Tiger Reserves
Though The 2008 census indicated a decline in tiger population all over India, the only exception was in Tamil Nadu where the animals' numbers have increased to 76 from 60 five years ago. Tamil Nadu has 3 tiger reserves which are declared as part of Project Tiger:
- Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve - Established in 1962, this 900 km2 (350 sq mi) reserve in Tirunelveli district is now part of the Agasthyamalai Biosphere Reserve. It was adopted by Project Tiger in 1988. The Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE) has developed and implemented a conservation intervention program here. A comprehensive report on the history, flora & fauna, ecology and future of the reserve is available. This reserve has an estimated tiger population of 6-8 tigers.
- Mudumalai National Park was declared as a Tiger Reserve in April, 2007, under section 38V of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972, in an effort to conserve the country's dwindling Tiger populations. Subsequently, about 350 families living in the core area have been evicted from the park and given 1 million rupee ($20,800) compensation. Those in the 5 km buffer area around the park will be involved in the project as trackers and guides to enhance their income through eco-tourism. Tigers occupy 5,326 square kilometres (2,056 sq mi) of this reserve with an estimated tiger population of 62 (44 to 80) tigers.
- Annamalai-Parambikulam Tiger Reserve, including Indira Gandhi National Park in Tamil Nadu, was declared as a Tiger Reserve in 2008. This reserve has tiger occupancy in 2,744 km2 (1,059 sq mi) within a contiguous forest patch of 4,400 km2 (1,700 sq mi). Within Tamil Nadu Tigers occupied 1,691 km2 (653 sq mi) with an estimated population of 6-8 tigers.
The state has 3 other significant tiger habitats:
- Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary is a 457.78 km2 (176.75 sq mi) tiger habitat in Kanyakumari district declared a sanctuary in February 2008.The head office of the sanctuary is at Nagercoil.The sanctuary is maintained by the kanyakumari forest division.
- Mukurthi National Park is the 78.46 km2 (30.29 sq mi) home to an array of endangered wildlife, including Royal Bengal Tiger and Asian Elephant. Its main attraction is the Nilgiri Tahr an important prey species of the tigers.
- Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary, in Erode with 1,411.6 km2 (545.0 sq mi), is the largest wildlife sanctuary in Tamil Nadu. There is an active proposal to declare this sanctuary as a Tiger Reserve due to the 46 tigers seen here in the 2010 wildlife survey. The Sathyamangalam forest is the only reserve forest in South India with a significant presence of tigers, that is not yet declared as one of the tiger reserves in India.
Read more about this topic: Protected Areas Of Tamil Nadu
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