Did you know? The USA has the most tigers in the world

Did you know? Human beings in their conceit think ‘god’ made them in his—isn’t it always his?—image. But many of our fellow members of the club called Kingdom Animalia are gifted with abilities that human beings cannot replicate even with all the technology at their disposal. The series Did You Know? is an attempt to find and share such amazing information that the world of fauna is replete with. If you have an interesting nugget...

Despite some success, wildlife trafficking continues unabated, says U.N. report

While there has been some success in combating the illicit trade in some iconic wildlife species, and cross-border cooperation and recognition of wildlife crimes have improved, the magnitude of the problem remains large, with around 4,000 various plant and animal species being seized between 2015 and 2021, the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime reported in Vienna, Austria, earlier this month. “The global scope and scale of wildlife crime remain substantial as the seizures indicate...

Tirupati zoo’s blind tiger dies

A long-suffering Royal Bengal tiger, born blind in 2016 at the Sri Venkateswara Zoological Park in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, and battling congenital health issues, died last weekend, news agencies reported quoting a zoo official. The male tiger grew up in the animal rescue centre at the zoo. According to a press release issued by the zoo, a medical test in 2017 found that the animal suffered from epileptic seizures. Curiously, none of the news reports...

No more tiger safaris in Jim Corbett core

In a bid to secure India’s national animal from harm caused by greedy humans, the Supreme Court on Wednesday banned tiger safaris within the core reserve of Jim Corbett National Park, the country’s first, and best known, wildlife sanctuary. According to the order, these safaris are now allowed only in the peripheral and buffer zones surrounding Uttarakhand’s most famous tourist attraction. According to a report in The Times of India newspaper, the verdict is aimed...

India set to be headquarters of International Big Cat Alliance

In a landmark decision to help conserve lions, tigers, leopards, etc, the Union cabinet has given the green signal for the formation of the International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA), a worldwide network to help big cats flourish. The IBCA will have its headquarters in India. It will be a multi-country, multi-agency coalition of 96 big cat range countries to provide a one-stop platform on conservation. Interestingly, India’s natural habitat is home to five out of...