Bannerghatta forest now a tiger abode

A wild tiger was sighted on the safari road of Bannerghatta Biological Park (BBP) on Saturday afternoon and it was the first time that any wild tiger has come so close to Bengaluru.

In 2013, tiger pug marks were recorded around the zoo area, but this is the first time that a tiger is trying to establish its territory in these parts of Bannerghatta.

Mr Sunil Panwar, Director, Bannerghatta National Park (BNP), said that in all possibilities, the male tiger that was sighted on Saturday seems to be trying to make this habitat its new home.

“There is nothing to worry about the presence of the tiger inside Bannerghatta. In fact, it’s good news. Moreover, the tiger has been sighted multiple times in the last two weeks and it has even made two kills in the interior parts of the National Park. The two kills of a wild boar and sambar deer were recorded in Kodihalli area of National Park a week ago, which indicated that the tiger has found its food source. We assume that this tiger may have strayed away from its mother and is trying to establish its own territory. We are placing camera traps and we will soon know the results,” he said.

The foresters say that the tiger might have come from the adjoining Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary, where tigers are breeding successfully in the last few years. “The prey base in the National Park has increased in the last few years. The parameter protection around the Park has been intensified successfully which has stopped the movement of elephants towards Bengaluru. We are monitoring the tiger’s movements to see if it has strayed from its earlier habitat and return or making Bannerghatta its home,” Mr Panwar said. Old timers around Bannerghatta pointed out that many years ago, these forests were frequented by tigers. “There is a village called Hulimangala, just outside the Bannerghatta forests. The forests around Shivanahalli too were the abode for tigers decades ago,” said a villager in Shivanahalli.