It is neither
economically feasible nor biologically necessary to rehabilitate every maneater
in overburdened zoos. When a big cat can’t hunt its natural prey, its time is
up
There is no retirement in
the wild. Nature has no welfare scheme for wild animals once they lose their
ability to hunt or forage due to old age or injury. Carnivores, particularly,
usually die in a matter of weeks once they are unable to hunt.
But we believe in welfare
schemes and many of us love animals. Apart from the so-called rule of manmade
laws that we perennially struggle to uphold, what distinguishes us, the
civilized humans, from the wild is our claim to life, preferably good life, even
when we are no longer earning our keep. That’s why the post-retirement plans,
the painstaking savings and the state welfare schemes for the less endowed.
It is debatable if this
lust for life beyond productive years has made us a better or happier species,
but our insistence that the same yardsticks be applied to wild animals is
certainly not helping nature. The latest example was the uproar against the
shoot-at-sight order issued last week after a tiger killed three people between
November 27 and December 4 at the edge of the Bandipur tiger reserve in
Karnataka.
 |
| The 12-year-old male that killed three people at the edge of Bandipur tiger reserve in Karnataka. |
On several occasions in
the past, similar demands for live-capturing maneaters have rocked the forest
establishment. Of course, it is a safeguard against gunning down random tigers
as maneaters or even declaring tigers as maneaters in a hurry without
sufficient evidence. Even when repeated attacks on and consumption of humans
leave no doubt about a big cat’s motive, and officials take ample care to zero
in on the particular animal, live-capture allows us to examine the physical
state of the maneater before deciding its future.
Usually, the animal turns
out to be a young adult or an old tiger past its prime, edged out by stronger
competition and incapable of hunting its natural prey. It is tempting to argue
that a young tiger does not deserve to die. But does a wild tiger deserve an
entire life in captivity? Animal rights activists demand natural open
enclosures for better rehabilitation. Of course, it is important to transform
our squalid zoos. But given that conflict is increasing by the day and will
increase further if the big cat populations keep rising, what proportion of the
meager public funds earmarked for conservation should we realistically pump in
to support young maneaters in captivity?
Anyway, the majority of
maneaters, like the Bandipur tiger captured last week, are old, injured
animals with broken canines and blunted claws. They are in no shape to hunt in
the wild. There is absolutely no reason why such old animals should not be put
down when they target humans as easy prey. What does an old tiger that does not
turn into a maneater do in the wild? It dies of starvation.
 |
| The Bandipur tiger was camera trapped 10 times between 2004 and 2013 before it was evicted from its range by a stronger opponent and became a maneater. |
Take the latest Bandipur maneater.
According to the Wildlife Conservation Society-India, it was first camera
trapped in the reserve’s Moleyur range on 30 March 2004. From its size and
appearance at that time, the experts assessed it to be about 3 years old.
Subsequently, the tiger was camera-trapped 10 times, during 2005, 2008, 2010,
and 2013, across an area of 33 sq km (see map).
“It appears that this
tiger was evicted from his range after May 2013 by a more vigorous rival. He
was in very poor nutritional condition, besides having a broken canine tooth.
It is clearly an animal that would not have lasted much longer in the wild,
having reached almost the full lifespan of 12 years or so. Dozens of tigers and
leopards reach this stage in life every year and sometimes get into conflict
situations. It may not be a practical long-term option to live-capture all of
them or to house them in zoos beyond their maximum lifespan in the wild,” said
Dr Ullas Karanth, WCS director for science-Asia.
 |
| The Bandipur maneater captured last week was camera trapped for the first time in 2004 when it was 3-year-old. |
Attempting live-capture,
rather than shooting, also delays intervention by the forest administration in
volatile conflict situations. This fuels local anger and undercuts the goodwill that the tiger has
traditionally enjoyed among the communities living in and around forests.
Usually, the result is random revenge killing by the aggrieved community that
targets any and every tiger in the vicinity.
“Such delay may undermine
public support we need for conservation of tigers as a species. Management
decisions have to be rational and practical rather than based solely on
emotions: either hatred or love for individual tigers. All these issues should
be carefully thought through now and a sound policy should be put in place
before the passions aroused by this particular unfortunate incident are
forgotten,” urged Dr Karanth.
Indeed, we need a debate
because the clamour for humane rehabilitation of maneaters is at the other
extreme of brash demands for declaring tigers as maneaters after every
accidental attack on people. While the latter may seek justification in a sense
of real panic (and electoral mileage in case of political endorsement), the
former is driven mostly by a sweeping ideology of misplaced welfare.
Survival of the fittest
is the only way nature preserves the balance of resources and robustness of
species in the wild. That wilderness is now increasingly threatened by a
self-destructive human population boom principally triggered by our welfare
motive. Of course, welfare is necessary in our unequal human societies and we
are also free to decide the limits of political correctness for ourselves. But
unlike us, the wild are born equals and we have no business denying them the
death that becomes the wild.
No comments:
Post a Comment