Glucocorticoid stress responses of reintroduced tigers in relation to anthropogenic disturbance in Sariska Tiger Reserve in India

Tiger (Panthera tigris), an endangered species, is under severe threat from poaching, habitat loss, prey depletion and habitat disturbance. Such factors have been reported causing local extermination of tiger populations including in one of the most important reserves in India, namely Sariska Tiger Reserve (STR) in northwestern India. Consequently, tigers were reintroduced in STR between 2008 and 2010, but inadequate breeding success was observed over the years, thus invoking an investigation to ascertain physiological correlates. In the present study, we report glucocorticoid stress responses of the reintroduced tigers in relation to anthropogenic disturbance in the STR from 2011 to 2013. We found anthropogenic disturbance such as encounter rates of livestock and humans, distance to roads and efforts to kill domestic livestock associated with an elevation in fecal glucocorticoid metabolite (fGCM) concentrations in the monitored tigers. In this regard, female tigers seem more sensitive to such disturbance than males. It was possible to discern that tiger’s fGCM levels were significantly positively related to the time spent in disturbed areas. Resulting management recommendations include relocation of villages from core areas and restriction of all anthropogenic activities in the entire STR.S1 Fig. Parallelism between pooled serial dilution of tiger’s fecal extract (square) and respective cortisol standard (circle).S2 Fig. Different levels of anthropogenic disturbance and ST2 tigress movements prior to scat deposition during the study period in Sariska Tiger Reserve (May 2011—January 2013).S3 Fig. Different levels of anthropogenic disturbance and ST3 tigress movements prior to scat deposition during the study period in Sariska Tiger Reserve (May 2011—January 2013).S4 Fig. Different levels of anthropogenic disturbance and ST4 tiger movements prior to scat deposition during the study period in Sariska Tiger Reserve (May 2011—January 2013).S5 Fig. Different levels of anthropogenic disturbance and ST5 tigress movements prior to scat deposition during the study period in Sariska Tiger Reserve (May 2011—January 2013).S6 Fig. Different levels of anthropogenic disturbance and ST6 tiger movements prior to scat deposition during the study period in Sariska Tiger Reserve (May 2011—January 2013).National Tiger Conservation Authority of India (NTCA), Central Zoo Authority of India, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and the Ministry of Science and Technology.http://www.plosone.orgam201

Status of vultures in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve, Western Ghats, India

Volume: 27Start Page: 96End Page: 9

Predicting the Distribution Pattern of Small Carnivores in Response to Environmental Factors in the Western Ghats

<div><p>Due to their secretive habits, predicting the pattern of spatial distribution of small carnivores has been typically challenging, yet for conservation management it is essential to understand the association between this group of animals and environmental factors. We applied maximum entropy modeling (MaxEnt) to build distribution models and identify environmental predictors including bioclimatic variables, forest and land cover type, topography, vegetation index and anthropogenic variables for six small carnivore species in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve. Species occurrence records were collated from camera-traps and vehicle transects during the years 2010 and 2011. We used the average training gain from forty model runs for each species to select the best set of predictors. The area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver operating characteristic plot (ROC) ranged from 0.81 to 0.93 for the training data and 0.72 to 0.87 for the test data. In habitat models for <i>F. chaus</i>, <i>P. hermaphroditus</i>, and <i>H. smithii</i> “distance to village” and precipitation of the warmest quarter emerged as some of the most important variables. “Distance to village” and aspect were important for <i>V. indica</i> while “distance to village” and precipitation of the coldest quarter were significant for <i>H. vitticollis</i>. “Distance to village”, precipitation of the warmest quarter and land cover were influential variables in the distribution of <i>H. edwardsii</i>. The map of predicted probabilities of occurrence showed potentially suitable habitats accounting for 46 km² of the reserve for <i>F. chaus</i>, 62 km² for <i>V. indica</i>, 30 km² for <i>P. hermaphroditus</i>, 63 km² for <i>H. vitticollis</i>, 45 km² for <i>H. smithii</i> and 28 km² for <i>H. edwardsii</i>. Habitat heterogeneity driven by the east-west climatic gradient was correlated with the spatial distribution of small carnivores. This study exemplifies the usefulness of modeling small carnivore distribution to prioritize and direct conservation planning for habitat specialists in southern India.</p></div

OCCUPANCY AND ABUNDANCE OF DHOLE (CUON ALPINUS) IN PENCH LANDSCAPE OF CENTRAL INDIA

Volume: 108Start Page: 158End Page: 16

Response curves for the most significant predictors of habitat suitability of small carnivores according to the MaxEnt model.

<p>The response curve is shown in different colours. Each colour represents a different species. The dark grey and light grey dotted lines represent 95% confidence intervals from 40 replicated runs.</p

Habitat suitability maps of small carnivores based on MaxEnt models using environmental variables.

<p>Average MaxEnt predictions from 40 runs for each species at the scale of 1×1 km resolution. The predicted probability of presence, with values ranging from 0 to 1, is depicted by different colours. Using the MaxEnt logistic output, red colours indicate a higher “probability of occurrence” (suitability) while the blue colours indicate lower probabilities.</p

Location of the study area showing the spatial distribution of camera-traps and vehicle transect routes in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (2010 and 2011).

<p>Location of the study area showing the spatial distribution of camera-traps and vehicle transect routes in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (2010 and 2011).</p

Philopatric and natal dispersal of tigers in a semi-arid habitat, western India

The connectivity between landscapes is an important aspect of the conservation of small and isolated populations of carnivores. We studied the natal dispersal pattern of Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris) using motion-sensitive cameras and intensive searches from April 2005 to June 2011 in Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve (RTR), western India. We tracked 29 tiger cubs (18 males, 11 females) born during the study until they established independent territories. All the females and 72.2% of the males attained maturity. The males had a greater probability (92.3%) of dispersal compared with the females (36.4%). Males dispersed an average distance of 27.0 +/- 12.7 (SE) km (range = 4.5-148 km), while females dispersed an average distance of 5.7 +/- 3.03 km (range = 4.6-25.8 km) from their natal area to establish their independent territories. The average age of dispersal was 38.6 +/- 2.6 months (range = 24-44 months) for the males and 27.7 +/- 2.7 months (range = 25-33 months) for the females. Seven of the 11 females bred at >48 months' age, after establishing independent territories. Of the other females, three were translocated to another protected area, and one died after the dispersal. This study adds to the baseline information about the dispersal patterns of tigers, which is important in making conservation and management decisions for restoration of tiger populations.Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Government of India24 month embargo; published 1 October 2020This item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]