Q: Is it necessary that a buffer area of a Tiger Reserve should geographically surround the Core? Dandeli-Anshi Tiger Reserve of Karnataka has got very little notified buffer. There is a good forest patch which is adjacent/surrounding the Core but not included in buffer, please guide.

Answer from Praveen Bhargav, Trustee, Wildlife First:

A buffer need not surround the Core. Any forest area adjacent to a Tiger Reserve can be notified as a buffer area, including areas that form a viable corridor connecting to another Reserve. For example, a notified Reserved Forest or wooded government land could be declared as a buffer area. After the recent Supreme Court Order the process to notify such areas is on and you could present your suggestions to the Field Director of the Tiger Reserve.