Hyderabad, May 9 (TNT): A new study by CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) has found that tourism and human activity in tiger reserves are increasing stress levels among tigers and influencing where tigresses choose to breed.
Published in the journal Animal Conservation of the Zoological Society of London, the study tracked tiger populations across five major tiger reserves over four seasons between 2020 and 2023.
The research covered Corbett in Uttarakhand, Tadoba–Andhari in Maharashtra, Kanha and Bandhavgarh in Madhya Pradesh, and Periyar in Kerala.
Scientists analysed 610 genetically confirmed tiger scat samples to assess stress and reproductive hormone levels in tigers.
The study found that tigers living near tourism roads and areas with higher human disturbance consistently showed elevated stress hormone levels.
It also revealed that tigers in strictly protected core zones often experienced sharper stress responses to tourism-related activity compared to those in buffer zones, where animals appear to have become more habituated to human presence.
According to G. Umapathy, who led the study, tigresses prefer quiet forest areas for breeding, but such spaces are shrinking due to increasing disturbance.
He warned that stress not only reduces reproductive success among tigers but could also affect the development of cubs growing up in stressful environments.
Vinay Nandicoori said the study demonstrated how molecular biology and physiology could directly support wildlife conservation efforts and help authorities improve management of tiger reserves.
The researchers clarified that they were not opposed to wildlife tourism, which contributes to conservation funding and rural livelihoods, but stressed the need for scientifically informed regulation of tourism activities such as vehicle numbers, safari timings and protection of breeding zones.
The study recommended stricter control of tourist vehicles, reduced safari duration, better management of buffer zones, creation of additional water bodies away from tourism routes and continuous non-invasive monitoring of tigresses to identify and protect breeding hotspots.
TNT TS
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