Indian authorities said they uncovered a massive tiger poaching operation responsible for many deaths of those magnificent creatures.
What's happening?
Thirteen people were arrested in February and 16 more were named in a charge sheet, the Deccan Chronicle reported.
Forest officials tracked the movement of the alleged ring, following the suspects' call data and finding "indirect" evidence they had been to the Kawal Tiger Reserve.
"We collected forensic samples from all of them, and the reports have shown that five of them had remnants of tiger blood under their fingernails. All those given bail hail from Madhya Pradesh and have been issued notices to appear before the court for a hearing that was postponed last week. If they do not appear for the next hearing, then we will seek arrest orders," Asifabad district forest officer Neeraj Kumar Tibrewal said in March.
In 2023, five of the poachers were found with a tiger skin and 19 kilograms (42 pounds) of tiger bones.
Why is this important?
Wildlife poaching and trafficking affect millions of animals around the globe and make up a multibillion-dollar industry, and the Chronicle noted that the investigation uncovered digital transactions totaling rupees 8 crore ($923,921).
The Kawal Tiger Reserve is home to tigers as well as 310 bird species, 68 mammal species, 34 reptile species, 10 amphibian species, and 673 plant species. Though the big cats appear orange to humans, they are not as easily visible to their prey, which are largely dichromatic and thus cannot distinguish between orange and green.
The incredible creatures have been protected in the country since the early 1970s, but they number just around 3,500. Still, this is a marked increase from less than 2,000, and conservation efforts help protect the apex predators as well as their ecosystems and the people that rely on them and healthy environments for their livelihoods.
"Since the corridor forest areas lack protection as in the case of a reserve or a sanctuary, it is feared that some of the tigers that have gone missing from Asifabad and Mancherial districts and routinely claimed as returning to Maharashtra or Chhattisgarh may have fallen prey to this gang of poachers," the Chronicle reported.
What's being done about tiger poaching?
The perpetrators allegedly targeted tigers in unprotected wildlife corridors between protected reserves and sanctuaries in Telangana. In 2024, the outlet noted that a father tiger and two cubs were poisoned; the mother and two other cubs may have been killed as well, as they are among those unaccounted for.
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Yes 👍 Stronger protections and increased surveillance, therefore, seem necessary to address the problem. Education is also essential, as quality and not quantity of habitat is the primary driver of tigers' survival, according to one study. That includes locals' attitudes about tigers.
To protect tigers and endangered species in general, you can vote for politicians who take action to support wildlife and the environment, spread the word among friends and family, and donate to conservation programs.
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