KOCHI: Despite the steep decline in tiger count in the Wayanad wildlife sanctuary, the population of the striped big cat remains healthy in Kerala. The status report released by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) on the occasion of World Tiger Day revealed that the big cat population in Kerala increased from 190 in 2018 to 213 in 2022.
The tiger enumeration conducted by the Kerala government in May 2023, had revealed that the population of tigers in Wayanad forests declined from 120 in 2018 to 84. As per the Status of Tiger report, Periyar remains the best-managed tiger reserve in the country with a healthy population of 43. Periyar also retained its number one position among tiger reserves in the 12 forests with excellent scores.
With 42 tigers, Parambikulam secured 18th rank among the 51 tiger reserves and has got a very good rating. The remaining 44 tigers were spotted in other reserve forests like Neyyar, Peppara, Senthuruney, Thenmala, Sankhili and Ranni.
The report says there is a declining trend in tiger occupancy in the Western Ghats. While the tiger population inside the protected areas remains stable (eg, Mudumalai, Periyar) or has increased (eg, Bandipur, Nagarahole), the tiger occupancy outside the protected areas has declined.
The decline in tiger occupancy was also observed outside the protected areas of the Anamalai- Parambikulam complex. Although the tiger population in the Periyar landscape remained stable, the animal's occupancy has declined outside Periyar.
The region faces several conservation issues due to human activities, including habitat loss and fragmentation, poaching, illegal wildlife trade, human-wildlife conflict, and invasive species. “Though the increase in tiger population is heartening our concern is conservation. For example, if there is a healthy number of cubs it is a good indication. The numbers may fluctuate as tigers may travel to other forest areas. Maintaining the habitat is key when it comes to conservation,” said chief wildlife warden Ganga Singh.
“Periyar has retained its position as the best-managed tiger reserve in India. As the habitat is healthy, there will be more breeding. Though the tiger density in Periyar is lower than in other reserves, the habitat continues to be healthy,” said Periyar Tiger Reserve field director P P Pramod.