Tiger presence in a hitherto unsurveyed jungle of India–the Sathyamangalam forests

Abstract

Tiger, being a solitary and territorial animal, often tends to move out of protected areas into the surrounding forests. This is especially true in the case of subadult animals leading to escalating conflicts and deaths in the surrounding human-dominated landscapes. Unless adequately protected against various human activities, such corridors and surrounding forests will soon disappear, trapping the animals within protected areas with resultant local extinctions. In this paper we ascertain tiger presence, occupancy and numbers in one such partially protected area, the Sathyamangalam forest, located close to better known tiger reserves in India, through non-invasive faecal DNA analysis. Here we highlight the potential of Sathyamangalam as a tiger habitat. Tiger positive faecal samples were considered as evidence to establish occupancy in two different parts of Sathyamangalam, reserve forest and wildlife sanctuary. We collected 103 faecal samples out of which 69 were tiger positive. Species occupancy (psi), was 0.672 (±0.197) with a detection probability of 0.2 (±0.06) in the wildlife sanctuary area; while psi was 0.72 (±0.2) with detection probability of 0.212 (±0.6) in the reserve forest. Further, number of males and females, as determined in our study, was close to the ideal sex ratio in a healthy forest with good prey abundance. This study also highlights the presence of more females in the reserve forest (n = 10) than the wildlife sanctuary (n = 3) possibly indicating lesser disturbance and more prey availability. We recommend that the reserve forest to the north of Sathyamangalam wildlife sanctuary be declared as a tiger reserve. The wildlife sanctuary could serve as a buffer zone between this reserve and Sathyamangalam town which lies to the south of the forest. Proper protection of Sathyamangalam will go a long way in saving the entire landscape and tigers of the Western Ghats of India.

Characterizing conflict between humans and big cats Panthera spp: A systematic review of research trends and management opportunities

“…By understanding the movement, prey preferences, health, and ranges of animals, researchers may be better able to predict and ultimately prevent incidents of conflict. Ecological data collection methods used to study human- Panthera conflict include GIS/GPS [ 55 ], camera traps [ 56 ], field samples [ 57 ], and radio collars [ 58 ]. Some studies–particularly those involving leopards and tigers—are exploring the impacts and effects of human impacts on shifting prey bases and trophic cascades, which may force predators to look for alternate food sources such as people and livestock [ 1 , 59 – 61 ].…”

Assessing Human–Wildlife Interactions in a Forest Settlement in Sathyamangalam and Mudumalai Tiger Reserves

“…Following his death in 2004, the Sathyamangalam reserved forests were declared as a wildlife sanctuary in 2008 and upgraded to a tiger reserve in 2013, making it the fourth tiger reserve in Tamil Nadu. STR's unique geographic location ensures connectivity, serving as a conduit for species movement and gene flow between the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot and the Eastern Ghats (Government of Tamil Nadu, 2010; Reddy et al, 2012).…”

“…PA-specific studies can highlight specific scenarios and leading to nuanced management interventions that are relevant, timely, and effective (Karanth & Kudalkar, 2017;White & Ward, 2011). The forests of STR-MTR are valuable source sites for a variety of charismatic and endangered fauna including tiger, Asian elephant, leopard, gaur, and vultures (Government of Tamil Nadu, 2010;Reddy et al, 2012). Conserving these landscapes are of paramount importance to ongoing conservation efforts in the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala, which together form the largest contiguous elephant corridor and are home to the largest subpopulation of the tiger in India (Goswami, Vasudev, et al, 2014;Karanth et al, 2013).…”

“…In Tamil Nadu, we focus on the Thengumarahada settlement and its associated tribal hamlets located in the wildlife corridor linking Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR henceforth) and Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR, henceforth). India's Forest Rights Act (2006) protects the rights of such local tribal hamlets to use forest products and land (Reddy et al, 2012;Saravanan, 2009). In 1948, the Madras Presidency permitted the people of Thengumarahada to farm the forest land.…”

Enhancing knowledge of an endangered and elusive species, the okapi, using non‐invasive genetic techniques

“…Veit et al ., ; Martins et al ., ; Archie & Chiyo, ). However, investigating behavioural ecology in wild animals by direct observation can often be very difficult, especially for elusive mammals, or those inhabiting difficult terrain (Hájková et al ., ; Anuradha Reddy et al ., ). Behaviour in ungulates is often closely related to ecological factors (e.g.…”