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Sundarban Tiger - a New Prey Species of Estaurine Crocodile at Sundarban Tiger Reserve, India

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Sundarban Tiger - a New Prey Species of Estaurine Crocodile at Sundarban Tiger Reserve, India REGIONAL OFFICE FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC (RAP), BANGKOK January-March 2012 FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Regional Quarterly Bulletin on Wildlife and National Parks Management Vol. XXXIX: No. 1 Featuring Vol. XXVI: No. 1 Contents Sundarban Tiger - a new prey species of estaurine crocodile at Sundarban Tiger Reserve, India....................................1 Some observations on white-bellied sea eagle in Bhitarkanika National Park..............................................6 Swertia in Nepal Himalaya - Present status and agenda for sustainable management.....................................................10 Migrating urban birds and changing landscapes in India........ 14 A rapid survey of small mammals from Northern Tamrau Nature Reserve, Papua................................................... 20 Note to readers..................................................................31 Diversity of freshwater turtles in Orang National Park..........24 REGIONAL OFFICE Sighting of red-necked keelback in Similipal Tiger Reserve....31 FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC TIGERPAPER is a quarterly news bulletin Developing Earth Ambassadors in the Philippines through dedicated to the exchange of information the Kids-to-Forests Initiative............................................ 1 relating to wildlife and national parks management for the A boost for teak plantations............................................... 3 Asia-Pacific Region. First Announcement - World Teak Conference 2013............ 4 ISSN 1014 - 2789 Advancing reduced impact logging in emerging carbon mechanisms................................................................... 5 Second FAO/World Bank Expert Meeting: Investing in Address. agriculture and natural resources management in the context of climate change in East Asia and the Pacific......7 TIGERPAPER Forest & Farm Facility 2012-2017 - Good governance for FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific multiple benefits of forests...............................................8 Maliwan Mansion, Phra Atit Road Bangkok, 10200, Thailand Phytosanitary standards in forestry......................................9 Tel: (662) 697-4000 Australian government volunteer programs contribute to FAO E-mail: [email protected] forestry work in the region...............................................10 Website: http://www.fao.org/world/ Protecting forests to preserve livelihoods..............................12 regional/rap/tigerpaper/tigerpaper.htm RAP Forestry staff movement.............................................13 Asia-Pacific Forestry Chips and Clips..................................14 Editor: Janice Naewboonnien New RAP forestry publications...........................................15 Advisor: P. Durst FAO Asia-Pacific Forestry Calendar……………............... 16 TIGERPAPER is dependent upon your free and voluntary The opinions expressed by the contributions in the form of articles, news items, and announcements in contributing authors are not the field of wildlife and nature conservation in the region. In order to necessarily those of FAO. The better serve the n eeds of our readers please write to us and send in the designations employed and the information you have or let us know if there is any information that you presentation of the material in the need. We appreciate receiving your letters and make all efforts to TIGERPAPER do not imply the respond. expression of any opinion on the part of FAO concerning the legal or Front and back covers: Sundarban tiger (Panthera tigris tigris ) constitutional status of any country, (Photos: Courtesy of P.K. Pandit) territority or sea area, or the delimitation of frontiers. Vol. 39: No. 1 January-Marcj 2012 | Sundarban tiger - new prey of estaurine crocodile at Sundarban Tiger Reserve at Sundarban Tiger of estaurine crocodile Sundarban tiger - new prey SUNDARBAN TIGER (Panthera tigris tigris) - A NEW PREY SPECIES OF ESTUARINE CROCODILE (Crocodylus porosus) AT SUNDARBAN TIGER RESERVE, INDIA by P.K. Pandit | (Photo: Courtesy of P.K. Pandit) Introduction In the Sundarbans, the top predators are the tiger on land and estuarine crocodile in water and both he saltwater crocodile is an opportunist apex are found throughout the entire Sundarban Tiger Tpredator, the largest among all living reptiles, Reserve (STR), but there are no previous records capable of taking nearly any animal that enters its of encounters between these species as prey or territory either in water or on dry land, even others. Interspecific fights in the forest are very attacking humans who enter the crocodile’s common and there are records of tiger killing young territory. A large adult estuarine crocodile can rhinos (Bist, 1994) and elephants. There are potentially eat animals within his territory including instances of fights between crocodile and tiger in monkeys, kangaroos, wild boar, dingo, birds, Ranathambhore Tiger Reserve of India over prey, domestic livestock, pets, humans, buffalo, gaurs, bats but in the end the tiger won the battle. Among the and even sharks (Daniel, 1989; Das, 2002). encounters between lions and crocodiles it was Domestic cattle, horses, water buffalo and gaur, all found that sometimes the lion and sometimes the of which may weigh over a ton, are considered the crocodile won the battle. largest prey taken by the male crocodile. Most prey animals are killed by the great jaw pressure of the Tigers as well as estuarine crocodiles of the crocodile, although some animals may be Sundarbans prefer snakes, even poisonous ones, as incidentally drowned. Juvenile crocodiles may fall their prey. A tiger’s carcass was found in prey to tigers in certain part of their range, although Netidhopani-I compartment on July 17th, 2009. In encounters between these predators are rare and the post mortem of said male tiger, one king cobra cats are likely to usually avoid areas with estuarine (Ophiophagus hannah) and one monocellate crocodiles. cobra (Naja naja) was found in the stomach in a semi-digested condition. During the post mortem of a dead crocodile on 21st October, 2011, 111 Vol. 39: No. 1 January-March 2012 | recovered from Pirkhali-2 compartment, the tail Kapura, Jhilla, Raimangal, Harinbhanga, Gona, of a monocellate cobra (Naja naja) was found in Gossaba, Gomdi and Kalindi. the stomach. Mangroves and mangrove associates constitute About the Sundarbans the dominant vegetation type of the area. As per Naskar and Mandal (1998), there are 40 species The Sundarban Tiger Reserve is situated in the of major mangroves, 32 species of minor southernmost part of the state West Bengal in mangroves, 30 species of back mangroves and District South 24 Parganas and North 24 Parganas associates and 3 species of mangrove habitat (Arbesi-I compartment only). It lies between ferns found in the Indian Sundarbans. These are latitudes 21°31’ and 22°31’ North and longitudes grouped into 39 families, 60 genera and 83 species. 88°10’ and 89°51’ East. It is bounded by fringe Some important mangrove families are villages on the north, the Bay of Bengal on the Rhizophoraceae, Avicenniaceae, Meliaceae, south, Bangladesh on the east separated by the Sonneratiaceae, Sterculiaceae and Myrsiniaceae Raimangal, Kalindi and Harinbhanga Rivers and among others. Some characteristics of mangrove on the west by the forests of South 24 Paraganas flora are the formation of lateral root systems for territorial division. proper anchorage, breathing roots or pneumatophores, stilt roots or prop roots for It is one of the first nine tiger reserves declared support, root buttresses, viviparous germination, under the Project Tiger scheme of the Government waxy-coated thick leaves, sunken stomata, etc. of India in 1973. The total area of the reserve is According to Champion and Seth’s (1968) revised 2,585 km2, out of which a 362.40 km2 area belongs classification, the mangrove forests of STR belong to Sajnekhali Wildlife Sanctuary (SWLS), and a to: i) Mangrove scrub (4B/TS1); ii) Mangrove 1,330.10 km2 area falls under the Sundarban forest (4B/TS2); iii) Saltwater mixed forest (4B/ 2 Sundarban tiger - new prey of estuarine crocodile at Sundarban Tiger Reserve Reserve at Sundarban Tiger of estuarine crocodile Sundarban tiger - new prey National Park. The remaining 892.43 km area TS3); iv) Brackish water mixed forest (4B/TS4); | falls under the buffer area (Reserve Forest). The and v) Palm Swamp (4B/E1). Some important total area under critical tiger habitat is 1,699.62 mangrove species are: Rhizophora sp., Kandelia km2, which mainly constitutes the areas of candel, Avicennia alba, Excoecaria agallocha, Sundarban National Park and Sajnekhali Wildlife Ceriops decandra, C. tagal, Bruguiera sp., Sanctuary. Sundarban Tiger Reserve consists of Xylocarpus sp., Sonneratia sp., Phoenix 15 forest blocks, 71 compartments, 4 territorial palludosa, Nypa fruticans, etc. ranges, 15 land-based camps and 10 water-based (floating) camps. Management problems in STR include: i) killing of prey species; ii) illegal collection of honey; iii) The mangrove ecosystem of the Sundarbans is collection of crab and tiger prawn seeds; iv) illegal very dynamic and productive. It contains 40 fishing; v) human-tiger conflicts; vi) difficult terrain; mammalian species, 56 species of reptiles, 156 vii) unstable nature of the land; viii) frequent natural species of fishes, 67 species of crabs, 23 species calamities; ix) high level of resource dependency of snails, and about 217 species of birds. by fringe people on mangrove forests; and x) Moreover, during winter, 52 species
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