Royal Bengal Tiger Spotted in Buxa Tiger Reserve After two Decades

Context: Recently, a Royal Bengal tiger has been observed in West Bengal’s Buxa National Park.

• The previous sighting of Tiger was after 23 years on December 12, 2021. 

Potential Reasons for Tiger’s Comeback: 

• Increase in Prey Base of Tigers
• Expansion of the Grassland 
• Controlling Human Interaction
• Initiatives to curb infiltration and trespassing 

About Buxa Tiger Reserve

• Location: Buxa Tiger Reserve is located in North Bengal’s Alipurduar district. Its Northern boundary runs along the border with Bhutan. 
• Establishment: It was created in 1983 as the 15th Tiger Reserve of India and was declared as a National Park in January 1992.
  • In 2018, the “Tiger augmentation and monitoring project” was introduced in Buxa by the state forest department, Wildlife Institute of India and the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
• Main Flowing Rivers: Sankosh, Raidak, Jayanti, Churnia, Turturi, Phashkhawa, Dima and Nonani.
• Types of Vegetation: Moist Tropical Forest
• Few Available Species: Indian Tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), Leopard (Panthera pardus), Clouded Leopard (Neofelis nebulosa), Jungle Cat (Felis chaus) etc.

Conservation Status of Tiger 

• Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I
• International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List: Endangered
• Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES): Appendix I.

Read More: About All India Tiger Estimation 2022

News Source: The Indian Express