Page 72 - World of Animals - Issue #29

Explore the Earth

On the prowl for

India’s big cats

From lake bottoms to treetops, you’ll
have to look far and wide to track
down India’s five fabulous felines

Bengal tiger

India’s national animal and the second biggest cat in
the world (behind only its Siberian cousin), the Bengal
tiger is the region’s most fearsome predator. While its
distinctive striped coat is unmistakable on the pages
of a magazine, it makes for excellent camouflage in
its natural grassland habitat, sneaking up on prey until
they’re within pouncing range. An excellent swimmer,
the Bengal tiger often lies in wait by waterholes. They
have been known to feed on water buffalo, oxen and
even young elephants and rhinos.
Because of their elusive, nocturnal nature, spotting
a tiger in the wild is a matter of perseverance. It may
take repeat visits before you get lucky. The compact
Bandhavgarh National Park, Madhya Pradesh, which
has one tiger for every two square kilometres (0.7
square miles), offers the best odds. Ranthambore
Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan also has a good success
rate, owing to the relative lack of cover. The latter also
benefits from being easily accessible from both Delhi
and Mumbai.

Asiatic lion

Slightly smaller than its more well-
known African cousin, but no less
noble for it, the Asiatic lion is one
of the rarest cats in the world.
Once found throughout the
Middle East, habitat loss now
restricts this subspecies to a single
population of 500 in Gir Forest
National Park in Gujurat. Although
numbers are still worryingly low,
this is a huge improvement over
the dozen or so individuals alive at
the turn of the 20th century.
Jeep safaris run from mid-
October to mid-June. Asiatic lions
live in smaller prides than their
African relatives, and the sexes
generally live apart until it’s time to
mate. A typical pride may consist
of only two to five lionesses. Their
unsociable nature is perhaps a
result of the smaller prey available
to them in the park; deer such as
sambar and chital can easily be
taken by individuals without the
need to organise a group hunt.

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