Big Cats

Lions: 

• IUCN Status: Endangered
• Wildlife protection Act: Schedule I
• CITES: Appendix I
• Gujarat holds Asiatic lions exclusively, and their numbers have now risen to an estimated 674 in the Gir forest region and other revenue areas of coastal Saurashtra. Moreover, the distribution of the lions expanded from 22,000 sq. km in 2015 to 30,000 sq. km in 2020 by 36%.
• Once seen as threatened by extinction, the lion population has grown by almost 29% from the last count in 2015. Today, Asiatic lions are present in Protected Areas and agro-pastoral landscapes of Saurashtra covering nine districts, over an expanse of about 30,000 sq. km.
• Criticism:
  • Canine distemper virus (CDV) that killed at least 36 lions in Gir, Gujarat in 2018 had not ebbed when the survey was done.
  • Counting methodology: An out-dated method – Direct Beat Verification or Block Count method is being used, which involved officials laying stake (a wooden stick) at watering holes across the animals’ territorial range.

    

    Asiatic cheetah vs African.

Asiatic Cheetah (acinonyx jubantus): 

World’s fastest land mammal =112kmph. 

• Asiatic Cheetah is Critically endangered, and African Cheetah is Vulnerable.

• It’s a keystone species of dry forest/scrubs & savahan.
• Appearance: Different from Leopard: distinguishing marks are the long teardrop-shaped lines on each side of nose from corner of eyes to its mouth.

  

• History: Cheetah were distributed throughout Africa & Asia; But it was one of the most hunted animals. Asiatic Cheetah-declared extinct in 1952 in India.  
• Habitat: 
  • Historically in India: A belt extending from Gujarat passing through Maharashtra, MP, UP, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha and according to some reports extending to parts of Karnataka, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. 
  • Diverse Habitat:  favouring the more open habitats – scrub forests, dry grasslands, savannas and other arid and semi-arid open habitats.  
  • In Iran, the last surviving population of wild Asiatic cheetahs are found in hilly terrain, foothills and rocky valleys within a desert ecosystem. 
  • The current estimate of the population of wild Asiatic cheetahs is about 40 with 12 identified adult animals. They occur in very low density spread over vast areas extending to thousands of square kilometres.
• In 2009 a ‘Cheetah Reintroduction Plan‘ to bring Cheetah from Africa (Namibia) was suspended by SC in 2012 since African Cheetah was separated by 32000-67000 year ago.
  • It was to be rehabilitated in the Palpur Kuno Wildlife sanctuary in MP.
  • Significance:
    • Although this would make India the only country in the world to host Six of the worlds large 8 cats including: Lions, Tigers, Clouded leopard and snow leopard, Leopards & Cheetah.
    • Cheetah is flagship species of grassland, and with this dryland ecosystem would return to their natural state.
• Cause of Extinction:
  • Poaching: Records of cheetahs being captured go back to 1550s. From the 16th century onwards, detailed accounts of its interaction with human beings are available as it was recorded by the Mughals and other kingdoms in the Deccan. 
  • Its inability to breed in captivity, ‘sport’ hunting and finally the bounty killings are the major reasons for the extinction of the Asiatic cheetah in India.
  • It is reported that Akbar had kept 1,000 cheetahs in his menagerie and collected as many as 9,000 cats during his half century reign from 1556 to 1605. 
  • As late as 1799, Tipu Sultan of Mysore is reported to have had 16 cheetahs as part of his menagerie.

• Union Government launching an action plan. 
  • About 50 of these big cats are being introduced, from the Africa savannas, home to cheetahs, an endangered species.
  • Problem: African cheetahs are not required to perform the role of the top predator in these habitats when the site (Kuno) that they have identified already has a resident population of leopards, transient tigers and is also the site for the translocation of Asiatic lions as ordered by the Supreme Court of India in 2013. 
  • In other open dry habitats in India there are species performing this role, e.g., wolf and caracal, both of which are highly endangered and need urgent conservation attention. 
  • Out of 20 introduced, only 13 are left. Cheetahs have died in India from a variety of causes, including drowning, infection, and mutilation. These deaths have occurred in Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh.
• Way forward: Remove grasslands from the category of wastelands and prevent further degradation, fragmentation and destruction of these habitats. 

Tree-climbing clouded leopard (Neofelis nebulosa): 

• It is a medium-sized felid (wild cat),

  

• It is the smallest of the large wild cats. 
• IUCN status: Categorised as ‘Vulnerable’ under the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 
• CITES: Appendix I
• Schedule 1.
• Since they are largely known to inhabit low elevation evergreen rainforests, the sighting is significant.

• A team of researchers have recorded photographic evidence of clouded leopards at an elevation of 3,700 metres in a community-owned forest along the Indo-Myanmar border in Nagaland — arguably one of the highest reported altitudes where the animal has been sighted in the world till date.
  • The findings have been published in the Winter 2021 issue of the Cat News, the IUCN/Species Survival Commission (SSC) Cat Specialist Group’s biannual newsletter.
• The researchers, led by the Delhi-based non-profit Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI), recorded camera trap images of the clouded leopards at an elevation of 3,700m in the community forest of Thanamir village in eastern Nagaland’s Kiphire district. The forest, measuring 65 sq km, houses Nagaland’s highest peak, Mount Saramati.

Snow Leopard (2009): 

Only 7,500 estimated to be surviving in 2 million sqKm Himalayan & Central Asian mountains. 

• India is perhaps home to 10% of the global population in less than 5% of its global range.
• In India, Snow Leopards are found in the Himalayan and trans-Himalayan landscape at an elevation between 3,000 meters and 5,400 m, across J&K, Ladakh, HP, Uttarakhand, Sikkim & Arunachal Pradesh.

Conservation status:

• • IUCN’s Red list: Vulnerable.
  • Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972: Schedule I.

    

  • CITES & CMS: Appendix I.

• Threat

  • Habitat Fragmentation, 
  • Illegal killing, poaching for fur, bones, claws etc., 
  • Man-Animal Conflict & retaliatory attacks by locals.
• Project Snow Leopard (1993): A CSS for protection and preservation of Snow Leopard
• Secure Himalaya Initiative: to ensure conservation of locally and globally significant biodiversity, land and forest resources in the high Himalayan ecosystem, while enhancing the lives and livelihoods of local communities. It is funded by GEF and UNDP.
• 2020: Snow Leopard Population Assessment in India (SLPAI), released by environment ministry at the 4th steering committee meeting of the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Program (GSLEP).
  • It has been prepared by the WII, Nature Conservation Foundation, GSLEP committee, Global Tiger Initiative Council, WWF, World Bank, Global Tiger Forum and Wildlife Conservation Trust.
  • With this protocol, a national level estimation can now be done for Snow Leopards, as was done for other animals such as Tigers, Rhinos and Elephants. .
  • Although due to difficult terrain sample size was small: Only 2% of their total habitat.
• Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Program (GSLEP): It is an inter-governmental alliance of all the 12 Snow Leopard range countries namely, India, Nepal, Bhutan, China, Mongolia, Russia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
  • It unites range country governments, NGOs, inter-governmental organizations, local communities & private sector around a shared vision to conserve snow leopards and their valuable ecosystems. 

Leopard:

• Vulnerable – habitat loss
• Schedule I
• 260 leopards poached in the country between 2015 to 2018: Info given by MoEFCC to the Parliament. Only around 7910 left in India.
  • 64 cases of leopard poaching were recorded in 2015, 83 in 2016, 47 in 2017 & 66 till Oct 2018.
  • Uttarakhand accounting for 60 case and Himachal Pradesh reporting another 49.
  • Chhattisgarh & MP also recorded a high number of cases of leopard poaching in the past four years, at 25 & 21 respectively.
  • Poaching of leopards was reported by 19 including Assam and West Bengal in east, Punjab in the West & Telangana and TN in the south. 
• Information on killing of leopards by villagers was not collated by the Ministry. 
• Wildlife organizations estimate leopard poaching to be at a much higher level based on the seizures of body parts. According to Delhi based wildlife protection society of India, 163 cases of poaching & seizures of body parts were recorded in 2018, an increase from 159 in 2017.

Small Cats:

• Indian desert Cat: It is found in deserts and can survive without water. 
  • Schedule I.
  • The toes of the species have cushion like hair which help it balance the fluctuating desert temperatures
  • News:  Indian desert cat spotted for the first time in Madhya Pradesh’s Panna Tiger Reserve (PTR)
    • The name of the Indian desert cat was mentioned in old documents of the PTR, but the photographic presence of this species was not recorded earlier
    • The presence of a desert cat was recorded in the State’s Nauradehi sanctuary.
    • Presence of the desert cat in the PTR indicates that the number of species of various wild animals is increasing in the reserve due to security being heightened in its forest areas.

      

• Caracal: 
  • IUCN: Caracal is listed as Critically endangered species.
  • Schedule I.
  • CITES: Appendix I
  • It is known as Junglee Bilao in Rajasthan
  • In Gujarat, caracals are usually referred as hornotro 

• It is native to Africa and is found in arid areas of north western India & in Pakistan. 
• It is characterised by a robust build, long legs, a short face, long tufted ears, and long canine teeth. Its coat is uniformly reddish tan or sandy, while the ventral parts are lighter with small reddish markings.

Project Tiger 

Tiger day: 29th July.

Indian Tiger or Royal Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris) are critical for the ecological balance. They are umbrella species(top of the food chain) and thus keep the herbivorous population in check.

• It is the tiger species native to India. India is home to 70% of global tiger population, but there are some smaller groups in Bangladesh, Nepal, and Bhutan. It may also be present in areas of China and Burma.
• Habitats: usually are tropical rainforests, marshes, and tall grasses.
• Conservation status: 
  • IUCN Red List: Endangered, 
  • Wild life protection Act: Schedule I and 
  • CITES: Appendix I.

 Project Tiger: In 1973, authorities realised: tiger population had dwindled to 1827 from an estimated 55,000 at the turn of the century. T he population was on the verge of extinction. 

• It is a CSS to ensure maintenance of viable population of tigers in India for scientific, aesthetic, cultural and ecological values, and to preserve areas of biological importance as natural heritage for the benefit, education and enjoyment of the people. 
• Tiger National Parks: Initially it was launched in nine tiger reserves, covering an area of 16,339sqkm. 
  • Now has increased to 27 tiger reserves, encompassing 37,761sqkm distributed in 17 states. 
  • Major efforts to save the species & protect the biotypes is underway in:
    • Corbett(Ramganga Reservoir in UK),
    • Sunderban national park in WB, 
    • Bandhavgarh National Park in MP, (South of BanSagar lake on Son River)
    • Sariska wildlife santuary in Rajasthan, (b/w Bhangarh & Alwar)
    • Manas tiger reserve in Assam & 
    • Periyar Tiger Reserve in Kerala.(N of Ranni Forest division in S. Kerala, S of Periyar lake)
    • Buxa(WB), Palmau(Jharkhand)
    • Ranthambore: 70 Tigers 
  • Pench and Periyar are top tiger reserves.
• Overall Success: 
  • Increased Population: Tiger population has registered an increase from 1,827 in 1972 to 3,642 in 2001-2002.
    • It initially showed success with tiger population went to 4002 in 1985 & 4334 in 1989. 
    • But in 1993 dropped to 3600 and 1706 in 2011 and now rising again to to 2226 in 2014. 
    • 2019: 3000 Tigers in India, up by a third from 2014.
    • As of 2023, there were 3,682 wild tigers in India, which is almost 75% of the world’s wild tiger population.
  • All India Tiger Estimation (2018): done by NTCA & WII, in collaboration with state forest departments. India achieved the target of doubling the tiger count in 4 years ahead of 2022.
  • Highest in MP (526), followed by Karnataka (524).
  • Highest increase in MP, Maharashtra and Karnataka.
  • Worst performances: Chhattisgarh, Mizoram (No Tiger).
  • Landscape wise:
    • Decline in spread over 3/5 landscape: Shivalik, W. Ghats & North East. Greatest conservation needed in ‘Critically vulnerable’ Northeast Hills.
    • Increase in Central India & Sunderban.
  • Economic Value of Tigers: anywhere from ₹4200Cr to ₹16000 Crore. Economy depends on these reserves.
• Tiger corridors in India:  stretch of land linking tiger habitats, allowing movement of tigers, prey and other wildlife. Its management interventions are operationalised through a Tiger Conservation Plan, mandated under section 38V of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972.
  • For demarcating these corridors, country has been divided into 5 landscapes:
    • Shivalik Hills & Gangetic Plains- 3 corridors
    • Central India & Eastern Ghats- 11 corridors
    • Western Ghats- 8 corridors
    • North East- 10 corridors
    • Sunderbans – No Corridors.
  • Recently, the NTCA in collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India has published a document titled “Connecting Tiger Populations for Long-term Conservation”, which has mapped out 32 major corridors across the country.

National Tiger Conservation authority (NTCA): 

Established under MoEFCC by the Wildlife(Protection) Act, 2006. Wildlife protection is mentioned under 38O of the Act.

• It approves Tiger conservation plan prepared by State govt. under the Act.
• Evaluates & assess various aspects of sustainable ecology & disallow any ecologically unsustainable land use such as, mining, industry & other projects within the tiger reserves;
• Lay down normative standards for tourism activities & guidelines project tiger from time to time for tiger conservation in the buffer & core area of tiger reserves & ensure their due compliance.
• MST IPES: Monitoring system for Tigers – Intensive protection and ecological status: It’s a software base monitoring system launched across Indian tiger reserves by NTCA.

Problems & Threats:

1. Shrinking habitat due to growing human population resulting in growing incidents of Man-Animal conflict.
2. Poaching and wildlife crime (skin trade & use of bone in traditional medicine), 
3. Depletion of prey base species etc. 
4. Peak carrying capacity of protected areas: Experts say, India may slowly be approaching its peak carrying capacity of tigers due to habitat loss. A detailed survey released reveals that nearly a third of India’s tigers are living outside tiger reserves and nearly 17 of the 50 reserves are approaching the peak of their capacity at sustaining their populations. 
5. Increasing Man- Wildlife conflict: A new report by WWF and UNEP has found that 35% of India’s tiger ranges currently lie outside protected areas. The report, A Future for All – A need for Human-Wildlife Coexistence, examined increasing human-wildlife conflict, and has found that marine and terrestrial protected areas only cover 9.67% globally. 

Global Conservation Efforts:

• Global Tiger initiative (GTI) 2008: a global alliance of governments, international organizations, civil society, the conservation and scientific communities and the private sector. 
  • Aim: to save wild tigers from extinction. 
  • In 2013, the scope was broadened to include Snow Leopards (only two cats covered – Tiger and snow leaopard)
• St. Petersburg Tiger Summit in Russia, 2010: All 13 tiger range countries came together for the first time with the commitment of doubling the number of wild tigers by 2022.
• Global Tiger Recovery Program (GTRP): It seeks to empower Tiger Range Countries to address the entire spectrum of threats, domestic as well as those that are transboundary in nature, and work toward increased financial sustainability through the integration of conservation objectives into development.
• The Global Tiger Forum (GTF) is the only inter- governmental international body established with members from willing countries to embark on a global campaign to protect the Tiger.
• TX2: Its goal was to double the number of wild tigers across their geographical areas. The WWF is implementing the programme in 13 tiger range countries.
• Conservation Assured Tiger Standards CA|TS: It is a set of criteria which allows tiger sites to check if their management will lead to successful tiger

  

India has joined the International Big Cat Alliance in 2024

Poaching

National Tiger Conervation Authority (NTCA): Set up under Wildlife protection act, 1972.

• 95 Tiger deaths in 2018. 41 deaths occurred outside the tiger reserves in the country.
  • 3 states comprise of 60% of tiger deaths.
  • 22 deaths in MP, 15 deaths in Karnataka.
  • 19 of them in Maharashtra (It has total 190 tigers); 14 of them of all deaths occurred outside protected areas. 
    • Maharashtra accounted for over 34% of all deaths outside the tiger reserves in the country.

Information given in an reply to an RTI application by Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB).

• Every year 50-100 tigers are killed by poaching. 384 tigers killed in the last 10 years by poachers; between 2008 & 2018. 
• 961 poachers have been arrested in last 10 years.