Over the previous five months, a male Royal Bengal Tiger has most likely travelled across four states and over 2,000 kilometres of forested terrain in search of a suitable region rich in prey or perhaps a potential mate.
Over the previous three months, officials from Odisha’s Gajapati district’s Parlakhemundi Forest Division have been assiduously watching the activities of a certain tiger. On Tuesday, a camera erected to estimate tiger populations in the Kumilisingi beat of the Devagiri Range within the Parlakhemundi forest division filmed the aforementioned tiger. Anand S., Divisional Forest Officer of Parlakhemundi, claimed that the tiger has been moving around in that area ever since.
Mr Anand described the unexpected sighting in Gajapati, an area that had never before documented tiger sightings, saying, “About a month ago, the Royal Bengal Tiger tiger was captured on camera in the Gajapati forest.” We sent the image to the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) for mapping, and they confirmed that it matched a tiger previously photographed in Maharashtra’s Bramhapuri forest division. Tigers have distinct stripe patterns, similar to human fingerprints, indicating that this particular tiger originated in Maharashtra.”
The Royal Bengal Tiger most likely travelled via Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh before reaching in Odisha, according to forest officials. The first report of the tiger’s movement occurred in July 2023 in Gunupur in Odisha’s Rayagada district.
By August, it had reached Andhra Pradesh via the Parvathipuram Manyam district and was making its way to Srikakulam. The tiger neared the bordering region of Odisha again in September, re-entering the state. The tiger has been circling between Andhra Pradesh and Odisha for the past two months.
The Royal Bangal tiger, which preys mostly on ungulates like deer and wild boar, has caused alarm among the people of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. As a result, the forest agency has issued warnings to residents within a 20-kilometer radius of the tiger’s position.
In response, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Parlakhemundi stated that they are working to educate people on how to recognize the tiger’s pugmark.
The tiger kills and consumes cattle uniquely, beginning at the back. Although the tiger is roaming across a human-dominated habitat, it has not shown aggressiveness toward humans. It appears to be entirely interested in pursuing cattle.
If the tiger travelled from Maharashtra to Odisha, the road trip alone is 700 kilometres. This means that the tiger is travelling through forested areas, exploring new territory and that the total distance travelled may exceed 2,000 kilometres. The tiger has travelled more than 500 kilometres in the last month, from Parlakhemundi to Srikakulam, then to Ichapuram, and finally back to Parlakhemundi, according to Mr Anand.
According to the senior forest official, the tiger appears to be looking for a territory with a flourishing prey population and a potential partner. The tiger looks to have arrived for a survey, and if it finds favourable conditions, it will establish its territory.
Odisha and Andhra Pradesh are working together to track the tiger’s movements. According to Mr Anand.