tiger sighted in Kawal

Number of big cats in north Telangana goes up to seven

December 15, 2018 11:23 pm | Updated December 16, 2018 07:48 am IST - HYDERABAD

Sighting of a male tiger after a long gap in the Kawal Tiger Reserve of Adilabad district has filled Telangana Forest department with hope and joy.

Images of a male tiger, robust and healthy, have been captured on camera traps recently kept in Kawal sanctuary core area, as part of phase-3 monitoring prescribed by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA). Earlier, the tiger’s pug marks were also captured in Pandavapur beat of Kadem range in Kawal on Saturday, a statement from field director C. Saravanan informed.

Forest staff is continuously tracking it and monitoring its movements. Efforts are being made to create awareness among public in the adjoining villages, the statement said. With the latest tiger spotted in Kawal, the number of the big cats in north Telangana — cubs and adults — has gone up to seven.

Ideal habitat

The presence of a tiger shows that the habitat in Kawal has become ideal and supports good population of prey species and co-predators, the statement said, and attributed the success to the department’s efforts towards habitat improvement.

However, three tigers which had entered Kawal from adjoining wildlife areas of Maharashtra during the last four years, did not stay and could not be traced later.

One more tigress has made the corridor area of Kagaznagar her home, and bred two litters of four cubs each there. From her first litter, three cubs have gone untraceable, and the fourth, a female of about three years, has been roaming in the Chennur forest division, entangled in a wire snare.

The department is in the process of rescuing the tigress before it is too late, but has been unsuccessful so far.

The second litter of four cubs is safe and still with the mother, as per information from officials.

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