Editor's Pick: India’s tiger count crosses 3,000

Estimates from the latest tiger census made public on Sunday revealed that India has at least 3,167 tigers. While this does show an apparent increase since the tiger census of 2018, a strict comparison is not possible as a key calculation to compute the maximum and minimum range of the tiger population is yet to be done. There were 2,967 tigers recorded in 2018, and 2,226 in 2014. Sunday’s figures were provisional and could be revised, an official involved with the census told The Hindu. The tiger population numbers were released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Mysuru at an event to mark the International Big Cat Alliance conference and the 50th anniversary of Project Tiger. Tiger numbers are estimated by adding animals caught in camera traps, and those that may not have been captured in this way. The latter are estimated by statistical techniques. “We have found 3,080 unique tigers in camera traps this time. In the last census, it was 2,603. However, for the latest census, we have not finished computing the estimates of tigers outside such traps as well as the State-wise break-up of tigers, so the numbers may differ. We expect it to be done within three months,” said Qamar Qureshi of the Wildlife Institute of India, one of the scientists involved in the census exercise. In their four-year estimates, the scientists provide a range of the estimated tiger population, and the mean value is highlighted as the latest tiger population. Since 1973, when Project Tiger was established, the number of dedicated tiger reserves has grown from nine reserves covering 18,278 square km to 53 reserves spanning 75,796 square km, which is roughly 2.3% of India’s land area. While an increase in big cat numbers is always encouraging, experts have said that most of the country’s tigers are focused within a handful of reserves which are fast approaching their peak carrying capacity. This means that unless new regions are developed as reserves, it may be a challenge to ensure further growth in numbers. Moreover, populations that are smaller than 100 breeding individuals have a high probability of extinction, and for populations to persist, they should be part of larger landscapes with other such populations that are connected. This means smaller tiger populations in other reserves may also face the risk of isolation. Besides, the new numbers do not reveal the proportion of tigers outside protected areas, which are a growing number and a key marker of the environmental threats as well as man-animal conflicts. On the other hand, the authors of the census report point out that even the protected areas- nearly all the five major tiger-zones face challenges to the growth of the tiger population due to the increasing demands from infrastructure development. Researchers and conservationists suggest that apart from recovering numbers, we must not lose sight of other factors that are critical to the continued survival of the big cat, such as connectivity, genetic studies of tiger populations, and ensuring that growth is not stagnating in existing protected areas. The Hindu’s Editorials Draconian rules: On the impact of the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2023 Race to the bottom: On the tit-for-tat moves by China and India on media visas The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Who is the head coach of the IPL team Delhi Capitals? Ricky Ponting Brian Lara Stephen Fleming Kumar Sangakkara [logo] Editor's Pick 10 April 2023 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]( [Open in browser]( [Mail icon]( [More newsletters]( India’s tiger count crosses 3,000 Estimates from the latest tiger census made public on Sunday revealed that [India has at least 3,167 tigers](. While this does show an apparent increase since the tiger census of 2018, a strict comparison is not possible as a key calculation to compute the maximum and minimum range of the tiger population is yet to be done. There were 2,967 tigers recorded in 2018, and 2,226 in 2014. Sunday’s figures were provisional and could be revised, an official involved with the census told The Hindu. The tiger population numbers were released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Mysuru at an event to mark the International Big Cat Alliance conference and the 50th anniversary of Project Tiger. Tiger numbers are estimated by adding animals caught in camera traps, and those that may not have been captured in this way. The latter are estimated by statistical techniques. “We have found 3,080 unique tigers in camera traps this time. In the last census, it was 2,603. However, for the latest census, we have not finished computing the estimates of tigers outside such traps as well as the State-wise break-up of tigers, so the numbers may differ. We expect it to be done within three months,” said Qamar Qureshi of the Wildlife Institute of India, one of the scientists involved in the census exercise. In their four-year estimates, the scientists provide a range of the estimated tiger population, and the mean value is highlighted as the latest tiger population. Since 1973, when Project Tiger was established, the number of dedicated tiger reserves has grown from nine reserves covering 18,278 square km to 53 reserves spanning 75,796 square km, which is roughly 2.3% of India’s land area. While an increase in big cat numbers is always encouraging, experts have said that most of the country’s tigers are focused within a handful of reserves which are fast approaching their peak carrying capacity. This means that unless new regions are developed as reserves, it may be a challenge to ensure further growth in numbers. Moreover, populations that are smaller than 100 breeding individuals have a high probability of extinction, and for populations to persist, they should be part of larger landscapes with other such populations that are connected. This means smaller tiger populations in other reserves may also face the risk of isolation. Besides, the new numbers do not reveal the proportion of tigers outside protected areas, which are a growing number and a key marker of the environmental threats as well as man-animal conflicts. On the other hand, the authors of the census report point out that even the protected areas- nearly all the five major tiger-zones face challenges to the growth of the tiger population due to the increasing demands from infrastructure development. Researchers and conservationists suggest that apart from recovering numbers, we must not lose sight of [other factors that are critical]( to the continued survival of the big cat, such as connectivity, genetic studies of tiger populations, and ensuring that growth is not stagnating in existing protected areas. The Hindu’s Editorials [Arrow][Draconian rules: On the impact of the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2023]( [Arrow][Race to the bottom: On the tit-for-tat moves by China and India on media visas]( The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz Who is the head coach of the IPL team Delhi Capitals? - Ricky Ponting - Brian Lara - Stephen Fleming - Kumar Sangakkara [Sign up for free]( Today's Best Reads [[House panel apprised of collusive threat from China and Pakistan] House panel apprised of collusive threat from China and Pakistan]( [[Tax paid by senior citizens surges to over ₹1 lakh crore] Tax paid by senior citizens surges to over ₹1 lakh crore]( [[Mission to map rural India’s cultural assets covers over one lakh villages] Mission to map rural India’s cultural assets covers over one lakh villages]( [[The women boxers of Haryana’s ‘Little Cuba’] The women boxers of Haryana’s ‘Little Cuba’]( Copyright @ 2023, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. If you are facing any trouble in viewing this newsletter, please [try here]( If you do not wish to receive such emails [go here](