India’s tigers climb high as climate, human pressure rises
DEHRADUN, India: Tigers in India have been photographed in high-altitude mountains rarely seen before, with experts suggesting relentless human pressure and a heating climate are driving them from traditional hunting grounds.
Researchers from the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) said they were surprised to find "multiple pictures" of tigers in the mountains of Sikkim -- the Indian state squeezed between Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet -- including one snapped at 3,966 metres (13,011 feet).
The camera traps were installed in "high-altitude regions to understand the impact of climate changes on large mammals", said Sandeep Tambe, ecologist and chief warden of Sikkim's forest department.
"One of the major possible causes may be the impact of climate change and rising anthropogenic pressure," said WII researcher Pooja Pant.
Tigers have been spo ed in the colder higher mountains before.
In neighbouring Nepal have been spo ed at a record 4,000 metres, according to the World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF).
As long as there is enough prey, tigers are usually expected to stay in warmer forests lower down.
But they are now being seen more regularly at higher reaches.
While tigers are known to range over varied terrains and altitudes, the highest concentration of the big cats in the Corbe Tiger Reserve is in the foothills of the Himalayas, ranging from around 385 to 1,100 metres.
In India, WWF director Anamitra Anurag Danda said a tiger had been spo ed at 3,602 metres by a WWF team in Sikkim in 2019, while another in the state was spo ed at 3,640 metres last year.
"It may be a range shi of tigers," said Pranabesh Sanyal, a geologist and a leading tiger expert in Kolkata.
"In the past two decades, temperatures at high altitudes have warmed faster than at altitudes below 2,000 meters.
"Due to climate change, tiger migration is taking place."
As global temperatures rise due to climate change, scientists have documented swathes of species shi ing their ranges.
Last month, the UN's World Meteorological Organization said the 2023 annual average global temperature was 1.45 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels (1850-1900) -- the warmest year on record. — AFP