Camera Trap Images of Tigers in Andhra Tiger Reserve Point to Recovery

Camera traps in the Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Tiger Reserve (NSTR) in Andhra Pradesh have captured images of a tigress and her three tiger cubs feeding on a kill. The camera trap sequences provide evidence of breeding tigers and boosts conservationists hopes of a recovery in this large landscape. The India Tiger Estimate 2010 released by the Ministry of Environment and Forests last year records that the forests of Andhra Pradesh had a decline in the population of tigers. NSTR has an area of 3568 sq km and is the largest among India’s tiger reserves. Though the area came under project tiger in 1982-83, protecting it had been a challenge due to extremist activity. With extremist activity coming down and renewed conservation efforts, the ecosystem is gradually reviving. Local Chenchu tribes have been recruited to protect the forests. NTCA and Wildlife Institute of India (WII), reported in 2010 that the area has around 60 tigers and around 20 tiger cubs. Around 30 camera traps are being employed to monitor tiger presence.

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