Saving The Tigers

When he was a young boy living in a village in southwest India, Ullas Karanth saw wildlife all around.

- Cynthia Graber

Elephants and leopards roamed the mountains nearby. He spent hours bird-watching.

But as Ullas grew up, he saw forests cut down all around India. Because animals cannot survive when their habitats, or natural homes, are destroyed, Ullas worried that the animals he loved would soon disappear. Indeed, tigers were already vanishing. In all his years of looking, Ullas had never seen one in the wild.

In the 1970s, other people in India also started worrying about the future of wildlife. The government passed laws and created nature reserves to protect animals. Ullas Karanth saw his first wild tiger in one of those reserves more than 30 years ago. At that thrilling moment, Karanth knew that he would spend the rest of his life trying to save these majestic creatures.

Hunter or Hunted?

Tigers are native to many countries in Asia, including India, China, and Russia. Nobody knows exactly how many are alive today, though scientists agree that tiger numbers have fallen dramatically in the past 100 years. They are now one of the most endangered species in the world. In India, fewer than 1,500 remain.

Tigers evolved to hunt large prey such as deer, wild pigs, and wild cattle. A skillful stalker, the big cat prowls around in dense underbrush for up to an hour to sneak up on an unsuspecting young elephant or a sick antelope. Once it’s crept close enough, the tiger pounces. It kills the animal by ripping its neck with muscular jaws and razor-like teeth.

But even with these skills, tigers are no match for the most ferocious hunters of all: humans.