14 DAY TRIAL // This Saturday, January 22, marked a very important moment in the history of conservation efforts in Nepal. For the first time ever, an endangered tiger was relocated from one national park to another, with the help of experts from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)-Nepal.
The move was authorized by the Government of Nepal, whose representatives moved the animal from the Chitwan National Park to the Bardia National Park. The WWF and the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) assisted with the maneuver.
These are the last few days of the Year of the Tiger, and the relocation also has a symbolic value in addition to its practical one. What Nepali authorities are trying to accomplish is double the number of tigers the country has by 2022, when the next Year of the Tiger is celebrated.
According to those who participated at the event, the tiger that was moved on Saturday was the one that was injured in September 2010, after it was shot when it entered the premises of a hotel in the tourist town of Sauraha, which is located near the Chitwan National Park.
After the incident, the animal was isolated from others at a secure location, where it received all the treatment it needed. Now that it got better, experts were confident that they could move the large cat without harming it.
“This translocation – the first of its kind in Nepal – is a concrete example of our commitment to saving wild tigers using the best science available, including the application of cutting-edge technologies,” explains Deepak Bohara.
“I am confident that by working together the global community can reach the goals we set ourselves at the recently concluded tiger summit to save tigers to benefit people, nations and nature,” adds the official, who is the Minister of Forest and Soil Conservation of Nepal.
“The Babai valley was an ideal location for the translocation because of its vast size and available prey species, improved anti-poaching efforts, lower human-tiger conflict and good connectivity with other protected areas through the Terai Arc Landscape all the way to India’s Suhelwa Wildlife Sanctuary,” adds Krishna Acharya.
“Nepal is one of the countries in the world where the prospect of doubling the tiger population is quite good, if tigers are given enough space, prey and proper protection,” says the expert, who is the Director General of Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation.
“WWF is pleased to have played a part in the pioneering tiger translocation led by the Government of Nepal,” explains the WWF Nepal Country Representative, Anil Manandhar.
“As a global conservation organization, we have been part of the Nepal’s evolving conservation landscape – from species protection to the successful Terai Arc Landscape – for over four decades, and remain committed to working together with our partners to help save nature for future generations,” the official concludes.