Tiger: Lone Tiger Leaves Debrigarh Sanctuary in Search of Mate |
Bhubaneswar: A lone male Royal Bengal Tiger (RBT), that made Debrigarh wildlife sanctuary its home for almost a year, has left as it was unable to find a mate, wildlife officials said.
The sanctuary had the lone tiger since Dec 2022 and it is said to have left in Jan this year. Since Jan, wildlife officials haven’t got a camera trap picture or direct sighting of the big cat, which had brought a ray of hope for revival of tiger numbers in Debrigarh.In 2018, a male tiger had been allegedly killed by poachers. “The tiger had been captured more than 1,000 times in camera traps in Debrigarh. But after Jan, it was not seen,” said a wildlife officer.
“It was a long-ranging tiger, which chose Debrigarh due to its robust prey, good water sources and canopy cover. A mate is another important factor that keeps a tiger in its prime to remain in a particular habitat for long. Since it didn’t manage to get a female partner, it can be inferred that it has dispersed further,” said Susanta Nanda, principal chief conservator of forests, wildlife.
“Tigers are long-ranging in nature and after they attain adulthood, they start looking for their own space, may be far from their parent habitat,” he added.
The tiger is believed to have dispersed into the central India landscape — either Chhattisgarh or further deeper into Madhya Pradesh.
Wildlife officials said it had come to the sanctuary in winter and left in winter. They said the big cats cohabit in winter and change habitats in the hope of getting a partner. Since they cohabit for long hours, winter is suitable for them. Summer is detrimental to their cohabitation, they said.
The sanctuary had the lone tiger since Dec 2022 and it is said to have left in Jan this year. Since Jan, wildlife officials haven’t got a camera trap picture or direct sighting of the big cat, which had brought a ray of hope for revival of tiger numbers in Debrigarh.In 2018, a male tiger had been allegedly killed by poachers. “The tiger had been captured more than 1,000 times in camera traps in Debrigarh. But after Jan, it was not seen,” said a wildlife officer.
“It was a long-ranging tiger, which chose Debrigarh due to its robust prey, good water sources and canopy cover. A mate is another important factor that keeps a tiger in its prime to remain in a particular habitat for long. Since it didn’t manage to get a female partner, it can be inferred that it has dispersed further,” said Susanta Nanda, principal chief conservator of forests, wildlife.
“Tigers are long-ranging in nature and after they attain adulthood, they start looking for their own space, may be far from their parent habitat,” he added.
The tiger is believed to have dispersed into the central India landscape — either Chhattisgarh or further deeper into Madhya Pradesh.
Wildlife officials said it had come to the sanctuary in winter and left in winter. They said the big cats cohabit in winter and change habitats in the hope of getting a partner. Since they cohabit for long hours, winter is suitable for them. Summer is detrimental to their cohabitation, they said.
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