BI-MONTHLY OUTREACH JOURNAL OF NATIONAL …projecttiger.nic.in/WriteReadData/PublicationFile/Stripes-jul-aug... · BI-MONTHLY OUTREACH JOURNAL OF NATIONAL TIGER CONSERVATION AUTHORITY

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BI-MONTHLY OUTREACH JOURNAL OF NATIONAL TIGER CONSERVATION AUTHORITY

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

Volume 4 Issue 5 July-Aug 2013

Due to significant errors in the earlier pugmark countingmethod, its results are considered flawed, and cannot becompared with the results from this advanced procedure

This data is a crucial component of Project Tiger and is used to:

Measure the present status of tiger populations across the17 tiger states in the country.

Develop effective strategies to strengthen future tiger conservation programs.

The camera trapping procedure is conducted byresearch biologists

Statistical and satellite dataare analysed by the WildlifeInstitute of India in collaboration with the NationalTiger Conservation Authority

Ground survey data at the beatlevel is collected by field personnel in a standardised protocol after training

THE THREE PHASESOF THE TIGER ESTIMATION PROCEDURE

TIGER ESTIMATIONPROCEDURE

SINCE its formative years in the early sev-enties, the Project Tiger coverage hasincreased considerably, amounting toalmost 2.02% of our country’s geographi-cal area, spread out in 44 tiger reservesacross 17 tiger States. The new additions

to Project Tiger have the potential as tiger source areas.At this juncture, it is important to improve the statusof such source sites and the linkages between protectedareas and tiger reserves.

The Rajaji National Park in Uttarakhand is one suchimportant protected area which is emerging as a tigerreserve. This would enable restoration of tiger corridorlinkages within Corbett. Likewise, Satkosia is a newentrant and efforts are underway to foster habitatrecovery.Both these interesting areas are highlighted.

Efforts to refine the country-level tiger estimationstarted in 2001, in collaboration with the WildlifeInstitute of India, with a pilot initiative in the Satpuralandscape. The Tiger Task Force endorsed this peerreviewed methodology, which was carried out in 2006

and 2010. The third such assessment has now com-menced. A brief on the refined tiger assessmentmethodology is outlined, alongwith the salient featuresof the ongoing 2014 country level assessment.

The frontline staff and local workforce are the back-bone of a tiger reserve, while being the ‘unsung heroes’.The perils of being a forest guard have been pen-pic-tured by an eminent wildlifer and Member, NTCA, whilenarrating a recent happening in Corbett.

The Government of India recognizes the meritoriousservices of officials and institutions for the cause ofconservation. Shri S.P. Yadav, Deputy Inspector Generalof Forests, NTCA was conferred the prestigious RajivGandhi Conservation Award 2009, for cracking a hub ofillegal trade in wildlife as a field officer in 2007-08. ShriSaurabh Gupta and Gaurav Gupta were awarded theAmrita Devi Bishnoi Wildlife Protection Award 2010,while under the institutional category, Shri DaduParyavaran Sansthan of Rajasthan was recognized.

Dr Rajesh Gopal Member-Secretary, NTCA

EDITOR Dr Rajesh Gopal

EDITORIALCOORDINATORS P YADAV

CONTENTCOORDINATORInder MS Kathuria

FEEDBACK Annexe No 5 Bikaner HouseShahjahan Road New Delhi

[email protected]

Cover photo Sanjay Kumar

n o t e f r o m t h e e d i t o r

Volume 4Issue 5

July-Aug2013

ProposalFor RajajiTigerReservePg 12

NarrativeThe perils of being a forest guardP 16

EstimationMethodologyto evaluatestatus of tigersPg 4

AppraisalSatkosia

TigerReserve

P 8

BI-MONTHLY OUTREACH JOURNAL OF NATIONAL TIGER CONSERVATION AUTHORITY

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

4 | July-Aug 2013 | STRIPES

ESTIMATION

Methodology toevaluate status of tigersT

he first national levelassessment of tiger statusalong with that of co-preda-

tors and their prey was undertak-en in 2006. That assessment esti-mated the country’s tiger popula-tion to be between 1,165 and1,675. More importantly, it deter-mined the extent and size ofindividual populations and thestatus of habitat connectivitybetween these populations.

The 2006 tiger status evaluationresulted in major changes in poli-cy and management of tiger popu-lations. The major outcomes thatwere the direct or indirect conse-quence of information generatedby the monitoring exercise were Tiger landscape conservationplans Designation of critical core andbuffer areas of tiger reserves Identification and declarationof new tiger reserves Recognition of tiger landscapesand the importance of corridorsat highest levels of governance Integrating tiger conservationwith developmental activitiesusing the power of reliable infor-mation in a GeographicInformation System database Enhanced public and politicalawareness and support for tigerconservation.

METHODSThe approach and methodologyfor evaluating the status of tigersin India was developed in early2002 as a pilot study conductedin the Satpura-Maikal landscapeof around 50,000 sq km. TheTiger Task Force appointed by

the Prime Minister to address thetiger crisis in India evaluatedseveral scientific approaches forestimating tiger status and rec-ommended the current approachfor a country wide monitoringprogram. This methodology toevaluate the status of tigers, co-predators and prey across tigerlandscapes of India consists offour phases. The details of thefour phases are as follows:

Phase I: Determining occupancyand mapping relative abundance

This consists of rapid and costeffective assessment of all cur-rent and potential tiger habitatacross the 17 tiger states of

India. Simple protocols weredeveloped to collect data on: Carnivore sign encounters Tiger prey encounters Indices of human disturbance Indices of habitat status Dung counts on plots

The forest administration sys-tem across most of India is basedon division of states into forestdivisions, ranges, beats and com-partments in a spatial hierarchi-cal manner. The boundaries ofbeats and compartments arebased on natural features thatare easily identifiable in thefield. Besides, each forest beat isallocated to a beat guard whousually has intimate knowledge

N S Dungariyal

STRIPES | July-Aug 2013 | 5

of his beat. We used this spatialadministrative system to system-atically distribute sampling unitsacross landscapes. All forestbeats (in Protected Areas,Reserve Forests, ProtectedForests, and Revenue Forests)were sampled for the above men-tioned five indices. The averagesize of a forest beat was about16 sq km. With two persons (aForest Guard and his assistant)sampling a beat, the entiredataset on the above mentionedfive aspects was collected withina period of 10 days for eachbeat. Besides the forest depart-ment staff, most states involvedlocal and regional NGOs andnature club members from localinstitutions for the Phase I datacollection. The entire countrywas sampled between November2009 and March 2010 using thisprotocol. Data collected duringPhase I forms the core of thetiger status estimation exercise.

Phase II: Remotely sensed spatialand attribute covariates

As part of the Phase II, remotelysensed data that depict landscapecharacteristics and anthropogenicimpacts such as the human foot-print were obtained from varioussources. This consisted of: Landscape characteristics suchas forest area, NDVI, forest patchsize, forest core areas, digitalelevation, distance from protect-ed area and river density Variables that index anthropo-genic impacts such as distance tonight lights, distance to majorroads and road network density.

We hypothesized that tigerpopulation distribution and abun-dance would be determined by Habitat characteristics Prey availability and Anthropogenic pressures

These major covariates couldbe appropriately surrogated fromindices obtained from groundsurveys and remotely senseddata and this were used to modeltiger occupancy and abundance.

Phase III: A team of 58 wildlifebiologists with a minimum of aMasters Degree in biological sci-ence was recruited and trained atthe Wildlife Institute of India tocollect data in the field. WorldWide Fund for Nature, theWildlife Trust of India, andARANYAK also partnered with WIIfor conducting the Phase III datacollection. These organizationsprovided trained professionalmanpower as well as equipmentsupport for data collection. Fromamongst this trained professionalmanpower, teams of 5-7 person-nel were deployed at 29 differentsites spread throughout the tigerlandscapes. These 29 sites wereselected based on their regionaland national importance for tigerconservation, geographical cover-age of the landscapes, and logisti-cal constraints of data collection.

At each of these sites, wildlifebiologists conducted Camera trap based mark recap-ture population and density esti-mation of tigers, Distance sampling along linetransects for estimating preyabundance Collected Phase I data on carni-vore sign encounters, indices ofhuman impacts, and habitat variables.

Camera trap based mark-recap-ture of tigers: Based on theavailable tiger occupied habitatat each site, maximum area cov-erage of 894 sqkm was sampled.Camera traps were systematicallydistributed within the study areaby superimposing a 2x2 km gridand deploying at least one dou-ble sided camera unit (Moultrie,Trailmaster or Reconyx) withineach grid. Study areas wereextensively searched while con-ducting sign surveys to find theideal location within each gridfor camera deployment so as tomaximize the chances of photo-capturing a tiger.

Cameras were usually operatedbetween 40-60 days at each site

with an effort of over 500 trap-nights per 100 sqkm. Capturedata was analysed using closedpopulation models and spatiallyexplicit likelihood basedapproaches.

For comparison with earlierestimates, tiger density was alsoestimated using the half meanmaximum distance moved byrecaptured tigers for computingthe effectively trapped area.Effectively trapped area wascomputed in a GIS after applyinga habitat mask that removednon-tiger habitat (deep waterbody, human settlements, etc)from the computation.

Since many of the cameratrapped sites were also sampledin 2006, we compared populationestimates obtained in 2010 withthose of 2006 using paired statis-tical tests to evaluate perform-ance of tiger populations at thesesource sites.

Estimating Prey Abundance:Within each camera trap grid,line transects of 2-3 km lengthwere demarcated. Transects werewalked early morning and datawere recorded on species sight-ed, group size, group composi-tion, bearing of walk and bearingof the animal(s) sighted, and dis-tance of the animals(s) using alaser range finder (Bushnell) andsee through compass (SUNTO).

Program DISTANCE (Thomas etal. 2009) was used to computedensity of individual species (forspecies with a reasonable num-ber of sightings) and of two othercategories which comprised ofungulate prey and all tiger prey(inclusive of peafowl, langur andall ungulates).

To improve model fit and sub-sequent inference from DIS-TANCE we pooled data fromacross similar habitat types toestimate detection probabilityand effective strip width esti-mates to obtain more precise,post stratified reserve specific,estimates of density.


PHASE IVThe periodicity of four years andintensity of camera trap basedmonitoring, though adequate fora country wide status assess-ment, was not adequate for moni-toring important source popula-tions of tigers. Source popula-tions were mostly limited toTiger Reserves and ProtectedAreas (with the exception of afew tiger populations outside ofPAs). The well-being of thesepopulations is crucial for thelong-term persistence of tigerswithin the larger landscapes.Such sources can deplete rapidlywhen targeted by commercialpoachers as has been seen inSariska and Panna. Therefore, anannual monitoring scheme hasbeen recommended for importantsource populations within eachtiger landscape.

Source population monitoringis done in the following manner: Either the entire protected areaor an area of 300-500 sqkm iscamera trapped annually within60 days (so as to ensure popula-tion closure). The camera densityis maintained at one doublesided unit per 4 sqkm and trap-ping effort of about 500 trapnights per 100 sqkm is invested.

Camera trapped tiger picturesare digitally processed and com-pared using the software ExtractCompare. A park specific databaseof tiger pictures as well as anational database for tiger picturesis maintained at the park head-quarters, NTCA and WII.

Population and density estima-tion of tigers is subsequentlydone using closed capture estima-tors for each year and open popu-lation models between years toprovide estimates of survival anddispersal between years as well. Implementation of MSTrIPES(Monitoring System for Tigers –Intensive Patrolling andEcological Status) within allsource populations. MSTrIPESprovides for computer-assisted

intelligent patrolling for lawenforcement as well as seasonalecological monitoring. It compris-es protocols for data recordingand software for data analysis,interpretation and reporting.MSTrIPES uses the Phase I proto-cols, implemented seasonally(instead of on a 4-year interval)within source populations, con-ducts statistical comparisons atdesired spatial and temporalscales and produces outputs inthe form of GIS maps andreports.

The advantage of MSTrIPESover other methods of intensivemonitoring of source populationsis that it generates informationfrom the regular duties of thepark staff (while conductingpatrols and ecological monitoring).

It provides a holistic assess-ment of status of tigers, othercarnivores, mega herbivores,other prey, human pressures,illegal activities, and patrol effortin a manner that keeps the pulseof the major fauna of the TigerReserve and provides inputs for

adaptive management and evalu-ating management effectiveness.

DATA ANALYSISData generated by Phase I wereattached to a spatial location inthe Geographic InformationSystem (Arc GIS 9.1), either byGPS coordinates of Phase I transects or to the centroid ofeach digitized beat (for stateswhere beat boundaries wereavailable).

Once the data were spatiallyattached, we used GIS to conductfurther analysis at spatial scalesof 10x10 km grids (an areagreater than the average size oftiger home ranges in India forgenerating distribution maps andarea coverage of target species.In the case of tigers, we assessedthe role of imperfect detectionsand covariates in estimatingoccupancy.

The Phase I data collection pro-tocol for carnivore sign surveyswas designed to address tigeroccupancy that incorporatesimperfect detections and covariates.

S P Yadav


The countrywide estimationof tiger in India is doneonce in four years. Salient

points of the 2014 countrywidetiger assessment are as under:

The assessment is done exten-sively across the entire forestedhabitat of the country coveringover 500,000 km2. The effort for the survey isvery intensive amounting to 1km search for every square km. The design of the survey is inconsonance with the modern sci-entific approach of accountingfor imperfect detections in anoccupancy framework. Along with data on tigers, dataare also collected on co-preda-tors, prey, habitat and humandisturbance at the same resolu-tion. Information on covariatesobtained from ground surveysand remotely sensed data thatlikely influence tiger use of anarea are modeled to determinetiger occupancy of a habitatpatch using a logit-link function. Habitat occupancy for all largecarnivores and mega herbivoresare also modeled in an occupan-cy framework using habitat,human foot print, and prey ascovariates. The above data and analysesprovides information on the spa-tial distribution patterns oftigers, leopards, dhole, bears,and elephants along with infor-mation on factors that determinetheir occurrence in a habitatpatch. Since the past year 2012-2013,all tiger reserves are assessed byCapture-Mark-Recapture usingremote camera traps (Phase IV),the number of individual tigersresiding in the reserves is knownfrom their unique photo-ID main-tained in a computer database.These tigers account for over80% of the total tiger populationof India. For the current assess-ment all tiger reserves will beassessed by camera trap Capture-

Mark-Recapture using spatiallyexplicit analysis in a Bayesianand Maximum likelihood statisti-cal approach. Tigerreserve managers willbe assisted bytrained wildlife biol-ogists in conduct-ing the cameratrapping exerciseas well as subse-quent analyses.Therefore, unlikeprevious assess-ments the need toextrapolate tiger numbersusing a double samplingapproach would be minimal. All photo-captured tigers willbe uniquely identified from theirstripe patterns using a computersoftware and a database main-tained for the entire country. The above approach to coun-try wide tiger status estimation

uses the latest scientific tech-niques, technologies, and analyti-cal tools published and currently

available. No otherwildlife survey at this

scale across the worldemploys any bettertools or techniques.India leads the wayamongst all tigerrange countries inpopulation assess-

ment and monitor-ing as no other coun-

try has such an exten-sive and intensive

methodological approach.

Neighbouring countries ofNepal and Bangladesh haveadopted the same approach and successfully assessed or are in the process of assessingthe status of tigers in their countries.

Salient features of 2014tiger, co-predator &prey status assessment

S P Yadav

The presence of a wild tigerin the forest patch ofNandankanan Biological

Park (NBP) located in the south-ern side was confirmed on 24thMarch 2013, through pugmarksas well as by direct sighting byDirector, NBP. The movement ofthe tiger was continuously moni-tored by the staff. In order toavoid any incident, the authori-ties decided to open the emer-gency gate of White Tiger Safarion 29th April 2013.

The wild tiger moved insidethe safari area past midnight on30 April 2013 and the movementwas captured by the CCTV.Following the protocols pre-scribed by National TigerConservation Authority (NTCA) todeal with emergencies arisingdue to straying of tigers inhuman dominated landscapes, acommittee was constituted fortechnical guidance under thechairmanship of the director ofNandankanan Biological Park on3 May 2013. The NTCA was requested bythe state to match the picture/IDof the wild male tiger with thenational repository of cameratrap photographs of tigers/photodata base to find out the sourcearea of the animal as it is notcertain whether the tiger hadcome from Satkosia TigerReserve or from any other tigerhabitat. The NTCA was requested bythe state to have a detailedassessment of all the parametersof the nearest tiger habitat orany other suitable habitat forreleasing the animal in case a

decision to that effect is taken bythe CWLW, Odisha. In this context, a technicalcommittee comprising of AIG,NTCA (Nagpur), Dr Bilal Habiband Dr Parag Nigam, scientistswith Wildlife Institute of India,Dehradun, to visit Satkosia TigerReserve for site appraisal.

SITE VISIT BY NTCA’S TECHNICAL COMMITTEEThe technical committee constitut-

ed by NTCA visited Satkosia TigerReserve for site appraisal on 2-3rdJuly 2013. Before proceeding tofield the team members discussedthe issue in detail at Chief WildlifeWarden Odisha and Director ofNandankanan Biological Park. Thevisit to Satkosia Tiger Reserve wasaimed at:

Understanding area in perspective for the release ofstrayed tiger.


AN APPRAISAL OFSatkosia tiger reserve

Interact with field staff aboutpresence of prey base, signs oftigers and copredators in thearea and presence of villages andtry to collect secondary informa-tion available with the reserveauthorities.

During the site visit, the NTCAtechnical committee membersinteracted with field staff sta-tioned at various anti-poachingcamps, range forest offices andat headquarters also browsedthrough patrol registers kept atanti-poaching camps and moni-toring data collected duringrecent phase IV exercise. TheNTCA technical committee mem-bers discussed the issue in ameeting with Minister of Forestsand Environment BijayshreeRoutray, Principal Secretary R KSharma, Chief Wildlife WardenOdisha and other official of theForest Department before depar-ture from Odisha on 4 July 2013.

During the field visit it wasfound that essential field datathat would require further analysis was not available or ifavailable, was not in usable form.Therefore the committee mem-bers gave a list of information tobe provided to the team. Thedetails sought by the team mem-bers during the meeting includ-ed:

Map of Satkosia Tiger Reserveshowing range boundaries. Village location along withnumber of families in each vil-lage, human and livestock popu-lation. Predator signs and any otherevidences reported during 2012and 2013 phase IV monitoringalong with GPS locations. Prey density estimates specieswise carried during Phase IVmonitoring. GPS locations of seasonal andperennial water bodies and anti-poaching camps. Road network of the area in GISdomain showing all weather and

fair-weather roads. Map showing the habitat/forestconnectivity of Satkosia at land-scape level preferable in GISdomain.

The details were sought in writingby AIG NTCA on 5 July 2013. Theinformation was send by DivisionalForest Officer, Satkosia WildlifeDivision on 20 August 2013.

STATUS OF PREY IN SATKOSIATIGER RESERVEThe density estimate of key preyspecies based on Phase IVMonitoring at Satkosia TigerReserve carried during the monthof 2013 was evaluated by thecommittee members to evaluatesite suitable for the release ofstrayed tiger. Since SatkosiaTiger Reserve is divided into twoparts — Satkosia Wildlife Divisionand Mahanadi Wildlife Division,the committee tried to evaluatethe estimates of density sepa-rately for both the divisions.

OVERALL DENSITY ESTIMATE OFKEY PREY SPECIES ANDEXPECTED DENSITY ESTIMATESFOR TIGERS FOR SATKOSIA

Under the Phase IV monitoring, aneffort of 492 km by monitoring 83line transects of 2km length werecarried during the month of May2013 covering entire SatkosiaTiger Reserve to estimate the den-sity of key prey species for tigersand co-predators.

During this effort, 89 groupsof chital, 187 groups of barkingdeer, 65 groups of sambar, 35groups of gaur, 133 groups ofwild pig, 103 langur groups and18 groups of rhesus were sightedduring the monitoring.

The results indicate that languroccur in highest density(8.68/sqkm) followed by wildpig (6.08/sqkm), barking Deer(5.69/km2), chital (3.55/sqkm),sambar (1.43/sqkm) andPage 6 of 31 gaur (1.20/sqkm).The estimates for Rhesus need to

be interpreted with caution asthe number of sightings were tooless to validate the estimate.

Interpreting these estimates inlight of predicting carnivore den-sities from prey abundance usingthe model predictions validatedfor Indian conditions (Karanth, etal., 2004). Interpreting preyabundance data in light of modeldescribed, the Satkosia TigerReserve can support density of2–3 tigers/100sqkm. Interpretinglower side of the estimate —Satkosia Tiger Reserve (963.87km2) at least can support a mini-mum of 18 tigers.

DENSITY ESTIMATE OF KEY PREYSPECIES FOR SATKOSIA WILDLIFEDIVISION, STRAn effort of 264 km by monitor-ing 45 line transects of 2 kmlength were carried during themonth of May 2013 coveringSatkosia Wildlife Division ofSatkosia Tiger Reserve to estimatethe density of key prey speciesfor tigers and co-predators.

The results indicate that languroccur in highest density(11.50/sqkm) followed by bark-ing Deer (6.96/sqkm), chital(4.80/sqkm), wild pig(4.45/sqkm), sambar (1.59/sqkm)and gaur (1.24/sqkm).

DENSITY ESTIMATE OF KEY PREYSPECIES FOR MAHANADIWILDLIFE DIVISION, STRAn effort of 228 km by monitor-ing 38 line transects of 2 kmlength were carried during themonth of May 2013 coveringMahanadi Wildlife Division ofSatkosia Tiger Reserve to estimatethe density of key prey speciesfor tigers and co-predators.

The results indicate thatBarking Deer occur in highest den-sity (4.64/km2) followed by lan-gur (3.81/km2), wild pig(2.32/km2), sambar (1.66/km2)and gaur (0.83/km2). The esti-mates for Rhesus need to be inter-


GEARING UP


preted with caution as the num-ber of sightings were too less tovalidate the estimate. No chitalwere reported from the Mahanadi.

Evaluation of Satkosia andMahanadi Wildlife Division as asite for release of Stray TigerBased on Key Prey SpeciesDensity Estimate:

Based on prey density esti-mates for Satkosia and MahanadiWildlife Divisions of SatkosiaTiger Reserve, Satkosia Divisionhas more potential of providingpotential prey base in case thedecisions is taken to release thestar tiger by the competentauthority. The Satkosia WildlifeDivision has higher density ofthree major species such as sam-bar, gaur and wild pig consideredto be important prey species forthe tiger.

Interpreting these estimates inlight of predicting carnivore den-sities from prey abundance usingthe model predictions validatedfor Indian conditions (Karanth, etal., 2004). Interpreting preyabundance data in light of modeldescribed, the SatkosiaWildlife Division of the SatkosiaTiger Reserve can support densi-ty of 2 – 3 tigers/100 sqkm.Interpreting lower side of theestimate – Satkosia WildlifeDivision (530.01 sqkm) ofSatkosia Tiger Reserve at leastcan support a minimum of 10-15tigers. Considering the groundsituation, Satkosia WildlifeDivision seems to be better areafor the release of strayed tiger.

Looking at landscape map pro-vided in Figure 2, the forest con-nectivity of Satkosia TigerReserve is better around theSatkosia Wildlife Division ascompared to Mahanadi WildlifeDivision. If a decision is taken bythe competent authority torelease the strayed tiger, in theSatkosia Division of the SatkosiaTiger Reserve, the adjoininglandscape may provide enoughbuffer. It is also pertinent to note

that The Athgad division, up towhich the past presence of thestrayed tiger was linked by theexperts in the 12 membercommittee, is also having a dis-tant connectivity with the forestsof Satkosia forest division.

Interpretation of Disturbancewith respect to LivestockPopulation within SatkosiaTiger Reserve: Similarly live-stock population of each village(buffalo, cattle, goat/sheep) wasused as a surrogate to map theinfluence /occurrence of live-stock influence zone.

Evaluation of Pressure in termsof Human and LivestockPopulation in and aroundSatkosia Tiger Reserve:

Based on our request we alsoreceived locations data for thevillages present inside SatkosiaTiger Reserve and within 5 kmradius along with human andlivestock population. We usedsimple interpolation techniquesin GIS domain to interpret theextent of values associated withvillage location data.

The interpolation technique weused explicitly implements theassumption that things that areclose to one another are more

alike than those that are fartherapart. To predict a value for anyunmeasured location, the inter-polation technique will use themeasured values surrounding theprediction location. Those meas-ured values closest to theprediction location will havemore influence on the predictedvalue than those farther away.The interpolation techniqueassumes that each measuredpoint has a local influence thatdiminishes with distance. Itweights the points closer to theprediction location greater thanthose farther away, hence thename inverse distance weighted.

Human population of each vil-lage was used as a surrogate tomap the influence of humaninduced pressure. The map inFigure 4 shows the extent ofhuman pressure within SatkosiaTiger Reserve. As is evident fromthe map, the number of villageswithin Satkosia Tiger Reserve,owing to their small human pop-ulation fall in lower category ofpressure as compared to villagesat the fringe area of the SatkosiaTiger Reserve. The SatkosiaDivision of the Tiger Reservehaving low intensity of villagesseems to be better habitat for thespecies which is reflected byhigher density of key

Udaishringi


prey species in the area. The cau-tion is required to interpret allthese maps beyond the bound-aries of the Satkosia TigerReserve as no data was availablebeyond STR boundary.

Evaluation of the Extent of Useof Landscape by tiger and leop-ard within Satkosia TigerReserve based on Phase IV mon-itoring of 2012 and 2013: Wealso received location of signs oftiger and leopard encountered bythe staff during the Phase IVmonitoring for the year 2012 and2013. We used simple interpola-tion techniques in GIS domain tointerpret the extent of valuesassociated with each GPS locationprovided by the department. Theinterpretation of the resultsshows the Tigers as per 2012Phase IV monitoring were report-ed from the North – Eastern Partof the Tiger Reserve and moreevidence of the leopard occur-rence was reported from thenorthwestern part of the SatkosiaTiger Reserve.

The extent of Tiger occurrenceduring the year 2012 showedsome pattern within the TigerReserve whereas during the year2013 the tiger occurrenceshowed very limited extend ofoccurrence.

The results are somewhatexpected on the lines consideringthe census records available withthe department. The detail ofcensus records as provided bythe department in a report givento the team during the site visitis reproduced below:

Based on interaction with staffand secondary information avail-able, no staff/villagers has sight-ed tiger in the recent yearsexcept one sighting report fromarea bordering territorial divisionon 5th February 2013 inPadamtola. The only conclusiveevidence of presence of the tigerreported recently (November –December 2012) is the cameratrap photograph of the lone tiger

taken in Raigoda Range. The lastconclusive evidence of tiger(Camera Trap Picture) is shownin Figure 10. The camera traps(of course very few) put at vari-ous locations for capturingtigers, have captured enoughleopards to suggest that leopardpopulation of the area is increas-ing which again confirm declin-ing tiger population of SatkosiaTiger Reserve. Figure 11 showsleopards captured during occa-sional placing of camera traps inthe Tiger Reserve.

CONCLUSIONS ANDRECOMMENDATIONSBased on the quick appraisal dur-ing field visit, interaction withfield staff and analysis ofsecondary information providedby the forest department, follow-ing are the conclusionsdrawn and recommendationssuggested for the release of straytiger in Satkosia TigerReserve: Based on the evidences andtrends shown by the recordsavailable with the forest depart-ment, the tiger population ofSatkosia Tiger Reserve is in thestate of decline. Available preydensity estimates suggestSatkosia Tiger Reserve can sup-port more tigers. Based on estimates and potential to sup-port minimum number of tigersand as per evidences from thefield, the present status of tigersin STR is far below than expected. Comparing Satkosia WildlifeDivision with that of MahanadiWildlife Division, the prey esti-mates are more in favour ofSatkosia Wildlife Division.Satkosia Wildlife Division (530.01km2) of Satkosia Tiger Reserve at least can support a minimumof 10 - 15 tigers. Considering theground situation, SatkosiaWildlife Division seems to be better area for the release ofstrayed tiger. The human population influ-

ence and other parameters detri-mental to the presence of tigersare more in Mahanadi WildlifeDivision as compared to SatkosiaWildlife Division. The committee feels theSatkosia Wildlife Division of theSatkosia Tiger Reserve is idealplace for the release of strayedtiger in Satkosia Tiger Reserve.

However, the actual area with-in Satkosia Wildlife Divisionshould be evaluated with dueconsideration of accessibility forrelease and post release monitor-ing of strayed tiger.

The committee also recom-mends consideration of followingpoints before actual release ofstrayed tiger:

The released tiger should befitted with Satellite Collar havingVHF – option for ground tracking. Training & exposure of teamsfor post release monitoring ofthe tiger must be ensured. Proper protocol should be onplace for 24 x 7 monitoring ofreleased tiger by VHF tracking.This includes staff and financialresources available for monitor-ing. Dedicated teams to be madeavailable for post-release moni-toring of strayed tiger, with spe-cial incentive to the peopleassigned for the job. There should be one personresponsible for looking after postrelease monitoring and forreporting to higher authorities. Any other available protocols &guidelines of NTCA should beadhered to before actual release. Rigorous camera trappingefforts are required to ascertainthe actual status of tigers inSatkosia Tiger Reserve. FieldDirector of Satkosia TigerReserve with financial assistancefrom State and NTCA should startcamera trapping exercise as earlyas possible based on protocolslaid by NTCA for Phase IV monitoring.


Proposal for creationof Rajaji tiger reserveT

he state government ofUttarakhand has submittedits proposal for creation of

the Rajaji Tiger Reserve. Oncenotified, this will be the secondtiger reserve in Uttarakhand.

INTRODUCTIONRajaji National Park along withCorbett Tiger Reserve and itsadjoining forests are one of thelargest contiguous patches of for-est (ca. 4,000 sq km) and formsthe north western limit of thetiger and elephant distribution inIndia. Known as the Rajaji-Corbett Tiger Conservation Unit,it is a level I Tiger ConservationUnit identified for the long termpersistence of the species. RiverGanga bisects the 820.42 sq. kmRajaji National Park in to easternpart comprising of Chilla andGorhri ranges (ca. 250 sq. km)and the western part comprisingof Motichur, Kansrau, Ramgarh,Chilawali, Dholkhand, Beribadaand Haridwar ranges (ca. 570 sq.km). Both these parts of RajjiNational Park are connected byChilla-Motichur corridor.However, eastern part of RajajiNational Park continues to main-tain a strong connectivity withthe Corbett Tiger Reserve throughLaldhang and Kotdwar ranges ofLansdowne Forest Division.

Rajaji National Park is a truerepresentative of Shivalik forma-tion & is characterized by ruggedhills ranging from 400m to 800min altitude with steep southernslopes and is drained by riversand streams running north tosouth, most of which remain dryin late winter and summer.

Broadly, the forests of this

region is categorized as NorthernIndian moist deciduous forest andNorthern tropical dry deciduousforest. The park supports ahealthy assemblage of wild ungu-lates such as spotted deer, sam-bar, barking deer, nilgai, wild pigand goral. Besides tiger, the parksupports a healthy population ofleopard. Other carnivores in thepark are sloth bear, Asiatic blackbear, hyena, jackal, jungle cat,leopard cat and rusty spotted cat.

Till recently, the Park was reel-ing under severe anthropogenicpressure, owing to the presence oflarge number of nomadic pastoral-ists (gujjars) within its limit. A vol-untary relocation of Gujjar settle-ments was initiated by the thenGovernment of Uttar Pradesh &after the creation of the state, theprocess was actively pursued. in2003. As a result, more than 1200families of gujjars have so far beenrelocated from RNP and Six rangesare completely free from Gujjarhabitation. This has resulted increation of an inviolate space ofapproximately 520 sq km.

RECOVERY OF HABITAT, WILDPREY AND TIGER AFTER

RELOCATION OF HUMAN SETTLEMENTS FROM RAJAJINATIONAL PARKWhile creation of inviolate spacehas been widely recognized as aconservation tool to recover wildtiger population across its range,studies carried out by WildlifeInstitute of India (WII) in RNP pro-vides empirical evidence for thisimportant conservation interven-tion. A systematic monitoringprogram over nine years hasclearly documented a successfulrecovery of habitat, wild ungulateand tiger in parts of RNP, the areathat was once subjected to inten-sive human interference.

The immediate response tothis voluntary relocation wasnoticed in terms of revival of thegrasslands in the valley habitatsof Rajaji. The valleys that wereleft degraded for years due tolivestock grazing gave rise to lux-uriant growth of grass speciesviz. Saccharum spontaneum,Imperata cylindrica and Vetiveriazizaniodes within six months ofrelocation. This was followed bya recovery of wild ungulate andtiger population of the area.

Wildlife Institute of India’s

The immediate response to voluntary relocation was noticed in terms of revival of the grasslands in the valley habitats of Rajaji,followed by a recovery of wild ungulate population of the area. Consequently, the tiger population of the area responded positively. The tiger density of the relocatedhabitat doubled in a span of five years


(WII) monitoring program docu-mented an increase in spotteddeer (Axis axis) population interms of increased populationperformance. The fawn to femaleratio of spotted deer increasedfrom 6.86 ± 3.1/100 females in2004-05 to 69.2 ± 3.1/100females in 2010-11.

Consequently, the tiger popu-lation of the area responded pos-itively. The tiger density of therelocated habitat doubled in aspan of five years. Immediatelyafter the relocation of human set-tlements we documented a tigerdensity of 2.9 ± 0.62/100 sq km.Today, after nine years of reloca-tion, Chilla Range of Rajaji NPsupports a tiger density of 6.9 ±0.52/100 sq km. Over the pastnine years, WII’s monitoring pro-gram has documented 41 individ-ual tigers using the Chilla andGohri ranges of eastern Rajaji.

Recent monitoring in April2013 has revealed the presenceof nine individuals (four malesand five females) in Chilla andGohri ranges of Eastern RNP.Evidences of breeding were clear-ly evident from the photographof cubs obtained during cameratrap monitoring by WII. In April2013, confirmed record for 3breeding females were found.

POTENTIAL FOR RECOVERYWhile the recovery in eastern

part of RNP has been largely pos-sible due to strong connectivityof eastern RNP with Corbett TigerReserve (CTR) through theLansdowne Forest Division (FD),the scenario in the western partof RNP has not shown similarrecovery of its tiger population.Five out of the seven ranges ofwestern RNP (570 sq km) arepresently devoid of human set-tlements since 2005. WildlifeInstitute of India’s monitoringprogram indicates a high densityof wild ungulate prey (110.01individuals/ sq km) within thisinviolate space in western RNPwhich is capable of supporting

upto 40 tigers. Despite the pres-ence of such high prey densities,systematic camera trapping car-ried out in January and February2013 over an area of 400 sq kmin western RNP has revealed thepresence of only two tigresses.

Besides the results of the cam-era trapping studies, sign sur-veys in western RNP by WII havenot revealed the presence of anymale in the area. Lack of evi-dences of breeding among tigersis of serious concern to the longterm persistence of tigers notonly in western RNP but also theentire forested tract (~2000 km2)between rivers Ganga andYamuna. While the tiger popula-tion in eastern RNP is still recov-

ering, colonization of westernRNP by tigers has so far not beenpossible due to lack of functionalconnectivity (Chilla-Motichur cor-ridor) across the river Ganga.

With the help of scientistsfrom Wildlife Institute of Indiainvolved in monitoring in RNP,an attempt has been made toevaluate possible managementinterventions that will enabletigers to recover in western RNP.

Using Population ViabilityAnalysis the relative performanceof three possible managementscenarios against isolation, whichis presently the situation prevail-ing in western RNP, has beenassessed. These are: (i) popula-tion supplemented by introduc-ing individuals, (ii) natural con-

nectivity restored to adjoiningsource population and (iii) sup-plementation carried out for 10years with habitat restoration toconnect the population to thesource. The results support thescenarios with initial supplemen-tation for the first ten years dur-ing which connectivity is alsobeing restored emerged to ensurelong-term persistence of tigers.

This is considered the mostpragmatic option to ensure longterm persistence of tigers in theforested tract west of RiverGanga. Thereby, restoring Chilla-Motichur connectivity shouldremain the foremost priority forsecuring the future of tigers inthis landscape; while supplemen-tation should be initiated withoutdelay to avoid local extinctionwhich is otherwise imminent.

NEED FOR RAJAJI TIGER RESERVEA multitude of factors such asavailability of inviolate space, ahealthy prey biomass, a smallbreeding population provideexcellent opportunity for tigerconservation in Rajaji. However,as stated above recovery of tigerpopulation across the parkrequires active managementintervention, focused attentionand sustained funding. This canonly be achieve by bringing Rajajiunder the umbrella of NationalTiger Conservation Authority.

PROPOSED BOUNDARYIt is proposed that the entire areaof the Rajaji National Park (820.42Sq. Km.) will be the Core Area ofRajaji Tiger Reserve. The totalBuffer Area of Rajaji Tiger Reserveis proposed to be 322.663 Sq. Km.consisting of 2038.3 ha. reserveforest area of Bijni beat (Mala for-est block) under the administra-tive control of Director, RajajiNational Park, Reserve Forest areaof Laldhang range & Kotdwarrange (9392 ha. & 9213.3 ha) ofLansdowne forest division andShyampur range ( 11622.7 ha.) ofHaridwar forest division.


The St PetersburgDeclaration on TigerConservation, endorsed by

the heads of government of thetiger range countries (TRCs) atthe 2010 Global Forum on TigerConservation, committed theTRCs to work collaboratively toadvance transboundary issuessuch as the uninhibited move-ment of tigers and the manage-ment of tiger conservation land-scapes, and to eradicate poach-ing, smuggling, and illegal tradeof tigers.

This was reaffirmed at the

Second Asian MinisterialConference on TigerConservation in October 2012, inBhutan, where TRC ministers ordelegation heads committed toenhanced collaboration in man-agement of transboundary land-scapes and corridors, combattingillegal trade, and eliminatingillicit demand in the ThimphuAffirmative Nine Point ActionAgenda Item 4.

The International Workshopfor Transboundary Conservationof Tigers and Other EndangeredSpecies and the Strategy to

Combat Illegal Trade in Wildlifewas convened and hosted by theDepartment of WildlifeConservation and Nature ReserveManagement of the State ForestryAdministration (SFA) of China, inKunming, China, from 29 to 31July 2013. The CITES Manage-ment Authority of China, ChinaWildlife Conservation Associa-tion, Global Tiger Initiative andthe World Bank, Save China,Tigers Special Fund of ChinaGreen Carbon Foundation and theWorld Wide Fund for Nature co-sponsored and provided excel-

Global Tiger Recovery Program | Transboundary conservationand combating illegal wildlife trade | China, July 31, 2013

Kunming Consensus


lent support to the Workshop.Representatives of the TRCs,

international partner organiza-tions of the Global Tiger Initiative,and others interested in the con-servation of wild tigers met withthe objective to identify and pro-mote good practices to enhanceand mainstream collaborationamong countries in managementof transboundary landscapes andcorridors, combating illegal tradeand eliminating the illicit demandfor wildlife products.

The opening day of the work-shop coincided with Global TigerDay celebrations. The KunmingConsensus outlines recommenda-tions based on best practices andthe TRCs planned transboundaryactivities to sharpen and advancethe commitments of the StPetersburg Declaration and theThimphu Agenda regarding:

TRANSBOUNDARY LANDSCAPEMANAGEMENT Recognizing that maintainingecological and administrativelinks between TRCs sharing tigerconservation landscapes (TCLs) isa fundamental component ofwild tiger recovery and importantto achieving Tx2 because there ismore than three times as muchpotential tiger habitat in trans-boundary TCLs (920,000 sqkm)than there is in any single coun-try fs TCLs (270,000 sqkm), thefollowing are recommended:

Operationalize for action onthe ground existing memorandaof understanding or results ofbilateral meetings and developand operationalize new onesbetween countries whose protect-ed areas are connected in tigerconservation landscapes basedon identifying and/or designat-ing transboundary protectedareas and harmonizing protect-ed ]area management. Advance transboundary land-scape management by translatingthe shared vision of TRC leadersexpressed in the St Petersburg

Declaration into practices;preparing and implementing har-monized transboundary conser-vation plans; establishing mecha-nisms for sharing timely informa-tion on illegal activities; enhancecommunication and collaborationon research, monitoring, andcapacity building programs; sharing knowledge and experi-ence through increasing the num-ber of meetings and exchangevisits of staff of protected areasinvolved. Identify and designatenew protected areas where need-ed to establish viable ecologicalcorridors. Conduct research to developstrategies, tactics, financing, andmechanisms for the long ]termeffectiveness of transboundarylandscape management. Call for the international community to provide technicaland financial support to theTRCs f transboundary landscapeinitiatives.

COMBATTING ILLEGAL TRADEAND ELIMINATING ILLICITDEMAND FOR WILDLIFEPRODUCTS Recognizing that the illegal tradein tigers and their parts andproducts is driving poaching andthreatening the survival of tigerpopulations, the following arerecommended:

Increase collaboration, cooper-ation, and communication amongthe TRCs to combat illegal trade. Strengthen enforcementagainst illegal trade and poachingby increasing capacity, training,use of innovative enforcementmethods, and motivation ofenforcement teams at all levels. Strengthen intra-country coor-dination and communicationamong all law enforcement andother agencies, as well as non-governmental and intergovern-mental organizations and localcommunities with a role to playin combatting wildlife crime and,as a priority, use existing inter-

national mechanisms to strength-en bilateral, regional and globalcoordination and communicationamong counterpart agencies.

Recommend the relevantnational authority to promote thecollation of information onwildlife crime and exchange itwith relevant countries throughappropriate mechanisms ofINTERPOL and WCO, to enablemore directed intelligence ]ledenforcement. Given that the illegal wildlifetrade is serious transnationalorganized crime, request thenational agencies responsible forlaw enforcement against organ-ized crime groups to help com-bat the illegal wildlife tradethrough cooperation amongTRCs, and if requested by a TRC,with assistance, from internation-al bodies Enhance understanding of thenature of illicit demand throughdata-driven research and investi-gations and use the informationto collaborate on the develop-ment and implementation of ini-tiatives to dissuade consumptionand eliminate illicit demand forwildlife products. Ensure that allinformation conveyed to the pub-lic is relevant and appropriate soit does not result in stimulatingpoaching. Explore all possiblemeasures to combat poachingand illegal trade. Call for the international com-munity to provide support toenhance TRC resources andcapacity for implementation ofthe above law ]enforcementactivities, based on need. Ensure effective monitoringand information sharing, withinthe GTRP implementation framework, on progress in transboundary landscape management and combatting illegal wildlife trade. Additionalsupporting information was provided in the workshop proceedings.

CONSENSUS


Those who come as visitorsto the Corbett National Park inthe tourist season have no idea

at all, as to what it takes to makethe Corbett Tiger Reserve what itis. The pride of India! TodayCorbett has the largest populationof free roaming Tigers of the world.The people who are the backbone ofthis valiant effort and make thispossible are the "foot stomping"lower rung, Forest Guards and theDaily Wagers of the Park ( who do

not receive their salaries, some-times, for months on end). Theseare the Unsung Heroes, that have toundergo a grueling time, during thehumid, Mosquito, Snake andScorpion infested Monsoonsmonths, without fans or tap wateror the comforts that we know.There is no certainty to their verylives either , what with fightingpoachers and as well as the ele-ments. No week end here. The callof Duty is 24 x 7. Hats off to these

The Perils Of BeingA Forest Guard

A narrative ofa happeningin the CorbettTiger Reserveon the15th ofJuly, 2013

Brijendra Singh, Member, NTCA

Rupak De


brave, dedicated, men!On the 15th of July , Jitender

Kumar Dhiani, Forest Guard,who was posted at the remote,secluded, water bound, outpost, the " Gaujera Chowki",drowned. His body could not befound. This happened in theafternoon. All that a colleagueof his Raju saw from a distancewas Jitender’s raised handsbefore he disappeared underthe back waters of the KalagarhLake. Crocodiles are very abun-dant in this area and it was sus-pected that he had been takenby these reptiles. Raju, theninformed the other guards whowere preparing lunch and theyall rushed to the lake shore butthere was little else they coulddo. No boat available and toswim in the Crocodile infestedwaters of the lake would befatal.

No helicopters here!Ratwadhab, the nearest villageis 11km away. One get there onfoot, after a steep, tiring climbin 4 hours (i.e. if one is fit). Allrations have to be brought inform here, carted on ones back.Powdered milk for tea is a luxu-ry and fresh vegetables unheardoff. Dal, roti and rice is thenorm. Doctors, medicine, med-ical aid are non-existent. Thewater of the lake is brackishand undrinkable and one has towalk to the Kali Gadh Sot, a dis-tance away. No tap water here,not even a fan to cool off in theoppressive humidity. Besidesthis, there are many dangers,while looking for poachers inthe wet jungle. Malaria-falci-parum, fever, diarrhoea anddepression are the factors thata forest guard has to contendwith constantly, during themonsoons in the Corbett TigerReserve.

On 1st April, when Shri VijayBahuguna, the Chief Minister ofUttarakhand, visited the park, Ihad requested him and extract-ed a promise for boats that

were urgently required forpatrolling and for the staff tocommute in the monsoonmonths. At this time, Corbett ismost vulnerable to poachersand it is impossible to patrolwithout boats. But these are yetto come.

Over the years, as theHonorary Warden of the CorbettTiger Reserve, I have had manyMotor Boats donated to thepark, from well wishers andfrom some considerate NGOs,however, these are not safe orreliable any longer. The parkhas only one old boat that isusable but this also is in badshape and unsafe, besides theboat donated to the HonoraryWarden, which is also used bythe Rangers for patrols in themonsoon months.

On 15th July 2013, at 11 innight, I received a messagefrom the Field Director ofCorbett, Samir Sinha — “aForest Guard Jitender, from theGaujera out post was missing.He had possibly drowned. Asearch was underway”.

Realizing that Sohan Singhthe boatman was in Delhiattending to his ailing fatherwho was in a critical conditionwould not be available, therewas no option left for me but to leave at once — I knewJitender. He had been onpatrols with me.

I could operate the boat that Ihad there and there was theremote possibility that the Forest Guard may still be foundalive, washed up ashore, furtherdownstream.

With this faint hope I arrivedat Gaujera at 7.30am in the boatto find the DFO, Shri. AmitVerma, with his team combingthe banks of the lake on foot.Amit had walked through outthe night, in the heavy rain,from Ratwadhab to look for hismissing Forest Guard. I washappy to see that the officer incharge of the Kalagarh Forest

Division had felt it necessary todo so - a duty, that most offi-cers, these days, do not shoul-der.

Taking Amit on to the Boat, Idecided to comb the lake and inparticular the area where someCrocodile had been sighed thatmorning and where they couldhave possibly hidden the body,but we drew a blank. The onlyother thing that I could now do,was to take the Boat at highspeed in circles through theclogged flotsam in the areawhere Jitender was last seen.Dr. Saket Badola, the DeputyDirector of the Corbett NationalPark had arrived too, to helpwith the search, even thoughthis was not in his jurisdiction.This fact pleased me too. Hehad also undertaken the jour-ney in the unsafe boat. I tookhim aboard and we continuedour manoeuvres.

This, then paid off. TheGujjars and staff soon noticedsome bubbles emanating on thesurface from the submergedcorpse, which now had been awashed closer to the shore.Some courageous Gujjars leaptin and soon Jitender's body wasashore.

It was a sad realization thatthe young Forest Guard wasdead. Another Forest Guard(Wildlife), had died inKedarrnath during the deluge inJune, while trying to rescue aConservator. Sadly, Jitender wasthe second Wildlife Guard wehad lost within the month.

A young widow and twosmall children are left behind tofend for themselves in the vil-lage of Taria, which overlooksthis unforgiving lake, to remindthem every day, sadly, of adear one they have lost!

Brijendra Singh is also the honorary

wildlife warden of Corbett Tiger Reserve

FIRST PERSON


The Ministry of Environmentand Forests has conferredthe Rajiv Gandhi Wildlife

Conservation Award 2009 uponShri S P Yadav (photographabove), Deputy Inspector Generalin the National Tiger ConservationAuthority on 20 August, 2013.

The Amrita Devi BishnoiWildlife Protection Award 2010was conferred upon in individualto Saurabh Gupta andGaurav Gupta and in institutionalcategory to Shri Dadu ParyavaranSansthan of Tonk district inRajasthan.

These awards were given awayon the occasion of birth anniver-sary of former Prime MinisterRajiv Gandhi by the Secretary(Environment and Forests) Dr V Rajagopalan. The awardpresentation ceremony coincidedwith the inauguration of the con-sultation workshop on“Developing Strategies forMitigation of Human-AnimalConflicts”, organized by theMinistry of Environment &Forests and Wildlife Institute ofIndia at India Habitat Centre.

Dr K Jude Sekar, DirectorGeneral of Forests and SpecialSecretary, Dr S S Garbyal,Additional Director General ofForests (Wildlife), senior forestand wildlife officers from theState Government all over thecountry and members of civilsociety from the wildlife fraterni-ty participated.

The Minister of State forEnvironment and ForestsJayanthi Natarajan congratulatedthe winners of the Rajiv GandhiWildlife Conservation Award2009 and the Amrita Devi BishnoiWildlife Protection Award 2010.

The Rajiv GandhiWildlifeConservationAward was con-ferred upon S P Yadavfor cracking a hub of

thriving illegal trade in wildlifespecimens, during his tenure asDivisional Forest Officer, Agra in2007-08. He was instrumental inmajor seizure of almost 30,000wildlife specimens, including alarge number of endangeredspecies, in close coordinationwith the local Police and SpecialTask Force of Uttar Pradesh forsuccessful prosecution of theoffenders.

The enormity of this seizurehighlighted the scale of thrivingillegal trade in lesser known

endangered species of wildlife,and its networking for

their use in educationalinstitutions.

It served as aneye-opener and fos-tered the muchneeded awarenessamongst local peo-ple, eventually lead-

ing to considerablereduction in demand

for such specimens.

Rajiv Gandhi WildlifeConservation Award

Sanjay Kumar

The Rajiv GandhiWildlife ConservationAward 2009 went to S P Yadav, DIG (NTCA).The Amrita Devi BishnoiWildlife ProtectionAward 2010 was conferred on SaurabhGupta and GauravGupta. The award in the institutional category went toShri DaduParyavaranSansthan

TIGER ESTIMATIONPROCEDURE

PHASE II

Habitat characterisationfrom satellite data

Statistical computation

Statistical computation

ESTIMATION OF TIGER POPULATIONApplication of Relationship Equation

to Ground Survey and Habitat Character Data

Relationship EquationTiger Density to Habitat

Characters and Ground Survey

Habitat Character DataGround survey data

Computation of tigerdensity using camera traps

Beat-level DataCollection from ground surveys

PHASE IIIPHASE I

Input Input

Input

Output

Input

Input

Input

Output

Rupak De

DELENG/2009/30636

STRIPES | BI-MONTHLY OUTREACH JOURNAL OF NATIONAL TIGER CONSERVATION AUTHORITY,A STATUTORY BODY UNDER MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT AND FORESTS, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

VOLUME FOUR FOR FREE DISTRIBUTION ISSUE FIVE

Published and printed by Inder Mohan Singh Kathuria on behalf of National Tiger Conservation Authority. Published at Annexe No 5, Bikaner House, Shahjahan Road, New Delhi - 110011 and

printed at Astha Packaging, 122 DSISC Sheds, Okhla Phase I, New Delhi - 110020

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