Natives to parts of Asia and India, Bengal Tigers were endangered species with a wild population of around 5,000 to 7,000. Yet their number were considered to be numerous than any other kind. Many people consider this cat as the most beautiful and adorable because of its vibrant orange and black stripes in their coat. Their coat actually is a yellow to light orange with stripes range from dark brown to black. Belly is white and tail is while with black rings. Not to mention also the one of a kind vibrant skin and must seen mutation of the Bengal Tigers, the White Tiger having stripes of white and black and some are entirely white. Another interesting feature was the sport white spots on the backside of each tiger’s ear which serves many functions. It helps the cub to see their mother at the same time it gives an illusion to its possible predator to appear ferociously dangerous when attacked from its back.
Males reach maturity at 4–5 years of age, and females at 3–4 years. Mating can occur at any time, but is most prevalent between November and April. A tigress comes into heat at intervals of about 3–9 weeks, and is receptive for 3–6 days. After a gestation period of 104–106 days, 1–4 cubs are born in a shelter situated in tall grass, thick bush or in caves. Newborn cubs weigh 780–1600 g (2 lb) and they have a thick wooly fur that is shed after 3.5–5 months. Their eyes and ears are closed. Their milk teeth start to erupt at about 2–3 weeks after birth, and are slowly replaced by permanent dentition from 8.5–9.5 weeks of age onwards. They suckle for 3–6 months, and begin to eat small amounts of solid food at about 2 months of age. At this time, they follow their mother on her hunting expeditions and begin to take part in hunting at 5–6 months of age. At the age of 2–3 years, they slowly start to separate from the family group and become transient — looking out for an area, where they can establish their own territory. Young males move further away from their mother's territory than young females. Once the family group has split, the mother comes into heat again.
The conservation efforts of many organizations are aimed to save the Bengal tiger, as well as their relatives which include the Sumatran and Siberian tigers. Without their help and the general public's support, we may see these beautiful cats become extinct in the wild within the next 10 years.
The most significant immediate threat to the existence of wild tiger populations is the illegal trade in poached skins and body parts between India, Nepal and China. The governments of these countries have failed to implement adequate enforcement response, and wildlife crime remained a low priority in terms of political commitment and investment for years. There are well-organized gangs of professional poachers, who move from place to place and set up camp in vulnerable areas. Skins are rough-cured in the field and handed over to dealers, who send them for further treatment to Indian tanning centres. Buyers choose the skins from dealers or tanneries and smuggle them through a complex interlinking network to markets outside India, mainly in China
The illicit demand for bones and body parts from wild tigers for use in Traditional Chinese medicine is another reason for the unrelenting poaching pressure on tigers on the Indian subcontinent. For at least a thousand years, tiger bones have been an ingredient in traditional medicines that are prescribed as a muscle strengthener and treatment for rheumatism and body pain.
Other factors contributing to their loss are urbanization and revenge killing. Farmers blame tigers for killing cattle and shoot them. Their skins and body parts may however become a part of the illegal trade.
The Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI) works with law enforcement agencies in India to apprehend tiger poachers and wildlife tradersthroughout India. WPSI investigates and verifies any seizure of tiger parts and unnatural tiger deaths that are brought to their notice. Between 1994 and 2009, WPSI has documented 893 cases of tigers killed in India, which is just a fraction of the actual poaching and trade in tiger parts during those years. In 2007, police in Allahabad raided a meeting of suspected poachers, traders and couriers. One of the arrested persons was the biggest buyer of tiger parts in India who used to sell them off to the Chinese traditional medicinal market, using women from a nomadic tribe as couriers.
In 2006, India's Sariska Tiger Reserve lost all of its 26 tigers, mostly to poaching. In 2009, none of the 24 tigers residing in the Panna Tiger Reserve were left due to excessive poaching.
No comments:
Post a Comment