Tiger Cannibalism - Budbudi Queen Lost

Loud roars were heard during the morning safari at Karai Ghati road. But no tiger was seen and the commotion was made out to be a kill by a tiger possibly a Dhamangaon male who frequents the area. 

Whence we heard about the incident we explored the area nearly an hour later. The jungle had fallen silent and there was no sign of any life forget the big cat. 

During the evening safari, I advised guests staying at Courtyard House Kanha where I freelance as a naturalist and host to inspect the spot. They sighted what was actually Sangam male a visitor to Karai Ghatti.  

Sangam Male

Pranav Ade & Pratik Mudholkar are wildlife enthusiasts and keen photographers who have taken some excellent photographs of the killer male. The partially eaten carcass was later dragged towards the road and it was discovered to be that of another tiger. On inspection by the forest department, it was found to be that of Budbudi female the star of Kisli Range and Queen of Kanha. 

Much is conjectured about the incident but it is assumed that the male killed her as she was not willing to mate. Or it could be that he was after her cubs? In defense of the cubs, she gave up her life. But it is not certain that she had cubs albeit a search is going on. 

Often seen at Kisli Talao and Budbudi fire line she was very popular with guides, naturalists, and regular visitors to Kanha National Park. 

Another tiger lost, a sad story but what is more saddening is the fate of the cubs? Search will reveal the true status of the female and I hope soon.        

   Image Courtesy Pranav Ade

Why Are We Not in The Tiger's Food Chain?

Do humans taste awful? 

Do we have less meat?

Have we been ousted from genetic coding of the tiger's food habits? 

The last question seems more of a plausible answer. 

This Story: Is probably repeated but this time with a twist. 

Having lost a wonderful sighting of Chota Munna somewhere in Kanha meadow we set our brains busy. We then began to encircle a mountain to reach a fire line that the big cat often frequented after crossing over the grasslands in the plains.     

Two alarm calls made us stop a little ahead. And then we heard him. Thinking he would circumvent since there was no doubt that he knew of our presence and exactly.    

Hence I stood up to take a peak over the tall grass and bush. We could hear him brush past the thickets...he had come closer. We were in the middle of the jungle road but in that silence, all seemed still except the massive tiger climbing uphill. 

And then straight from the bushes, I could see the white patches peering at me.  We were at a distance nevertheless fear engulfed me. I quietly sat down. Many times on safari the big cats emerge by surprise at a distance good enough to attack visitors. We reversed immediately to be at a safer distance. At our first sight, the big beast could have charged at us but the attack did not take place. As it does not almost always...

From that spot, the cat turned back only to emerge from an opening situated a little ahead. Without a glance at us, he began to ambush deer from time to time hungry as he was.     

A lone tusker in muust could have charged, maybe we could have been charged if the animal was a wild water buffalo...   

That made me think ...the massive tiger was hungry...yet he did not go after us... he would not have attacked a forester on foot in his kingdom. The staff patrols the whole forest on foot and two-wheeler every day without an incidence.... 

Anshuman Singh

Man-killing is rare and is considered an aberration or an act of self-defense whence a surprise.  It is evident tigers do not consider us as food till more stressful situations arise...As we say there is plenty of meat (prey) for the predators to survive.    

In most, man-killing cases hunger drives invalidated tigers to kill humans but this is a cause. Else they prefer to stay away from us. 

Possible another answer to this benevolence is that somehow we appear indomitable to the predator. The other answer could be that we have managed to stay away from the wild food chain for a long and that has cut us out of the system. 

It is true that other life forms are fearful of this two-legged creature...and their intelligence warns them to stay away. Hence no animal attacks without provocation or fear. 

All said and done we should respect wildlife and maintain a safe distance always.      

Jim Corbett the invincible hunter

I have read most of the hunting episodes of Jim Corbett the legendary hunter and conservationist. I have been much impressed by his word by word account of innumerable hunts. He gained reputation as a valiant hunter of man eating tigers in Northern India at Uttaranchal that was once part of Uttar Pradesh.  

He  was born at Naini Tal in 1875 and rose on to become a colonel in the British Army.  Being an ace marksmen he was frequently called by the then United Provinces Government to shoot man eating tigers that had created havoc in the hills of Nainital and elsewhere. 

The incidents happened mostly in the districts of Kumaon and Garhwal. His popularity rose with each success and he soon became famous among the villagers as Carpet Shahib. It was his fascination for forest life that turned him into a hunter. Late in life he shot only man eating tigers and leopards and game for food. 

He shot around thirty three man eating leopards and tigers during his life time. Jim was fascinated by jungle life and its denizens. He also loved the rustic populace whom he saved from tormenting scourge of man eaters.  The small museum at Choti Haldwani stands testimony to life and times of the hunter turned conservationist. 

Some of his accounts slaying man eating cats are published in the following books.

Panar Leopard

Leopard of Rudraprayag

Champavat Tiger

Chowgarh Tigress

Temple Tiger 

Man eaters of Kumaon 

Bachelor of Powelgarh

Corbett warned about the dwindling numbers of big cats in India and turned into a conservationist. He also took to wildlife photography and filmed the magnificent cats using his camera.    

The Corbett National Park & Tiger Reserve is named after him.

Why big cats kill humans in India ?

Man eating by big cats is not a new phenomenon, somewhere down below man could have been in the food chain. But as the species (homo sapiens) evolved into a more intelligent form they removed themselves from the instinctive arena.

The personae of modern man is indeed intimidating - especially the upright posture which animals always perceive as larger. The gregarious behavior of humans living near tigers could be another reason. Or long back humans must have succeeded in proving themselves as superior beings in conflicts. Then series of senseless brutality by hunters did the rest. The destructive weapons/guns became an object of fear which passed on to the coming generations instinctively.

The tiger and leopard finds man as naturally threatening. As tertiary carnivores, tigers and leopards have limited energy and always go for larger kills that can be obtained easily. Another factor is the mass to energy spent is not always favorable, with average weight of rural malnourished women in India being 50 to sixty KG or perhaps much less. Women wander deeper into the forests in search of fire wood and minor produce.E.g. Corbett.

Throughout evolution genetic coding changes and the tiger instinct changed too. Hence somewhere along, the instinct made tigers/leopards distance themselves from humans. But instances of man eating continue, though the initial attack is in self defense out of sheer fright and surprise.  Extreme hunger due to inability to kill prey also induces tiger to kill anything that comes easily including wandering humans. 

Most of the man eating cases subsequently turn into premeditated attacks. By stealth and surprise is how the tiger hunts - so does the leopard. But the latter can be more damaging since it lives near the confines of villages.  

I do not believe that man eating is an aberrant behavior always. This can happen in case of drastic reduction in prey base, the animal than looks for alternative food. Young animals rarely turn man eaters by intent.  In old/injured animals man killing may be need based as often it is in the case of cattle lifters. The bold term I find as pressing further ignominy on the beleaguered animal since fact is the cattle are intruders.  Tigers never eat stones as it is not their food, so why would they eat humans if we do not constitute as food?

Humans and big cats often came in close proximity whence forests were widespread. Due to large forest cover the spacing mechanism kept humans and big cats apart most of the time. But this does not work anymore. The forests are scarce and you have humans intruding everywhere. Accidental killing and territorial clash (breeding females) do the rest of the damage. Due to political urgency it is the animal that suffers since no alternative is provided in time. Corbett is prime example of women being killed by tigers.the recent news of another kill in Sunderkhal in Corbett is troubling. Which tiger did they eliminate? What are they doing there?

Whenever I have encountered a tiger, I have seen its stress level rise out of fear. Though there have been sudden aggressive charge often, but the distance is maintained. This is a protective instinct that make big cats withdraw. Their genetic coding passed on from generations induces fear of  man naturally thanks to past experience - a natural protective mechanism.   

The tigers and leopards always move away from man as I have experienced except whence on some purpose. There is no such thing as greater degree of acclimatization with man. Even in remote depth of forests where tigers rarely come across man their behavior is more or less the same. By instinct they shy away from man. But I have heard many times of tigers sitting for long, blocking the roads near forests in spite of the fact they were not conditioned as in tiger reserves (?). When on work the animal ignores man completely in cases like territorial marking and on search of female. This applies to non conditioned tigers as well. Being nocturnal it is always less seen.

The problem with human society is that we have not learned to treat other life forms as equal. The best we treat them is as pariah or vermin an excuse to ravage their home land. Mining in India is the worst scourge followed by carcinogenic industries -  all a short term solution for burgeoning unskilled populace. Populace surviving on infertile soils and denuded forests.          

Amazing India will cease to stress its point the way we are destroying natural lands in pursuit of short term economic gains. Everywhere forests and other remaining habitats are being destroyed recklessly or at unseen pace. It is humans first!

Jago re India Jago re!

Maneaters at Corbett

On my recent birding tours I was saddened to find out that a women had been killed by a tiger or tigress. This happened on the way to Dhikala gate near a village. Though the animal could not be located another killing took place some distance away. One of the incident took place in broad daylight as I heard.

Every year one or two man eating incidence takes place. While most of the cases may be accidental, one or two are premeditated attacks. This does not augur good for the animal. But in most of the tiger reserves in the country the number of people in the buffer zone is very high. The intrusion is on daily basis in the buffer that was supposed to distance human settlements from prime areas. But in recent times there is a murky line that separates the human settlements with habitat.

With conservation efforts the wildlife has saturated buffer zones. Especially in parks like Corbett in Uttaranchal, Kanha, Pench and Bandhavgarh. The status of buffer zones are practically as same as the core. New guidelines are called for for mapping our valuable assets. While people have a large land mass to settle, wildlife is surviving in a limited area that too with regular human intrusions. 

Corbett is an exciting birding destination and supports lots of wildlife wild elephants and tigers. More than hundred tigers find home in the preserve. Efficient management is key to conservation success. It is a well managed park as rising population of tigers indicate. But tourism should be managed the way it is being done at Central Indian Tiger Reserves.