In the Sundarbans, the number of tigers has increased
The Forest Ministry, Bangladesh, has released the results of the third round of tiger counting in the Sundarbans. Syeda Rizwana Hasan, a leading environmentalist and advisor in Bangladesh’s Interim Government,
in charge of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MOEFCC), Bangladesh, announced the results on October 17 and said that 125 tigers were found in the tiger survey conducted in the Sundarbans in 2023-24. The density of tigers per 100 square kilometers of forest was found to be 2.64.
The adviser announced at a press conference that the IUCN has identified the tiger as the most endangered animal in Bangladesh. In 2013, there were 13 tiger range countries in the world.
Now there are tigers left in 10 countries of the world, including Bangladesh. And tigers have disappeared from the forests of Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. The advisor also said that the number of tigers in the world is currently 3 thousand 840.
Earlier in the survey conducted in 2015, the number of tigers was found to be 106 and, in the survey of 2018, 114. Accordingly, the number of tigers has increased by 9.65 percent compared to 2018 and by 17.92 percent compared to 2015.
Adviser Rizwana Hasan said that the tiger enumeration program started in January 2023 and will continue till March 2024. She said that in the third phase Khulna, Bagerhat and Satkhira have been divided into 4 zones.
Information on the increase in tigers has been found in it. Footprints were counted every two kilometers. Analysis of footage from more than 1,200 cameras determined the number.
A significant number of photographs of tiger cubs were also found in this survey. The advisor noted that 21 pictures of tiger cubs were found in the survey, even though they were not included in it.
In previous surveys, 5 images of tiger cubs were found. But these are not included in the calculation. Because the death rate of tiger cubs is very high.
According to the sources of the Bangaladesh Forest Department, the area of the Bangladesh part of the Sundarbans is 6 thousand 17 square kilometers. Out of this forest land is 4 thousand 832 and swamp land is 1 thousand 185 square kilometers.
According to the 2015 tiger census, there were 106 tigers in the Sundarbans. And according to the 2018 census data, the number of tigers was 114.
