Hyderabad: The spectacular tiger life is at a dangerous crossroads since two tigers were discovered dead in the Kagaznagar Tiger Corridor in the Asifabad district while a search is underway for a streak of missing tigers.
A tigress and her three cubs went missing in the Kagaznagar Tiger Corridor, Asifabad after two other tigers were found dead, in suspected cases of poisoning, a few days ago.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) specialists verified that in the event of poisoning, a tiger will go to the closest body of water as much heat is generated, leading officials to speculate that the remaining tigers may be safe.
The officials at the Kagaznagar Corridor are hopeful that the tigress and three young cubs are unharmed since they investigated the water body but were unable to uncover a cadaver.
A group of 80 forest personnel and animal trackers are currently assigned to search a five-kilometer radius of the area where an adult male tiger’s carcass was discovered.
The team is looking for any signs of the mother tigress and her three cubs, who are believed to be in danger due to the recent tiger deaths in the area. The officials are also reviewing video footage from over 30 cameras and searching for tiger pug marks to track their presence and movements. The team will expand the search radius to 10 kilometers if no desired results are obtained.
Chief Wildlife Warden of Telangana, Mohanchandra Pargaien, responded to allegations of misinformation and omissions on tiger deaths in the Kagaznagar Corridor, stating that they are trying to track the remaining tigers. It is anticipated that the enhanced search will conclude within the next two days.
According to Principal Chief Conservator of Forests R M Dobriyal, “We have information about two tiger deaths. I am on my way to the field to ascertain the situation,” he said, referring to the other missing family members
“The veterinarian performing the post-mortem examination stated that it was not a case of poisoning,” Pargaien added. “We are looking into this further to find out what happened. We didn’t disclose the second tiger’s fatality because we didn’t have enough proof,” he added.
Telangana has reported two tiger deaths since the beginning of this year, both from the Kagaznagar Tiger Corridor, Asifabad, despite the state having no recorded tiger fatalities in 2022 or 2023.
