The Rise and Fall of the Emerald Tigers: Ten Years of Research in Panna National Park

by Raghu Chundawat

'This book is a must-read for everything you ever wanted to know about wild tigers in India.'--Valmik Thapar In this seminal book about the Indian tiger, Raghu Chundawat, a renowned conservation biologist, shares his findings from the only long-term ecological research project on tigers undertaken in India till date. Chundawat closely studied the Panna tigers and their prey, from 1996 to 2006--meticulously recording their space use, movements, feeding and reproductive behaviours--in the dry tropical forests of Madhya Pradesh. With support from the national park management, he oversaw a spectacular revival of Panna's tiger population. However, by 2002-03, the fortunes of Panna's tigers, and Chundawat's research, nosedived when the park management changed. Monitoring privileges and access to the park were curtailed, and subsequently, poaching and poisoning of tigers spiked. When Chundawat blew the whistle on the alarming decline, he faced immense backlash from the state wildlife authorities. Despite the systemic opposition, Chundawat continued the fight to save Panna's tigers, collecting data and petitioning the government to intervene. In this immensely informative work, Chundawat presents not just his research, but also an insider's account of the politics and administrative apathy plaguing Indian wildlife conservation. He discusses the larger threats to Indian wildlife--and the possible solutions. Filled with stunning photographs, The Rise and Fall of the Emerald Tigers is a must-read for all wildlife enthusiasts and researchers across the world.

Genres: Nonfiction, India, Wildlife, Animals

462 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 10, 2018

Reviews

[Makarand Gosavi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Awesome book. Terrific efforts to research tigers of Dry Forest Habitat. Author did witness rise & fall of Panna tiger reserve. The rise was joyful & fall was heartbreak. It took enormous efforts to track down the tigers, observe & record. Hats of to author for his efforts. As mentioned in book there's no scientific approach of conservation but it depends on individual which led to rise as well as fall. One ends up with what if the approach is scientific or management would have supportive to avoid fall.

Author has shared recommendation for tiger conservation & should be looked into it. Recommended for all wildlife lovers.

[Vaidya · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book on a long term study of tigers in a dry forest habitat.
While providing good details of tigers, their breeding, space usage, prey requirements, it also ends up tracking the extinction of the tigers in that range due to official apathy. In a way it ends up showing what good science and management can do, as well as what poor management can end up doing.

As the author points out, conservation is still dependent on individuals manning the reserves, and bad eggs can have a really bad effect.

[Mpobrennan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having met Mr. Chundawat, I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book. For anyone interested in wildlife conservation, this is a must-read. Clearly written by a man of science, but a piece of his heart is on every page.