Ten Sunderbans tigers to get collars

Krishnendu Mukherjee, TNN | Apr 1, 2013
The forest department has decided to radio-collar ten tigers in the Sunderbans where population dynamics of the big cats has al ways remained a mystery. And this time, an advanced set of radio collars, which helped scientists track tigers in Nepal and lions in Gir, will be used in the mangroves.

A team of Wildlife Institute of India (WII) officials, led by senior scientist Y V Jhala, is likely to visit the mangroves in April for the first leg of the exercise. However, a forest department official said the number of tigers to be collared during their first visit will only be decided after consulting the WII scientists. "The dates for their visit is yet to be finalized," said the official.

It may be noted that a total of five tigers, two adult females and three adult males, were radio-collared by the WII scientists in the Sunderbans in 2010. Satellite collars were used for this purpose. Sources said radio-collaring helps experts gauge the home range of tigers , which in the long run comes handy in establishing the density of the big cats in a forest. The study had then revealed that the tigers' home ranges hovered between 190 to 200 square kilometres.

Though large home range indicates lesser density, as a tiger's home range depends on prey base and territory of other tigers, in Sunderbans the exercise didn't yield the desired result then as several collars stopped working within a few days of its deployment.

WII's Y V Jhala said that some data on the tigers' home range and territory could not be established then. "But this time, we have made some changes in the circuitry of the satellite collars to make these robust ones. We have used these collars on lions at Gir and they have even functioned at a stretch for a year. So, this time we expect to get a more reliable data," he said, adding that they are hoping to collar all the ten tigers in a year's time.

However, the exercise then managed to establish the fact that there is tiger movement between the Indian and Bangladesh Sunderbans. "The Khatuajhuri male, which was a stray animal, had crossed the Harinbhanga river to enter the Talpati island of Bangladesh Sunderbans," revealed a WII scientist.

Tracking of the radio-collared tigers had also revealed that there was a general trend of higher movement rate by the mangroves tigers during the day time. However, soon after this study the WII scientists decided to radio collar a minimum of 10 tigers, of which 4-6 in a contagious area of 300-400 square kilometres, to understand home range overlap and territoriality. "The exercise to be conducted now will help the scientists understand whether and how Sunderbans tigers protect their territory," said an official.

Meanwhile, the camera trapping exercise, being done jointly by the forest department and WWF-India, is complete in two ranges of the mangrove's — Sajnekhali and National Park East. "The exercise is on at the Basirhat range. We will start withdrawing the cameras laid at Basirhat from April 11 and hope to give a density for the entire tiger reserve area by the end of April," said WWF-India's Sunderbans chapter head Anurag Danda. After identification, the photographs will be sent to the National Tiger Conservation Authority, so that the Sunderbans tigers can be counted in the UID-type databank.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Ten-Sunderbans-tigers-to-get-collars/articleshow/19315987.cms

Jumbos get new home at Usilampatti?

Express News Service - MADURAI 01st April 2013
The reserve forests of Usilampatti now have a new entrant to its habitat, wild elephants, according a recent census by wildlife activists and environmentalists. The elephants, which till recently were never spotted in the Usilampatti region, have now migrated from their usual habitat in Sattur along the western ghats, said B Ramesh of the Netaji Snake Trust, which was a part of the census. He attributed the migration to the abundant resources, especially natural vegetation, in the region.

“The last survey, done in 2010, only included the endemic species like the spotted deer, the great Indian Sambhar and the common langur. However, this year, the 30-member group, including volunteers from the Nature Conservation Club, conducted an in-depth survey last week and found footprints and dung of elephants,” he added.

Ramesh and his team again then camped in the forest to confirm the movement of wild elephants -- said to be a first in the region. A herd of four elephants would have migrated here searching for water and other resources, Ramesh speculated.  Interestingly, the team also found pug marks of leopards - another species not common to the Usilampatti reserves.

“Though drought is prevailing in the entire district, the Usilampatti reserves have become dense and coarse, thus attracting a number of species. The entire vast expanse is ideal for the elephants,” Ramesh added. However, it was unclear whether the jumbos have made the Usilampatti forests their home.

“The elephants that were spotted might belong to a single herd as elephants are constantly on the move. So, those found in the Usilampatti reserve would have just migrated and could even leave after spending a week or more,” said elephant expert and veterinarian Dr Kalaivanan. The elephants could have migrated from Theni or from other parts along the western ghats, he added.

The census report has been submitted to the Forest Department in Madurai, which now has to  confirm the findings. The census team also requested the Forest Department to place camera traps with heat sensing technology in the reserve forests to further track such data. When contacted, district forest officer A S Marimuthu said that the authorities would soon visit the Usilampatti reserve to confirm the findings.

Source: http://newindianexpress.com/states/tamil_nadu/article1525047.ece

Power project stuck as TN fails to constitute wildlife board

K A Shaji, TNN Apr 1, 2013
COIMBATORE: Tamil Nadu's failure to constitute a State Board for Wildlife (SBWL) is posing problems for at least three major projects mooted by the AIADMK government, including the much anticipated 2X500MW Coal-based Thermal Power Plant at Tuticorin.

According to top sources in the Union ministry of environment and forests, three proposals that came up for clearance were turned down at a recent meeting of the standing committee for National Board for Wildlife (NBWL), which said these were submitted directly by the state without getting the mandatory approval of the state board. The committee then found that Tamil Nadu was the only one state in the country that had not constituted the SBWL. Like NBWL, which frames wildlife protection policies at the national level, SBWL is expected to undertake the task at the state level. Any project that could have an impact on a protected wildlife area has to get the clearance of both SBWL and NBWL.

The refusal of NBWL to discuss the Tuticorin power plant mooted jointly by Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited and the state department of power happens at a time when Tamil Nadu is facing an extraordinary energy crisis. According to NBWL standing committee member and senior wildlife scientist A J T Johnsingh, there is no option left before the state government other than to constitute SBWL at the earliest. The NBWL clearance is mandatory for the Tuticorin project as it comes within the 10 km periphery of Mullakadu range of forests.

Proposals for a bridge on Chennai-Pulicat Road and a fish landing centre at Periyamongagodu near Thiruvallur are similarly stuck as NBWL standing committee has refused clearance. While 1.11 hectare of forest land from Pulicat Bird Sanctuary will have to be transferred for constructing the bridge on Pasiyavaram Road, the fish landing centre needs 0.65 hectare of forest land from the same sanctuary. NBWL will look at the proposals only after these are cleared by its state counterpart. "According to Section-6 of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 (amended in 2006), each state government is bound to constitute a state board for wildlife under the chairmanship of the chief minister or administrator in the case of a Union territory. It is a curious case that Tamil Nadu is lacking such a board. It is high time the state government constituted the board as interests of wildlife must be protected while undertaking bigger development projects,'' said K Mohan Raj of Tamil Nadu Green Movement.

According to Johnsingh, Uttarakhand was giving Tamil Nadu company till last year. "But that state constituted the board in 2012 leaving Tamil Nadu as the only one without the board. Setting up the SBWL will help boost conservation and ensure protection of forest wealth. The Supreme Court has stressed the importance of review of projects by such a board on a number of occasions. The nation board can decide on projects only on the basis of the findings of the state board,'' he said.

Sources in the ministry said NBWL members, Kishore Rithe, Prerna Singh Bindra, M K Ranjit Singh and N Madhusudan, expressed concern that Tamil Nadu has approached the national body without even constituting its local board.

Source: http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-04-01/coimbatore/38188792_1_nbwl-sbwl-state-board

Blackbuck count doubles in Vallanadu sanctuary

J Arockiaraj
TUTICORIN: The recent wildlife census conducted in Vallanadu Blackbuck Sanctuary has some good news for wildlife lovers as the number of blackbucks here has almost doubled. While the 2010 wildlife census put the number of blackbucks at 39, it has gone up to 79 during the census organised by the forest department on Wednesday.

Spread over 1,645 hectares in Srivaikundam taluk, the sanctuary is a safe home for blackbuck - an antelope species native to the Indian subcontinent. The graceful animal, which roamed the Indian sub-continent until the 19th and early 20th centuries, is now confined to a few states and sanctuaries due to intense poaching and loss of habitat.

During Wednesday's census 30 volunteers from the Pearl City Nature Society (PCNS) in Tuticorin and 20 forest officials spotted 79 blackbucks. They also found two spotted deer and a barking deer.

Forest officials from Tuticorin forest division said that the census was carried out on the instructions of conservator of forest Rakesh Kumar Dogra and district forest officer (DFO) S Shenbagamurthy.

The officials said that protective measures they took in the sanctuary have yielded good results. "After the 2010 census, the department recruited six anti-poaching watchers and the surveillance was increased. Besides, awareness programmes were held for the villagers near the sanctuary," said U Isakkimuthu, Srivaikundam range officer. As grazing the cattle in the sanctuary exposes the blackbucks to diseases from domestic animals, the department even conducted veterinary camps in the villages for the cattle. "It helped in preventing the spread of contagious diseases to antelopes," Isakkimuthu said.

The wildlife lovers expressed their excitement over the findings, however, they expressed the need to develop pasture lands and water facilities in the sanctuary. "It is indeed good news that the blackbuck nunbers are increasing," said Thomas Mathibalan, census coordinator from PCNS. "During the census, we spotted many blackbucks on the boundaries and private lands adjacent to the sanctuary than in the heart of the sanctuary. They are looking out for pasture lands and water in the private lands," said Naveen Joseph, a census volunteer.

"With the rise in numbers, the sanctuary should be developed with better pasture lands and spraying millets during the monsoons will improve fodder inside the sanctuary. The fences are also broken at many places. Besides, we found feral dogs and cattle inside which is a serious menace for blackbucks," stated K Vijayavel, a PCNS member.

DFO Shenbagamurthy said that the sanctuary has been allotted funds and the works for improving the pasture lands and water facilities will commence in a short period.

Source: http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-03-30/flora-fauna/38144678_1_wildlife-census-blackbucks-pasture-lands

2013 In The Indian Wild

JAY MAZOOMDAAR | 2013-03-23

A red alert from the ministry, a damning report at Bangkok and our killing fields

THE NATIONAL Tiger Conservation Authority sounded a countrywide red alert against poaching last week. On 7 March, a report released at the Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species meet in Bangkok extrapolated figures from global seizures to claim more than 100 cases of tiger poaching every year since 2000.

Most of these pelts and bones originate from India, home to more than half of the world’s wild tigers. Leopards are a bigger victim with an estimated 200 poached annually and a large number falling prey to man-animal conflict. Seizures, carcasses and lynch mobs often make headlines, but rarely present the scale of the slaughter that continues despite international attention and domestic initiatives. Barely 10 weeks into 2013, consider the numbers India’s killing fields have to offer this year:

JAN-FEB Uttarakhand Police recover 22 leopard skins and arrest 14 people in different operations.

JAN-MARCH 13 rhinos poached in Assam. Railway tracks claim six elephants.

6 JANUARY Tiger poached on the outskirts of Pench in Maharashtra.

11, 12 JANUARY Raids in Nepal lead to seizures of seven tiger skins and 53 kg of tiger bones, including 140 canines that amount to 35 tigers. Many believe the consignments were from Uttarakhand.

12 JANUARY A problem tigress shot dead near Navegaon in Maharashtra.

13 JANUARY A leopard trapped for the third time in Mumbai’s Aarey Colony.

17 JANUARY A tiger carcass found in the buffer of Pench in Madhya Pradesh.

21 JANUARY A leopard trapped at a village near Palamu, Jharkhand.

24 JANUARY Leopard caught in a cable wire trap near Shiroda in Goa.

27 JANUARY Man arrested for electrocuting a leopard near Panna in MP.

28 JANUARY A sloth bear killed on NH-6 near Navegaon. The same day, a leopard was found dead in Gujarat’s Junagadh.

29 JANUARY Two arrested with wild boar meat from Panna. The same day, a leopard trapped near Siliguri, West Bengal.

2 FEBRUARY Two poachers held with leopard and deer hides in Similipal, Odisha.

4 FEBRUARY Two held with a leopard pelt, two bear gall bladders and a leopard cat pelt near Rudraprayag, Uttarakhand.

7 FEBRUARY Tiger found poisoned in Rajaji National Park, Uttarakhand.

9 FEBRUARY Villagers hang leopard from a tree in Dibrugarh, Assam.

11 FEBRUARY An elephant carcass, probably poached, found in Saranda, Jharkhand.

13 FEBRUARY 15 freshwater turtles recovered from a smuggler in Chandigarh.

15 FEBRUARY Leopard poisoned near Haldwani in Uttarakhand. A dead lioness dumped inside a walled well in Gujarat’s Amreli district.

20 FEBRUARY Four persons, including family members of forest guards, arrested for killing four leopards inside Mumbai’s Sanjay Gandhi National Park.

21 FEBRUARY Three men held with five tiger pelts and a porcupine from Chinhat, Uttar Pradesh. Another held in Mumbai with a leopard skin.

23 FEBRUARY About 30 kg of pangolin scales seized from three men in Uttarakhand.

25 FEBRUARY A leopard trapped in Karnataka’s Hassan district.

26 FEBRUARY Ailing leopard cub dies near Nagpur as a range officer let his family pose with the animal for hours before allowing any medical help. A leopard found dead inside Kanha Tiger Reserve.

27 FEBRUARY Villagers lynch a leopard in Poonch, Jammu & Kashmir.

3 MARCH Two poachers arrested while cooking a leopard cub they hunted near Kumbhalgarh sanctuary in Rajasthan.

4 MARCH Four held for poaching a tiger in Melghat.

6 MARCH Female leopard, fifth since 2011, was knocked dead on NH-6 near Nagzira sanctuary. A leopard was captured in a village near Nagarahole Tiger Reserve.

9 MARCH Man held at Mumbai airport with 97 turtles.

11 MARCH Tiger found dead with signs of bleeding from the nose and the rectum in Sunderbans.

Yet, this is only the tip of the iceberg, because for every killing on this laundry list, at least five went unnoticed. For all the alerts and reports, there is little investment in building a workforce trained to investigate, prosecute and, most importantly, gather field intelligence. If laws and guns alone could save the wild, this count would have been different after four decades of the Wildlife (Protection) Act and a ban on hunting.

jaymazoomdaar@gmail.com

(Published in Tehelka Magazine, Volume 10 Issue 12, Dated 23 March 2013)
Source: http://tehelka.com/2013-in-the-indian-wild/

Thai Turtle Smuggler Caught With 14 Percent Of An Extremely Rare Species

Michael Kelley

Thai authorities arrested two smugglers who were trying to sneak 54 extremely rare Ploughshare Tortoises into the country, the wildlife trade monitoring group Traffic reports.

Ploughshare Tortoises are among the rarest species on earth, with a dwindling population of about 400 in northwestern Madagascar.

The smugglers — a 38-year-old Thai man and a 25-year-old woman who had flown from Madagascar to Suvarnabhumi International Airport — also had 21 Radiated Tortoises, which are also critically endangered.

Earlier this year the Thai man was arrested on a different wildlife smuggling charge.

The tortoises can command high prices in the animal black market in South East Asia.

Earlier the same day, authorities at the airport found 300 Indian Star Tortoises and 10 Black Pond Turtles when they inspected an unclaimed bag. Traffic notes that the Indian Star Tortoise is heavily traded as an exotic pet despite it being illegal to ship the species from its habitat in India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan.

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/turtle-smuggler-caught-with-rare-species-2013-3

Over 8,000 captive baby tortoises die

P. OPPILI

Reptiles were seized at airport on Tuesday, housed at private vet clinic

• 9,000 baby red-eared slider tortoises were seized by Chennai airport officials on Tuesday
• The passenger who was carrying them had got them in China, and flown in to Chennai from Kuala Lumpur
• They had been stacked one on top of the other, in three cartons
• Of the 9,000, less than 800 are currently alive
• Each baby tortoise was about three inches in size
• The tortoises get their name from the distinctive red patch of skin around their ears
• They are semi-aquatic reptiles, and very popular as pets
• They can live for up to 30 years

Two days after the seizure of 9,000 baby tortoises by customs officials at the airport, shocked animal welfare activists have found that fewer than 800 have survived.

Airport officials had seized the tortoises from a passenger who had come in from Kuala Lumpur, and was attempting to exit through the green channel. Activists said the red-eared slider tortoises, which were just a few days old, were stacked one on top of another and packed into three cartons, with no provisions for aeration or food.

The tortoises had been bought by a city resident, who deals in the wholesale trade of pets.

The tortoises were handed over to State wildlife authorities, who later housed them a private veterinary clinic in Guindy. Even at the time of their being handed over, 1,500 died, and the wildlife authorities only received 7,500 live tortoises.

Activists said they were surprised by the authorities’ move to house the surviving tortoises at the private clinic, instead of taking them government’s quarantine centre in Medavakkam, as per government norms.

At the private clinic, the tortoises were kept in tubs, with each tub containing more than 300 tortoises, they said.

They pointed out that this was not the first time such a huge number of red-eared slider tortoises have been brought to Chennai.

A similar consignment arrived here about a year ago, and then too, the tortoises had been taken to the same private clinic in Guindy instead of to the quarantine centre.

Allowing the import of exotic animals to be reared as pets will lead to problems for endemic or native species. Moreover, pet owners become afraid once the tortoises grow older, an activist said.

When they find it difficult to find a suitable home for their pets, many owners end up abandoning them on the roads, he added.

Noted conservationist Shekar Dattatri said: “This seizure has revealed the extent of the illegal trade in this and other non-native species that are smuggled into the country. Many people buy these turtles to keep them as pets, or because they believe that keeping one brings good luck. What they probably do not realise is that for every turtle that survives the journey to India, hundreds die in the tightly-packed containers in which they are smuggled. I appeal to people not to buy exotic species like these turtles, as it encourages a very cruel trade.”

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/over-8000-captive-baby-tortoises-die/article4559180.ece

Human settlements, a threat to Sathyamangalam tiger reserve

P. OPPILI

Unauthorised temples, new resorts disturbing the tranquillity

The presence of a large number of people in
core areas disrupts movement of animals

Unauthorised temples, new resorts and makeshift shops inside the core area are major threats the newly formed Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve is facing.

The State government announced the formation of the fourth tiger reserve in the State through a notification, issued on March 15 this year.

Members of the Tamil Nadu Green Movement pointed out that several unauthorised places of worship were found inside the tiger reserve. There are three main temples – Karuvannayan temple near Nandhipuram, Bannariamman temple Bannari and Madeswara temple in Kongalli. The three temples are under the control of Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment Board. Apart from them, several unauthorised temples are found inside the core area, say the members.

People visiting these temples camp there, even cook, and travel in large numbers into the core areas in trucks. Their movement creates a lot of disturbance to the wildlife. The State government must immediately relocate the unauthorised temples from the core areas, the members pointed out.

Another important issue is the springing up of new resorts in the core areas. S. Jayachandran of the Tamil Nadu Green Movement said Kongalli, Mavallam, Araiya Palayam and Hasanur are the places where the resorts are coming up. There were more than 200 resorts inside the STR.

Man-animal conflict

In the long run, it will lead to man-animal conflict, he said. The department officials have to immediately promulgate the ecologically sensitive zone to stop any more resorts in the core areas, he said.

Environmentalists also pointed out that during festival season, people set up shops, stay in the forests and defecate in the core tiger reserve area. Temporary shops have come up right on the elephant corridors located between Susilkuttail and Bannari. The Forest department authorities have to intervene and take action under the Forest Conservation Act of 1980, the activists said.

‘Make them partners’

Raman Sukumar, Professor and Chairman, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Sciences, who began his research on elephants in the early 1980s, said the tiger population had increased substantially in the Sathyamangalam area. A good number of settlements over a century old were in Hasanur, Talamalai, Geddasal, Chikkahalli, Neydalapuram and Kadambur, to name a few. People in these settlements co-existed with the tigers over time. These people should be made partners in the management of the tiger reserve.

Source: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/human-settlements-a-threat-to-sathyamangalam-tiger-reserve/article4560872.ece

CAG faults Project Tiger scheme in State

Odisha TV Bureau | Mar 28, 2013 7:24:34 AM
Bhubaneswar: The Comptroller and Auditor general of India (CAG) has severely criticised the implementation of Project Tiger scheme saying the tiger population in Odisha declined drastically due to inadequate protection measures and deficiency in project management.

The central audit body in its report also rapped the state government for not providing inviolate space for the big cats, low pace of expenditure and delay in relocation of villages from core area.

Quoting tiger census 2004 and 2010, the report stated that tiger population in Odisha fell from 192 in 2004 to 32 in 2010, and both Similipal Tiger Reserve (TR) and Satkosia TR were ranked as ‘POOR’ in the assessment report of MoEF, GoI.

The report pointed out Rs 23.37 crore was utilized by the Field Directors (FDs) of the Rs 27.23 crore released for Similipal TR and Satkosia TR under their Annual Plans of Operations (APOs) for five years (2006-11). “This indicated that there was lack of proper planning and deficiencies in financial management,” it observed.

Lambasting the lack of unified command and control system, the report noted in Satkosia TR there was no full time and the TR was under the supervision of Satkosia Wildlife Division and Mahanadi Wildlife Division.

“As per the guidelines of Project Tiger there should be a Field Director exclusively for each Tiger Reserve” it said.

“Thus the Tiger Reserves did not function under one single line of command and control and the dual administration in supervision of the Tiger Reserves in contravention of the Project Tiger guidelines affected the project implementation and protection inside the Tiger Reserve which has also been specifically mentioned in the assessment report of National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) for Similipal Tiger Reserve,” the report said.

The NTCA considering the endangered status of tigers and the need for urgently stepping up protection in sensitive areas formulated a set of guidelines in May 2009 for deployment of Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) at Similipal TR with 100 per cent central assistance under the scheme Project Tiger.

“But no initiative was taken by GoO for raising of STPF during the period 2009-11. In May 2012, the GoO passed a resolution for establishment of the STPF as per NTCA guidelines after passage of three years. Thus the Tiger Reserve was deprived of central assistance for protection measures. Thus, poaching of elephants, illegal tree felling and mass animal hunting like Akhanda Shikar in the STR could not be controlled,” it noted.

Source: http://odishatv.in/NewsDetail.php?otv=bmV3c0lkPU5TNjg4NTU

Tribal villagers take away arrested poachers

Baripada: Armed with bows and arrows, tribal villagers forcibly took away two arrested poachers along with guns from forest patrolling team in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district, oficial sources said today.

The incident occured at Bahalada under Dukura forest range, about 30 kms from here in Similipal sanctuary area last evening when a large number of tribals confronted the forest patrol party.

Forest patrol party had arrested two poachers and seized two guns from them at Bahalada on the foothills of Similipal but later local tribals including women gheroed the forest staff and took away poachers along with guns, Anup Kumar Nayak Field Director Similipal Tiger Reserve said.

A protection assistant was injured in arrow attack by tribals and admitted to district headquarters hospital here, Nayak said adding DFO, Baripada Bijay Kumar Panda rushed to the spot with his force.

(Agency Inputs)

Source: http://www.odishareporter.in/city/baripada/tribal-villagers-take-away-arrested-poachers