Talk:Tiger/Maneaters

Man-Eating Tigers

Although attacks on human are uncommon, the tiger has killed more people than any other cat. It is mostly old and injured tigers that attack and eat humans. Tigers labeled man-eaters will get captured, shot or poisoned. Man-eaters have been a recurrent problem for India, especially in Kumaon and Garhwal. The Sundarbans mangrove swamps of Bengal, where some healthy tigers have been known to hunt humans, have had a higher incidence of man-eaters.

Of all the sub-species of tiger it is the Bengal which has gained the worst reputation as a man-eater. It has been said that "at one time, in parts of India, at the beginning of the 19th century, man-eaters were so prevalent that it seemed to be a question of whether man or tiger would survive." Each night, fires encircled the villages and the native people only ever travelled in large groups, fully armed and beating drums to scare the cats."

Tigers are more easily intimidated from attacking humans than most lions, especially if they are unfamiliar with people and have not learnt how easy humans are to catch and kill. Unlike man-eating leopards, even established man-eating tigers will seldom enter human settlements, usually sticking to village outskirts. Nevertheless, attacks in human villages do occur.

Champawat Man-eating Tigress

In the 1930s tigers killed between 1,000 and 1,600 people each year, causing terror among the human population. One famous tigress known as Champawat killed some 200 men and women before being driven out of Nepal. She moved to another location, this time in India, and continued to kill bringing her total up to 436 before she was tracked down and killed in 1937.The Champawat tigress is the greatest man eater known to date; she killed over 400 humans, and those are only the ones who were reported. She actually killed in two different countries, Nepal and India before she was hunted by Jim Corbett. She was so bold that she would enter the villages at night or even during daylight, and walk around roaring, forcing people to flee in panic to their huts.

The Champawat tigress was, as man eaters usually are, extremely cunning, and she was only found by Jim Corbett because he managed to follow the trail of blood the tigress left behind after killing her last victim; a 16-year-old girl. Later examination of the tigress showed the upper and lower canine teeth on the right side of her mouth were broken -- the upper one in half, the lower one right down to the bone. This permanent injury, Corbett claimed, "had prevented her from killing her natural prey, and had been the cause of her becoming a man-eater."

Sunderbans Man-eaters

While killings by Siberian tigers are almost unheard of, the Bengal tigers of the Sundarbans (translation: 'beautiful forest'), bordering India and Bangladesh, used to regularly kill fifty or sixty people a year. This was strange given that the tigers were usually in prime condition and had adequate prey available. Approximately 600 tigers live in this region, the largest population anywhere in the world.

About 5,000 people frequent the swamps and waterways of the Sundarbans. Fishing boats traverse the area and many stop so the villages can collect items like firewood or honey. In the dark tangled forest tigers find it easy to stalk and attack a man absorbed in his work. Even fishermen in small boats have been attacked due to the tiger's incredible swimming ability.

It is necessary to place these attacks in perspective. Firstly, the kill rate has dropped significantly due to better management techniques and now only about three people lose their lives each year. Even at the rate of fifty or sixty kills per year kills would only provide about 3% of the yearly food requirements for the tiger population of the Sundarbans. Therefore, despite the notoriety associated with this area, man is only a supplement to the tiger's diet; they do not provide a primary food source. Talk:Tiger/Maneaters From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia < Talk:Tiger Jump to: navigation, search Contents [hide] 1 Man-Eating Tigers 1.1 Champawat Man-eating Tigress 1.2 Sunderbans Man-eaters 1.3 Tara of the Dudhwa National Park

[edit] Man-Eating Tigers Although attacks on human are uncommon, the tiger has killed more people than any other cat. It is mostly old and injured tigers that attack and eat humans. Tigers labeled man-eaters will get captured, shot or poisoned. Man-eaters have been a recurrent problem for India, especially in Kumaon and Garhwal. The Sundarbans mangrove swamps of Bengal, where some healthy tigers have been known to hunt humans, have had a higher incidence of man-eaters.

Of all the sub-species of tiger it is the Bengal which has gained the worst reputation as a man-eater. It has been said that "at one time, in parts of India, at the beginning of the 19th century, man-eaters were so prevalent that it seemed to be a question of whether man or tiger would survive." Each night, fires encircled the villages and the native people only ever travelled in large groups, fully armed and beating drums to scare the cats."[1]

Tigers are more easily intimidated from attacking humans than most lions, especially if they are unfamiliar with people and have not learnt how easy humans are to catch and kill. Unlike man-eating leopards, even established man-eating tigers will seldom enter human settlements, usually sticking to village outskirts.[2] Nevertheless, attacks in human villages do occur.[3]

[edit] Champawat Man-eating Tigress In the 1930s tigers killed between 1,000 and 1,600 people each year, causing terror among the human population. One famous tigress known as Champawat killed some 200 men and women before being driven out of Nepal. She moved to another location, this time in India, and continued to kill bringing her total up to 436 before she was tracked down and killed in 1937.[4]The Champawat tigress is the greatest man eater known to date; she killed over 400 humans, and those are only the ones who were reported. She actually killed in two different countries, Nepal and India before she was hunted by Jim Corbett. She was so bold that she would enter the villages at night or even during daylight, and walk around roaring, forcing people to flee in panic to their huts.[5]

The Champawat tigress was, as man eaters usually are, extremely cunning, and she was only found by Jim Corbett because he managed to follow the trail of blood the tigress left behind after killing her last victim; a 16-year-old girl.[6] Later examination of the tigress showed the upper and lower canine teeth on the right side of her mouth were broken -- the upper one in half, the lower one right down to the bone. This permanent injury, Corbett claimed, "had prevented her from killing her natural prey, and had been the cause of her becoming a man-eater."[7]

[edit] Sunderbans Man-eaters While killings by Siberian tigers are almost unheard of, the Bengal tigers of the Sundarbans (translation: 'beautiful forest'), bordering India and Bangladesh, used to regularly kill fifty or sixty people a year. This was strange given that the tigers were usually in prime condition and had adequate prey available. Approximately 600 tigers live in this region, the largest population anywhere in the world.[8]

About 5,000 people frequent the swamps and waterways of the Sundarbans. Fishing boats traverse the area and many stop so the villages can collect items like firewood or honey. In the dark tangled forest tigers find it easy to stalk and attack a man absorbed in his work. Even fishermen in small boats have been attacked due to the tiger's incredible swimming ability.[9]

It is necessary to place these attacks in perspective. Firstly, the kill rate has dropped significantly due to better management techniques and now only about three people lose their lives each year. Even at the rate of fifty or sixty kills per year kills would only provide about 3% of the yearly food requirements for the tiger population of the Sundarbans. Therefore, despite the notoriety associated with this area, man is only a supplement to the tiger's diet; they do not provide a primary food source.[10]

[edit] Tara of the Dudhwa National Park The Sundarbans is very well-known throughout the world for its tiger attacks. Less remembered is Dudhwa National Park which was once severely affected by man-eaters. Just over 20 years ago Dudhwa became famous for its tiger attacks. The first one was on the 2nd March, 1978; this was closely followed by 3 further kills. The population demanded action from authorities. As is usual in cases of this type, the natives wanted the man-eater shot or poisoned. The killings continued, each one making headlines. Officials soon started to believe that the likely culprit was a tigress called Tara. Conservationist Billy Arjan Singh had taken the British born cat from Twycross Zoo and raised her in India, with his aim being to release her back into the wild. His experiments were also carried out on leopards with a respectable element of success.

Experts always felt that Tara would not have the required skills and correct hunting techniques to survive in the Talk:Tiger/Maneaters From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia < Talk:Tiger Jump to: navigation, search Contents [hide] 1 Man-Eating Tigers 1.1 Champawat Man-eating Tigress 1.2 Sunderbans Man-eaters 1.3 Tara of the Dudhwa National Park

[edit] Man-Eating Tigers Although attacks on human are uncommon, the tiger has killed more people than any other cat. It is mostly old and injured tigers that attack and eat humans. Tigers labeled man-eaters will get captured, shot or poisoned. Man-eaters have been a recurrent problem for India, especially in Kumaon and Garhwal. The Sundarbans mangrove swamps of Bengal, where some healthy tigers have been known to hunt humans, have had a higher incidence of man-eaters.

Of all the sub-species of tiger it is the Bengal which has gained the worst reputation as a man-eater. It has been said that "at one time, in parts of India, at the beginning of the 19th century, man-eaters were so prevalent that it seemed to be a question of whether man or tiger would survive." Each night, fires encircled the villages and the native people only ever travelled in large groups, fully armed and beating drums to scare the cats."[1]

Tigers are more easily intimidated from attacking humans than most lions, especially if they are unfamiliar with people and have not learnt how easy humans are to catch and kill. Unlike man-eating leopards, even established man-eating tigers will seldom enter human settlements, usually sticking to village outskirts.[2] Nevertheless, attacks in human villages do occur.[3]

[edit] Champawat Man-eating Tigress In the 1930s tigers killed between 1,000 and 1,600 people each year, causing terror among the human population. One famous tigress known as Champawat killed some 200 men and women before being driven out of Nepal. She moved to another location, this time in India, and continued to kill bringing her total up to 436 before she was tracked down and killed in 1937.[4]The Champawat tigress is the greatest man eater known to date; she killed over 400 humans, and those are only the ones who were reported. She actually killed in two different countries, Nepal and India before she was hunted by Jim Corbett. She was so bold that she would enter the villages at night or even during daylight, and walk around roaring, forcing people to flee in panic to their huts.[5]

The Champawat tigress was, as man eaters usually are, extremely cunning, and she was only found by Jim Corbett because he managed to follow the trail of blood the tigress left behind after killing her last victim; a 16-year-old girl.[6] Later examination of the tigress showed the upper and lower canine teeth on the right side of her mouth were broken -- the upper one in half, the lower one right down to the bone. This permanent injury, Corbett claimed, "had prevented her from killing her natural prey, and had been the cause of her becoming a man-eater."[7]

[edit] Sunderbans Man-eaters While killings by Siberian tigers are almost unheard of, the Bengal tigers of the Sundarbans (translation: 'beautiful forest'), bordering India and Bangladesh, used to regularly kill fifty or sixty people a year. This was strange given that the tigers were usually in prime condition and had adequate prey available. Approximately 600 tigers live in this region, the largest population anywhere in the world.[8]

About 5,000 people frequent the swamps and waterways of the Sundarbans. Fishing boats traverse the area and many stop so the villages can collect items like firewood or honey. In the dark tangled forest tigers find it easy to stalk and attack a man absorbed in his work. Even fishermen in small boats have been attacked due to the tiger's incredible swimming ability.[9]

It is necessary to place these attacks in perspective. Firstly, the kill rate has dropped significantly due to better management techniques and now only about three people lose their lives each year. Even at the rate of fifty or sixty kills per year kills would only provide about 3% of the yearly food requirements for the tiger population of the Sundarbans. Therefore, despite the notoriety associated with this area, man is only a supplement to the tiger's diet; they do not provide a primary food source.[10]

[edit] Tara of the Dudhwa National Park The Sundarbans is very well-known throughout the world for its tiger attacks. Less remembered is Dudhwa National Park which was once severely affected by man-eaters. Just over 20 years ago Dudhwa became famous for its tiger attacks. The first one was on the 2nd March, 1978; this was closely followed by 3 further kills. The population demanded action from authorities. As is usual in cases of this type, the natives wanted the man-eater shot or poisoned. The killings continued, each one making headlines. Officials soon started to believe that the likely culprit was a tigress called Tara. Conservationist Billy Arjan Singh had taken the British born cat from Twycross Zoo and raised her in India, with his aim being to release her back into the wild. His experiments were also carried out on leopards with a respectable element of success.

Experts always felt that Tara would not have the required skills and correct hunting techniques to survive in the wild and controversy surrounded the project. She also associated men with providing food and comfort which meant she would probably approach villages. Officials later became convinced Tara had taken to easier prey and become a man-eater. A total of 24 people were killed before the tigress was shot. Billy Arjan Singh joined in with the hunt, but firm confirmation regarding the correct identity of the tiger never came.

Despite many years having passed, this debate still rages. Supporters of Billy Arjan Singh continue to claim that the tiger was not Tara and the conservationist has produced evidence to that effect. Meanwhile, officials continued to maintain the tiger was definitely Tara.[11]

There were other renown man-eaters from Dudhwa National Park[12], but Tara remained the most famous man-eater of Dudhwa Tiger reserve because she was the first captive-bred tiger to be trained and released into the wild and Tara becoming a man-eater seems to imply that Billy Arjan Singh's tiger rewilding project has failed.

Problems at Dudhwa have been minor in the past few years. Occasional tiger attacks still occur, but these are no higher than at other wildlife reserves. For instance, on average, two villagers get attacked at Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve each year. This happens most commonly during the monsoon season when the locals enter the reserve to collect grass wild and controversy surrounded the project. She also associated men with providing food and comfort which meant she would probably approach villages. Officials later became convinced Tara had taken to easier prey and become a man-eater. A total of 24 people were killed before the tigress was shot. Billy Arjan Singh joined in with the hunt, but firm confirmation regarding the correct identity of the tiger never came.

Despite many years having passed, this debate still rages. Supporters of Billy Arjan Singh continue to claim that the tiger was not Tara and the conservationist has produced evidence to that effect. Meanwhile, officials continued to maintain the tiger was definitely Tara.[11]

There were other renown man-eaters from Dudhwa National Park[12], but Tara remained the most famous man-eater of Dudhwa Tiger reserve because she was the first captive-bred tiger to be trained and released into the wild and Tara becoming a man-eater seems to imply that Billy Arjan Singh's tiger rewilding project has failed.

Problems at Dudhwa have been minor in the past few years. Occasional tiger attacks still occur, but these are no higher than at other wildlife reserves. For instance, on average, two villagers get attacked at Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve each year. This happens most commonly during the monsoon season when the locals enter the reserve to collect grass —Preceding unsigned comment added by 117.96.171.167 (talk) 13:56, 7 January 2009 (UTC)

Tara of the Dudhwa National Park

The Sundarbans is very well-known throughout the world for its tiger attacks. Less remembered is Dudhwa National Park which was once severely affected by man-eaters. Just over 20 years ago Dudhwa became famous for its tiger attacks. The first one was on the 2nd March, 1978; this was closely followed by 3 further kills. The population demanded action from authorities. As is usual in cases of this type, the natives wanted the man-eater shot or poisoned. The killings continued, each one making headlines. Officials soon started to believe that the likely culprit was a tigress called Tara. Conservationist Billy Arjan Singh had taken the British born cat from Twycross Zoo and raised her in India, with his aim being to release her back into the wild. His experiments were also carried out on leopards with a respectable element of success.

Experts always felt that Tara would not have the required skills and correct hunting techniques to survive in the wild and controversy surrounded the project. She also associated men with providing food and comfort which meant she would probably approach villages. Officials later became convinced Tara had taken to easier prey and become a man-eater. A total of 24 people were killed before the tigress was shot. Billy Arjan Singh joined in with the hunt, but firm confirmation regarding the correct identity of the tiger never came.

Despite many years having passed, this debate still rages. Supporters of Billy Arjan Singh continue to claim that the tiger was not Tara and the conservationist has produced evidence to that effect. Meanwhile, officials continued to maintain the tiger was definitely Tara.

There were other renown man-eaters from Dudhwa National Park, but Tara remained the most famous man-eater of Dudhwa Tiger reserve because she was the first captive-bred tiger to be trained and released into the wild and Tara becoming a man-eater seems to imply that Billy Arjan Singh's tiger rewilding project has failed.

Problems at Dudhwa have been minor in the past few years. Occasional tiger attacks still occur, but these are no higher than at other wildlife reserves. For instance, on average, two villagers get attacked at Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve each year. This happens most commonly during the monsoon season when the locals enter the reserve to collect grass.