Tiger numbers double since 2006 but no presence in three reserves: Census
30 July 2019
India’s
tiger population has jumped to an estimated 2,967, a rise by 33% over
2,226 reported in 2014. This is also an incredible 210% rise from 1,411
recorded in 2006, according to the all-India estimation — ‘Status of
Tigers, Co-predators, Prey and their Habitat, 2018’ — released by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi on Monday.
Behind the big headline,
hidden in fine print is a discrepancy in methodology: In 2014, tigers
aged 1.5 years or older were counted. The current report has the
cut-off age as 1 year.
Principal scientists with Wildlife
Institute of India did not respond to queries on how the data are
comparable, how many tigers are in the 12-18 month age group in the
population of 2,967, and how the estimation determines the age of a
tiger.
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