By Gautam Chatterjea
Tiger tales keep doing the rounds among the community living in villages around the largest mangrove rainforests in the world -- the Sunderbans. To the villagers the big cat is 'Dakhin Rai', a sobriquet for the mighty lord of the jungles, uttered with reverence and fear. The tiger and the community in the deltaic island forests, interspersed by innumerable streams, cohabit in a love hate relationship. When the striped beauty strikes, the villagers mourn the deceased and curse the animal; and the tiger hates man knowing that the two-legged animal around its domain is the fiercest of all predators. So, it uses its cunning to take it one-up on him as opportunities present itself.
The big cat was omnipresent all over Bengal not too far away in the past. When Calcutta was being created as a trading post in the 17th century by the East India Company, the striped cat's domain would include the woods in the peripheries of the city and it would come visiting the courtyards of nearby hamlets after dusk, all too often.
The beauty of the beast however surpasses its cunning. The Bengal tiger in its typical environment at Sunderbans is a magnificent animal with a slightly redish-yellow coat than the ochre-yellow look on its counterparts in other reserves of India. In its natural home at Sunderban, it has the largest concentration with about 249 animals by the last authenticated UN Tiger census 2004. Its grace and majestic strides in the undergrowth of the thick rainforest would hardly have any contest to the claim of 'Sultan of the Jungle' and as the national animal of the country.
Sunderban gets its name from the abundance of 'sundari' trees [Heritiera fomes] in the region. It is spread over the largest delta in the world shared between India and neighbouring Bangladesh. The Indian tiger reserve spreads over 2,500 sq. km. across 54 islands interspersed by innumerable large and small rivulets and offers a distinctly hospitable biosphere for the tiger compared to other inland tiger reserves. Sunderban was declared a world heritage site in 1997 by UNESCO.
Unlike the inland locations where the tiger usually is the supreme predator in its domain, the tiger at Sunderban has to compete with large deadly Crocks in the water, which it has to continuously cross within the individual territories. And the adjustment between the two fierce rivals is, surprisingly respectful. Both revere one another and confrontations are rare.
It was mid January and I was accompanying a small group of eight backpackers from Europe to the area. The tour was customised to address the visitor's needs of jungle adventure as well as gain insights on indigenous community life through cultural immersion programme.
We travelled from Kolkata by road first and then took a motor-launch through the Matla River to an island camp near Sajnekhali. Jungle expeditions and folk culture programmes were planned at the camp and community interactions at the surrounding villages were in the itinerary too. I would be the interpreter and facilitator on the community interface.
The boat cruises through the web of rivulets over the first two days during the stay was unrewarding as far as spotting of the big cat was concerned. After all, the animal isn't ever trusting of the human. However it could be imagined with a fair degree of certainty that during our errands many of the striped Sultans would have kept a watchful eye on us but it wouldn't reveal its presence. Our team however sighted large bevy of spotted deer and drift of wild boars, the main prey of the tiger occasionally, alongside wonderful birds and other animals.
Crocodiles scattered around the banks basking in the morning sun was a regular sight. They would quickly slip into the water the moment our boat came at close distance. To think of the dozens of these big-jaw reptiles now swimming under the vessel as we passed by, in itself was an eerie feeling.
On the third day after the morning fog lifted, we took a country boat trip to a neighbouring island village for the foreign visitors to have a hands-on experience of the community life of the inhabitants. As we settled in the hold of the boat, I asked the boatman if he knew of the presence of any tiger around that we could spot during this short journey. He appeared a bit tensed and offered a nonchalantly reply, 'the same old story Sir, last night Hiru a youth was taken away from his boat by the tiger, after he fell asleep.' All this happened at a place close to the camp we stayed. So the tiger was in the backyard, yet none could sense it, not even the victim.
That's the cunning of the beast. It would patiently stalk, keep the human target in sight until he drops his guard and then stealthily pounce and make a swift getaway before others could react. And the low-frame open country boat is certainly not a safe place to retire even in mid-stream after it is dark. The animal despite its size would silently swim through the water, leap into the boat light-footed, and make a swift kill. Indeed its scheming is incredible.
This is the typical style of the Sunderban tiger's hunting tact as against its peers in other tiger reserves of the country. In Ranthambore or Kanha for instance, the forest reserves are surrounded by human habitats and there are roads passing through them. The predominance of human activity along these corridors push the tiger deeper into the forest and the big cat is always wary of the man rather than making a prey of him. These inland tigers would rather chase its prey full steam and pull it down.
Conversely, the large tiger population of Sunderban each confined to individual island territories, have adapted to the typical conditions and find men on foot trespassing their territory a less painstaking and easier kill than an exhaustive chase of a sprinting deer. However it shouldn't be construed that the Sunderban tiger is a compulsive man-eater. The tiger here, by natural instinct picks its prey from the many animals in the bushes. It is only the silly mistakes of man that makes him the occasional victim.
Hiru's body was not found but the tiger footprints confirmed he was carried into the bushes may be a few kilometres away. The striped Sultan can carry its kill to great distance with élan, to feed undisturbed in the undergrowth.
We reach the village in less than twenty minutes, passing through a web of streams locally called 'khola'. This was a large settlement in one of the delta islands. Our local facilitator was waiting on the shores to take us to the community elders. He had already briefed the villagers about the purpose of our visit and had arranged a few homes where our visitors could interface in their daily life. Our European visitors were excited with the idea of having a day with these welcoming villagers and experience their way of life up close.
The first curious encounter they had was with a group of males each of who wore a mask of a human face at the back of their heads. They were honey gatherers walking in a row towards the deeper woodlands. It was an amusing sight of men marching ahead wearing big-eyed masks ogling at you from rear of their heads. This, we explained to the visiting group was a way to trick the big cat into believing that it was being watched by all the men if it attempts to stealthily stalk them from the rear. Most times in the battle of nerves between the cat and humans, the cat breaks off the trail. Sometimes the cat emerges smarter and there is someone who is killed or mauled.
As it is, many of these settlements have fewer men against women population. People here have to make a living out of the forests or the river, collecting honey or catching fish. Both these professions are fraught with danger to life. Frequent casualties happen either by being prey to the tiger or the Crock in the river. The settlement we were visiting now had as many as 300 widows, having lost their spouses to either of these foes or to diseases or hurricanes in the sea.
There is a tradition of worshipping the 'Bon Bibi', or the forest goddess by the womenfolk here. Each season when their men enter the forest to gather honey, the wives would perform special oblation to appease the goddess so that their men return safe. And in a show of expiation, they would also take on temporary widowhood till their men actually returned. That's the way of life when human and animals have to share a nature domain.
Despite the compulsions of man to sustain in an environment of nature conservation, I believe there is a positive side to it. The majesty of the Bengal tiger although considered a threat to their existence by the locals, is in effect a direct check on the wilful onslaught of nature by unconcerned people. Consider it this way; the threat of the tiger in the jungle and the Crocks in the river has been the major discouragement for the communities living here from deforesting the area and expanding human activities. And the clear upshot is -- advantage conservation.
Tiger poaching in Sunderban has never been a matter of deep concern since the elusive beast is always hard to get at in the difficult terrain of the deltaic forests. Yet, wood plundering was a growing threat on conservation of this eco system. Happily in recent years there has been alternative livelihood for these people connected to eco tourism in the area. The initiative of private players involving communities here to set up green tourism facilities has become a good option for the poor indigenous people to eke out their living. Sunderban now is a wonderful location to enjoy in the real sense of eco tourism.
Tiger tales keep doing the rounds among the community living in villages around the largest mangrove rainforests in the world -- the Sunderbans. To the villagers the big cat is 'Dakhin Rai', a sobriquet for the mighty lord of the jungles, uttered with reverence and fear. The tiger and the community in the deltaic island forests, interspersed by innumerable streams, cohabit in a love hate relationship. When the striped beauty strikes, the villagers mourn the deceased and curse the animal; and the tiger hates man knowing that the two-legged animal around its domain is the fiercest of all predators. So, it uses its cunning to take it one-up on him as opportunities present itself.
The big cat was omnipresent all over Bengal not too far away in the past. When Calcutta was being created as a trading post in the 17th century by the East India Company, the striped cat's domain would include the woods in the peripheries of the city and it would come visiting the courtyards of nearby hamlets after dusk, all too often.
The beauty of the beast however surpasses its cunning. The Bengal tiger in its typical environment at Sunderbans is a magnificent animal with a slightly redish-yellow coat than the ochre-yellow look on its counterparts in other reserves of India. In its natural home at Sunderban, it has the largest concentration with about 249 animals by the last authenticated UN Tiger census 2004. Its grace and majestic strides in the undergrowth of the thick rainforest would hardly have any contest to the claim of 'Sultan of the Jungle' and as the national animal of the country.
Sunderban gets its name from the abundance of 'sundari' trees [Heritiera fomes] in the region. It is spread over the largest delta in the world shared between India and neighbouring Bangladesh. The Indian tiger reserve spreads over 2,500 sq. km. across 54 islands interspersed by innumerable large and small rivulets and offers a distinctly hospitable biosphere for the tiger compared to other inland tiger reserves. Sunderban was declared a world heritage site in 1997 by UNESCO.
Unlike the inland locations where the tiger usually is the supreme predator in its domain, the tiger at Sunderban has to compete with large deadly Crocks in the water, which it has to continuously cross within the individual territories. And the adjustment between the two fierce rivals is, surprisingly respectful. Both revere one another and confrontations are rare.
It was mid January and I was accompanying a small group of eight backpackers from Europe to the area. The tour was customised to address the visitor's needs of jungle adventure as well as gain insights on indigenous community life through cultural immersion programme.
We travelled from Kolkata by road first and then took a motor-launch through the Matla River to an island camp near Sajnekhali. Jungle expeditions and folk culture programmes were planned at the camp and community interactions at the surrounding villages were in the itinerary too. I would be the interpreter and facilitator on the community interface.
The boat cruises through the web of rivulets over the first two days during the stay was unrewarding as far as spotting of the big cat was concerned. After all, the animal isn't ever trusting of the human. However it could be imagined with a fair degree of certainty that during our errands many of the striped Sultans would have kept a watchful eye on us but it wouldn't reveal its presence. Our team however sighted large bevy of spotted deer and drift of wild boars, the main prey of the tiger occasionally, alongside wonderful birds and other animals.
Crocodiles scattered around the banks basking in the morning sun was a regular sight. They would quickly slip into the water the moment our boat came at close distance. To think of the dozens of these big-jaw reptiles now swimming under the vessel as we passed by, in itself was an eerie feeling.
On the third day after the morning fog lifted, we took a country boat trip to a neighbouring island village for the foreign visitors to have a hands-on experience of the community life of the inhabitants. As we settled in the hold of the boat, I asked the boatman if he knew of the presence of any tiger around that we could spot during this short journey. He appeared a bit tensed and offered a nonchalantly reply, 'the same old story Sir, last night Hiru a youth was taken away from his boat by the tiger, after he fell asleep.' All this happened at a place close to the camp we stayed. So the tiger was in the backyard, yet none could sense it, not even the victim.
That's the cunning of the beast. It would patiently stalk, keep the human target in sight until he drops his guard and then stealthily pounce and make a swift getaway before others could react. And the low-frame open country boat is certainly not a safe place to retire even in mid-stream after it is dark. The animal despite its size would silently swim through the water, leap into the boat light-footed, and make a swift kill. Indeed its scheming is incredible.
This is the typical style of the Sunderban tiger's hunting tact as against its peers in other tiger reserves of the country. In Ranthambore or Kanha for instance, the forest reserves are surrounded by human habitats and there are roads passing through them. The predominance of human activity along these corridors push the tiger deeper into the forest and the big cat is always wary of the man rather than making a prey of him. These inland tigers would rather chase its prey full steam and pull it down.
Conversely, the large tiger population of Sunderban each confined to individual island territories, have adapted to the typical conditions and find men on foot trespassing their territory a less painstaking and easier kill than an exhaustive chase of a sprinting deer. However it shouldn't be construed that the Sunderban tiger is a compulsive man-eater. The tiger here, by natural instinct picks its prey from the many animals in the bushes. It is only the silly mistakes of man that makes him the occasional victim.
Hiru's body was not found but the tiger footprints confirmed he was carried into the bushes may be a few kilometres away. The striped Sultan can carry its kill to great distance with élan, to feed undisturbed in the undergrowth.
We reach the village in less than twenty minutes, passing through a web of streams locally called 'khola'. This was a large settlement in one of the delta islands. Our local facilitator was waiting on the shores to take us to the community elders. He had already briefed the villagers about the purpose of our visit and had arranged a few homes where our visitors could interface in their daily life. Our European visitors were excited with the idea of having a day with these welcoming villagers and experience their way of life up close.
The first curious encounter they had was with a group of males each of who wore a mask of a human face at the back of their heads. They were honey gatherers walking in a row towards the deeper woodlands. It was an amusing sight of men marching ahead wearing big-eyed masks ogling at you from rear of their heads. This, we explained to the visiting group was a way to trick the big cat into believing that it was being watched by all the men if it attempts to stealthily stalk them from the rear. Most times in the battle of nerves between the cat and humans, the cat breaks off the trail. Sometimes the cat emerges smarter and there is someone who is killed or mauled.
As it is, many of these settlements have fewer men against women population. People here have to make a living out of the forests or the river, collecting honey or catching fish. Both these professions are fraught with danger to life. Frequent casualties happen either by being prey to the tiger or the Crock in the river. The settlement we were visiting now had as many as 300 widows, having lost their spouses to either of these foes or to diseases or hurricanes in the sea.
There is a tradition of worshipping the 'Bon Bibi', or the forest goddess by the womenfolk here. Each season when their men enter the forest to gather honey, the wives would perform special oblation to appease the goddess so that their men return safe. And in a show of expiation, they would also take on temporary widowhood till their men actually returned. That's the way of life when human and animals have to share a nature domain.
Despite the compulsions of man to sustain in an environment of nature conservation, I believe there is a positive side to it. The majesty of the Bengal tiger although considered a threat to their existence by the locals, is in effect a direct check on the wilful onslaught of nature by unconcerned people. Consider it this way; the threat of the tiger in the jungle and the Crocks in the river has been the major discouragement for the communities living here from deforesting the area and expanding human activities. And the clear upshot is -- advantage conservation.
Tiger poaching in Sunderban has never been a matter of deep concern since the elusive beast is always hard to get at in the difficult terrain of the deltaic forests. Yet, wood plundering was a growing threat on conservation of this eco system. Happily in recent years there has been alternative livelihood for these people connected to eco tourism in the area. The initiative of private players involving communities here to set up green tourism facilities has become a good option for the poor indigenous people to eke out their living. Sunderban now is a wonderful location to enjoy in the real sense of eco tourism.
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