10 centrespread centrespread 11 AUGUST 02-08, 2020 TIGER AUGUST 02-08, 2020 IN 1900, THERE WERE ABOUT 100,000 TIGERS IN THE WILD, MOST OF THEM IN INDIA WHAT HAPPENED? WHY? CONSERVATION In the early 1970s, its Because of rampant EFFORTS numbers dropped below poaching and shrinking India launched Project 500 worldwide habitat Tiger in 1973 RESULT ORANGUTAN Tiger population increased at the rate of 6% per THE GREAT APES, NATIVE TO INDONESIA AND annum from 2006 to 2018 in India. From 9 tiger MALAYSIA, ARE FOUND IN THE RAINFORESTS reserves spread across 9,000 sq km in 1973, there OF BORNEO AND SUMATRA are 50 reserves spread across 40,000 sq km now. From 268 in 1973, India now has 2,967 tigers WHAT HAPPENED? About 100 years ago, a quarter million of them were in the wild. In 2000, the population declined to less than 75,000 RODRIGUES WHY? FRUIT BAT Orangutans have been pushed to the brink due to palm oil plantation, which is wiping out swathes of ALSO CALLED THE FLYING FOX, IT IS NATIVE TO MAURITIUS; NOW rainforests in Indonesia and Malaysia FOUND ONLY ON RODRIGUES ISLAND CONSERVATION EFFORTS WHAT HAPPENED? WHY? CONSERVATION EFFORTS Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation, Indonesia’s From an estimated 1,000 Due to hunting Rodrigues Environmental Education Program, the Sebangua National Park, Chester Zoo, UK, and others are in 1955, fruit bat numbers and shrinking Mauritius Wildlife Foundation and others have led trying to create sustainable palm plantations and protect shrunk to 70-100 in 1979 habitat efforts to bring the numbers to sustainable levels rainforests across Southeast Asia to prevent the extinction of the orangutan RESULT RESULT Now there are 25,000 bats in the wild on Rodrigues Island. At least 16 zoos in the US have 180 bats in captivity Orangutan population has been steadily increasing and the Sumataran Orangutan population doubled from around 7,000 in 2003 to 14,000 in 2015 GRIZZLY BEAR SURVIVAL OF THE SPECIES THEY LIVE IN NORTH AMERICA Sustained conservation efforts and awareness campaigns have paid big dividends for the tiger whose population WHAT HAPPENED? There were more than rose from 268 in 1973, when Project Tiger was launched, to 1,468 in 2013 to 2,967 now, as the government announced 50,000 grizzlies in the 1800s. The numbers fell to this week. Here’s a look at some successful conservation projects around the world: 600-800 by 1960s :: Shelley Singh WHY? Because of human activities like habitat ETHIOPIAN GREAT BAMBOO LEMUR expansion, building of roads and hunting WOLF THE LARGEST BAMBOO LEMURS ARE FOUND IN ISOLATED THE BLUE ALSO KNOWN AS THE SIMIEN POCKETS OF MADAGASCAR’S EASTERN RAINFOREST CONSERVATION EFFORTS JACKAL OR SIMIEN FOX, IT IS WHAT HAPPENED? WHY? CONSERVATION EFFORTS IGUANA Protected under the US NATIVE TO THE ETHIOPIAN Once thought to Destruction of Led by local communities and THESE BLUE LIZARDS USED TO BE Endangered Species Act, HIGHLANDS be extinct, a small bamboo, its British charity, the Aspinall its conservation efforts ABUNDANT IN CAYMAN ISLANDS population was favourite food, Foundation, work on lemur were led by federal and WHAT HAPPENED? found in 1986 and habitat conservation began in 2005 WHAT HAPPENED? By 2010, there were just a couple of local agencies Its numbers declined sharply to just hundred of them RESULT a dozen in 1990 Its numbers grew from less than 60 in 2007 to 150 in 2018, but the RESULT WHY? great bamboo lemur fights a tough battle for survival 30 years of collabora- WHY? Habitat destruction, rabies and tive effort by federal Largely due to human activity conflict with humans and state agencies have and reduction in natural habitat helped increase its pop- CONSERVATION EFFORTS WEST INDIAN MANATEE ulation. Grizzlies now CONSERVATION EFFORTS Ethiopian Wolf Conservation occupy over 22,500 The Blue Iguana Conservation, run by Programme and other agencies MANATEES OR SEA COWS ARE FOUND LARGELY IN THE WATERS square miles of the Yel- National Trust for Cayman Islands and started work on OFF THE COAST OF FLORIDA AND CARIBBEAN ISLANDS lowstone ecosystem. supported by multiple global organisations, protecting the species about a There were about 1,500 including the Durrell Wildlife Conservation decade back. Efforts included WHAT HAPPENED? WHY? CONSERVATION EFFORTS of them in 2018 Trust, started work in 1990 creating awareness among locals, In 1967, only a few hundred of them Because of loss of warm USFWS, Save the Manatee Club preserving the wolf’s natural were left in Florida waters. They were water springs and sea grass and other agencies and NGOs RESULT habitat and vaccinating dogs listed as endangered by the US Fish beds due to pollution; have worked towards improving In 2001, there were just 30 blue iguanas in the and Wildlife Service (USFWS) collision with motor boats manatee’s numbers wild. In 2018, the 1,000th iguana was released RESULT into the wild. In 2015, the species moved from Today, there are more than 500 of RESULT Sources: nationaltrust.org; speciesconservation.org; wildnet.org; critically endangered to endangered list these endangered wolfs in the wild In 2017 their status changed from “endangered” to “threatened”. Now they number around 6,300 in Florida and 13,000 worldwide the guardian.com; batcon.org; livescience.com.