TIGER CUB DIES IN RANTHAMBORE IN TERRITORIAL FIGHT: OFFICIALS

JAIPUR: An eight-month-old tiger cub was found dead in Tamba Khan area of Ranthambore Tiger Reserve (RTR) in Rajasthan’s Sawai Madhopur district on Sunday, officials said, suspecting that the cub was killed by an adult tigress in a territorial fight, a jolt to tiger conservation,

On April 1, a five-month-old tiger cub was found dead in Gandhra Deh area of RTR in a mutilated condition. Forest officials suspected that the cub was killed by another tiger, with the postmortem revealing canine marks on its neck.

“The neck of the cub found dead on Sunday was broken and injuries were found on the body. The postmortem of the cub is being conducted,” said additional conservator of forest Sanjiv Sharma.

He said the cub was one of the four given birth by tigress T-102 in August 2020. “As the cubs grow, they start roaming around. This cub might have separated from her mother last night and entered the territory of another tigress. We suspect that adult tigress T-124, also known as Riddhi, who was making movement in the area, killed the cub,” Sharma said.

“We were on a routine patrolling today and spotted two tigers running a little ahead the cub’s body, found with a broken neck and injuries. The body was also dragged,” he said.

An official said on the condition anonymity that the area where the body was found is a juncture of the territories of big cats T-102 and T-124. “The cub entered the area and was killed,” he said.

Tigress T-84 (arrowhead), her two daughters -- Ridhi (T-124) and Sidhi (T-125) -- and T-102 move in zones 3-4-5 of RTR, the official said. “In RTR, the issue is of territory. The reserve has crossed its carrying capacity. Now either there will be fights over territory or migration of tigers. And it will be difficult to track big cats outside the protected area.”