Biodiversity & Environment
Tigers in High Altitudes
- 04 Sep 2019
- 3 min read
The Global Tiger Forum (GTF), in partnership with the Governments of Bhutan, India and Nepal, and along with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), is undertaking a situation analysis study for assessing tiger habitat status in high altitude ecosystems.
- The study has been supported by the Integrated Tiger Habitat Conservation Program (ITHCP) of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and KfW (German Development Bank).
- Need: Most of the high-altitude habitats, within the range, have not been surveyed for an appraisal of tiger presence, prey and habitat status.
- Findings:
- In its latest report, the study identified possible viable habitats, corridor linkages, anthropogenic pressures, and induced landscape-level changes for evolving an in-situ conservation roadmap.
- It also provided the action strategy for a high altitude tiger master plan, with gainful portfolio for local communities and ensuring the centrality of tiger conservation in development.
- Indian Government will take inputs from the study to develop a high altitude tiger master plan.
- Tiger habitats in high altitude will require protection through sustainable land use, as they are a high-value ecosystem with several hydrological and ecological processes providing ecosystem services.
- Also, they will require adaptation strategies to mitigate the ill effects of climate change.
Integrated Tiger Habitat Conservation Program
- Launched in 2014, the ITHCP is a strategic funding mechanism that aims to save tigers in the wild, their habitats and to support human populations in key locations throughout Asia.
- It has already facilitated 12 projects in six countries (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Nepal and Myanmar) to better manage Tiger Conservation Landscapes.
- It is contributing to the Global Tiger Recovery Programme (GTRP), a global effort to double tiger numbers in the wild by 2022.
Global Tiger Forum
- The GTF is the only intergovernmental international body established with members from willing countries to embark on a global campaign to protect the Tiger.
- It was formed in 1993 on recommendations from an international symposium on Tiger Conservation at New Delhi, India.
- It is located in New Delhi, India.
