Kalyankumar said they expected some adult and sub-adult tigers from Chandrapur, which houses the Tadoba- Andhari tiger reserve (TATR) and the Chandrapur territorial circle, to shift to Gadchiroli.
Maharashtra's tigers seem to be exploring a new habitat in Gadchiroli with the forest department recording the presence of around four of these apex predators in the district, which does not have a strong wildlife base.
"Earlier, tigers from Bramhapuri used to come and leave. Now, they have been residing here," P Kalyankumar, chief conservator of forests (CCF), Gadchiroli, told DNA. He noted that in the past, tigers from neighbouring Chandrapur district would move to Gadchiroli to escape temporary competition from other tigers in their areas and subsequently move back to their original habitats.
Kalyankumar said they expected some adult and sub-adult tigers from Chandrapur, which houses the Tadoba- Andhari tiger reserve (TATR) and the Chandrapur territorial circle, to shift to Gadchiroli.
The TATR and the neighbouring Chandrapur territorial area have a healthy tiger ecosystem. According to last year's Phase IV camera trapping exercise, these habitats have 61 and 43 tigers respectively, the highest in Maharashtra, which forest officials admit has caused "overpopulation" and conflict between these big cats.
Kalyankumar said that they had recorded the presence of around four resident tigers in the district for around four months now. "They have become residents here. These tigers are being monitored regularly through camera traps and pugmarks," added Kalyankumar, stating that they also had unconfirmed reports of more tigers being noticed in other parts of the district like Tipagad.
These four tigers have been marking their territory near areas like Alapalli (one), Armori (one) and Gothangaon (two). This includes a tigress from Chandrapur, who was captured and relocated to Chaprala in September 2016 after killing a woman and injuring three.
Despite being the most thickly forested district of Maharashtra with a green cover of 80 per cent, tribal-dominated Gadchiroli lacks a healthy wildlife and herbivore population due to deterioration in protection and conservation efforts since Maoists secured a base in the region in the 1980s and tribals conducted traditional community hunting. A sub-optimal herbivore population has meant that the presence of resident carnivores is poor.
"However, the prey base is good in certain pockets... like Chaprala and the tigers are residing there. This is co-related with the quality of the prey base," explained Kalyankumar.
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