Elephant Deaths in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve | 04 Nov 2024

Why in News?

Recently, a group of elephants was found dead in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh, prompting a thorough investigation by wildlife officials and conservation teams.

Key Points

Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve:
- Located in Madhya Pradesh, Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve spans an area rich in biodiversity and serves as one of India's premier tiger habitats.
- Elephant Population:
  - Originally devoid of elephants, the reserve saw its first elephant herd migration from Chhattisgarh in 2018, marking the start of a permanent elephant population within the reserve.
  - The initial herd numbered around 15-20 elephants and has since been observed in both core and buffer areas of the reserve.
The elephants were located in Reserved Forest (RF) 384 and Protected Forest (PF) 183 A, in the Salakhaniya Beat of Khitauli and Pataur core ranges.

Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve (BTR)

It is located in the Umaria district of Madhya Pradesh and is spread over the Vindhya hills.
In 1968, it was notified as a national park and in 1993 was declared a tiger reserve- under the Project Tiger Network at the neighbouring Panpatha Sanctuary.
It is known for the Royal Bengal Tigers. The density of the tiger population at Bandhavgarh is the highest known in India as well as in the world.
The important prey species consists of chital, sambhar, barking deer, nilgai, chinkara, wild pig, chowsingha, langur and rhesus macaque.
- Dependent upon them are the major predators like tiger, leopard, wild dog, wolf and jackal.