A Concern for The Big Cats

While tiger numbers are on the increase, it is difficult to believe that the common leopard in India is thriving. Pick up any newspaper and watch the news on the Internet and the impact of man-animal conflict will become evident. Some news sources did mention an increase of leopards in some states of India, but this is difficult to digest since it is well known that the predator suffers tremendously from man-animal conflicts pan India. This is a global story but since the Indian Government is more conscious of wilderness, the situation calls for greater awareness as there is hope that the tables could be reversed. 

The leopard's ability to survive is much greater as unlike the bigger cousin it is able to thrive in degraded habitats unfortunately some of which are quite near human habitations. Another habit that impacts the leopard's survival is its ability to survive on the small game which fetches it further close to human habitation. Once the animals are detected there is very little chance of survival and unfortunately, this happens often. 

How merciless we are whence our threat perception is enhanced!  

Since independence, leaving a few decades, the dispensations have shown greater concern for wildlife conservation. It was none other than Smt. Indira Gandhi as a Prime Minister turned the table against the criminal slaughter of wild animals including the tiger. An impending disaster was averted due to the commitment towards heritage wealth by the courageous lady.   

The legislation guaranteeing the protection of wild animals was a landmark conservation initiative. This was in 1972, and the subsequent creation of protected areas was another watershed in environmental protection in India. Though greater initiatives cropped up post-creation of PAs, it cannot be denied that there is someplace and concern for other life forms in the country. 

There is no such thing as absolute neglect in our country as seen in many other civilizations. But the imperatives exceed the will and the capabilities, nevertheless, there is no giving up on expectations and something good can turn up in this land of Vedas in the future. It is the common citizens that create a Nation and sustained efforts should be made to protect our resources and the environment.     

Post the legislation the tigers and leopards slaughtered to near extinction got a reprieve and so did other animals facing certain extinction. The protected areas which hold the tiger are called tiger reserves in India they have proven to the saviors. 

But is this enough? 

The PAs have nurtured life, they have protected the ecosystems, and conserved endangered species and the environment as a whole. They also project a realistic picture of how hopeless the human species is regarding protecting natural resources and the environment without the help of rules and regulations.  Species extinction and climate change are major causes of concern, and many other issues will erupt if we continue to wreak havoc. The greatest fear is the advancing urbanization that we consider as a panacea for all that ails human society.

Though most of the reserves are able to accord protection to the species and improve breeding, they are isolated in absence of connecting corridors and not able to prevent inbreeding. The greater dilemma stems from an inability to increase the vital core area since there is a substantial upheaval both socio-political and economic.  

Tigers and leopards need greater space, and we are unable to accord them as of now. The constricted safe zones are unable to support a greater source population that is moving into the sink or buffer zones. Though the outer rings are subject to some conservation initiatives they are unable to thwart human movement including the biotic pressure created by farming and livestock. 

There is a greater propensity among locals to poach or hunt big cats, this cannot be denied, this could be due to greater reach and the old habit of hunting for meat. But the buck does not stop here, the gains from poaching are quite evident now and there are networks that are able to entice locals into the nefarious acts. The indulgence is propelled by offering a quick buck and is not driven due to poverty since most of the local communities have access to better resources.   

There are thus some issues concerning the big cats that are affecting their survival and these are macro economical in nature and there is little hope from advanced research being carried out in our labs. Until substantial areas are not completely cleared for wilderness in the reserves in the country, we will never be able to safely hold a greater population of big cats and they will remain endangered.

Clearing land of the human population besides that which has been already vacated is not an insurmountable task provided a remedial course is effectively planned for the oustees. This is where issues will crop up regarding the very morale of the translocation exercise and those raising the issues will be the politicians and some NGOs. These are vested interests who seek recourse in the status quo and their imagination is limited. Translocation of wild animals is okay but that of humans is not.  Whereas this attitude is human-centric the crux of the problem is not the oustees, the next-gen will anyway seek better hunting grounds and be in the mainstream.  Though translocation is being carried out in many reserves, I am talking about exercise taking place in the sink areas. Simply put convert buffer zones into the inviolate core.  

An effective compensation package for those subject to translocation and their placement in more productive grounds is imperative. The latter is important for tribal and forest dwellers to find better economic opportunities and access to fulfilling the social objectives of the next-gen. This is an expensive proposition but then we are in an endeavor to save a critically endangered species which is not only a matter of National Pride but an equally important species as regards environmental concern. 

Though enhancing the core is wishful thinking as of now, greater effort should be made to reduce biotic pressure and commercial activities in the forested regions. The environmentally damaging commercial enterprise and infrastructure development should be banned in areas that comprise our natural wealth. The only enterprise that is sustainable and supports local economies should be permitted in eco sensitive regions. 

Improving community infrastructure in terms of accessibility, education, health, and local eco-friendly enterprises should be the focus of the dispensations rather than damaging industries and infrastructure build-up.  Public-private participation should not be limited to tourism, it should be encouraged to push the cottage industry using effective marketing channels online.  

Despite all community initiatives aimed at local populations and protecting wilderness,  the dearth of space for other life forms will remain a major concern in times to come.  

=========================

Uday freelances as a naturalist and loves to write about tiger conservation and the environment.

He also provides SEO and Content and teaches  Digital Marketing in his hometown Jabalpur. 

Contact: 

pateluday90@hotmail.com

9755089323

Wildlife Conservation: Threat Perception between Them and Us

One-Sided Story

In spite of periodic failures, the tiger population in recent times has begun to rise. This seems to be a continuing phenomenon despite many wild souls dying because of human apathy or natural causes. If the reports are to be believed, the leopard population in MP and a few other states seem to be on the rise. This rise is difficult to understand since the predator is constantly being killed at the hands of poachers and as a victim of man-animal conflict. Anyway, let's keep our fingers crossed.  

Poaching is purely a crime, and cannot be dragged under the banner of man-animal conflict. The killing of tigers and leopards by man and vice versa is perplexing since both subscribe to a food chain that is not directly in conflict if the ban on hunting wild animals is taken into consideration. 

While the death of a predator rarely causes much alarm, the death of a human being is reactive and often creates extreme upheaval within society. The browbeating that takes place often bends the system responsible for the protection and conservation, it is unfavorable towards the perpetrator and thus it is victimized to no end. It is either incarcerated or translocated to unfamiliar domains or at worst some trigger-happy elites are invited to shoot it down. This is an ongoing phenomenon, and the besieged animal is hardly able to comprehend the punishment accorded to it. Animals do not kill humans since for many we are not part of the food chain. They fear man and shun proximity. 

Threat Perception the Biggest Threat          

Threat perception is a natural phenomenon among the living akin to the response to external stimuli. Both are victims of the fear of the other and when this happens in extreme both kill. This is making wildlife conservation a difficult proposition, especially in a country like India. Heavily populated, extremely poor, and thrust closer to the wilderness by livelihood pursuits the man-animal conflict is much aggravated by biotic factors. Agriculture in the land that previously was part of the prevailing ecosystems and livestock incursions increase proximity between humans and predators. In spite of policies that make translocation possibly the ground reality has not changed much. This is due to the slow execution of translocation of the human population from vital core due to political infringements, court cases, and on many occasions overzealous NGOs?     

Translocation promises to eliminate human interference in the core while there is no policy to translocate population from immediate surroundings or the outer ring which we call the buffer. 

Creatures having lost their erstwhile homelands and food unwittingly transgress into what has become  human domains. They are killed, maimed or incarcerated brutely.     

This has become a regular tamasha in India with newsmakers worsening the situation with their greed and prejudice towards other life forms. Videos and images of predators being hounded out by lunatic hordes are propagating a wrong message among the people and making us subject to ridicule overseas. We nowhere can boast of the conservation ethos promoted by the ancient Vedas anymore.   

Clearing, wildlife corridors, thinning out the population in the buffer zones, and stopping linear infrastructure build-up which intersects our reserves is a near impossibility since the threat perception ails political dispensations too making them chicken out. Anyway, politicians in India have all to lose from unhappy voters but not from the predators as they have no right to vote. We are enamored by unbridled development as well and thus critics should not leave us out, especially the urban lot. 

Animals kill humans because of threat perception and most often proximity aggravates. Humans have all the comprehending power not to fall victim to a threat posed by a predator in proximity since that has been the case for ages.     

While we should not kill wild animals and do so only under extreme danger we have the ability to mitigate such instances. Wild animals on the other hand rarely cross over their domain but it does happen and at times humans are killed or maimed. Those who are in favor of extreme action against such killers are doing a disservice to mankind since all life forms are vital for an environmental balance upon which our well-being is maintained. 

Hence like automobiles kill people by accident so do animals in unavoidable circumstances. We cannot eliminate both. Hence answers have to be found beyond the ongoing rhetorics and the clash between the two should be mitigated. Translocation of populations that have ingressed is only one such answer another solution is to develop a code of conduct that will aid in minimizing conflicts. These are the imperatives that our planners have to incorporate and execute with sincerity if an environmental balance has to be maintained and our heritage wealth to be conserved. Legal laxity as regards wildlife crimes should be taken care of as well.       

The Youths Take Over

Rhetoric never works and there has to be an action on the ground. Thankfully in our country, the youth is taking interest in ecological matters, and a number of committees or societies have been formed pan India to discourage practices that go against nature conservation. The impact is visible in the interest shown in the conservation, the rising number of PILs, and write-ups against haste. This collective effort is certainly going to keep the establishment on its toes. This will force the policymakers to rethink as well. 

The next-gen is going to be much more nature aware but what do we leave for them?    

==========================

Uday freelances as a naturalist and loves to write about tiger conservation and the environment.

He also provides SEO and Content and teaches  Digital Marketing in his hometown Jabalpur. 

Contact: 

pateluday90@hotmail.com

9755089323

Urban Wildlife: Love Thy Neighbours!

Not a single case of attack has been registered in Jabalpur that I know of? No leopard has attacked a man or killed one in Jabalpur, and yet they are shunned. These creatures have been living alongside humans in not only Jabalpur but many other towns. They have always been our neighbors and have guarded and preserved our forests for eons.  

The problem has arisen from our actions. We are encroaching upon natural lands the few that are left. Large swathes of forests have been ravaged by the mafia, just have a look around the peripheries of your town. Nobody Questions?   

A long time back, Jabalpur and the neighboring districts of Mandla, Katni, and Seoni Region were rich in the forest canopy. Not anymore, most of the wildlife in the reserve forests have been hunted a long time back. The forests have been badly ravaged. Though some wild animals still survive they do so in a precarious state...always at the mercy of humans in the surroundings. The axe is constantly upon the forests and the threat from poachers is real. 

Leopard -

Tirath Singh

The regions mentioned above still harbor wildlife including muggers and occasional tigers. The forests are used for commercial gains and do not have a protected area status like our National Parks. 

In the subsequent race for development, Jabalpur is not left alone. Highways, dams, increasing urbanization, and industrial development all are silently crushing our green lungs...the valuable forests, and water sources that sustain our lives as well. For ages, I have seen the town lose ground giving it to urban development that is spreading its tentacles menacingly. 

We ....when we see roads and construction that are taking our cities to the next century we forget what price has been paid for all that. Has an alternative been looked at? Any mitigating measures taken? Was it necessary in the first place? 

No, we do not look into all this...mesmerized we are by glossy hotels, gleaming malls, classic highways, and sophisticated residential areas. 

Connectivity and placement at a such high price could be redundant whence the paradigm changes! But the ecosystems that have been lost will never come back. Be assured!  

Cages have been set up by the forests department to capture and translocate leopards from their original home in the periphery of Jabalpur. This is ironic...the place where I live was frequented by tigers during Forsyth's time....read his book the Highlands of Central India.

Why does the forest department act in such a manner? 

The answer is simple...It is public pressure and political infringement. 

Do we stand up and protest this step? Do we pressure the news bureaus to create a positive image of other life forms - carnivores or reptiles? 

Do we take pride in our neighbors?

We are the culprits. Do we accept their presence as loving neighbors and do away with this threat perception we have been harboring for ages?

No we do not, complacent with the material wealth and ever-emerging luxuries we have forgotten nature at our doorstep let alone distant ecosystems.    

So many accidents happen but the cars are never banned... the latest models are introduced. Then why ban the leopard? The human fatalities at the hand of this animal are much less than that by fast cars!    

Encroaching upon forest lands and then removing the leopards surviving in degraded habitats is unjustified. But who cares they are animals after all!