Save the Tiger!
Large wild cats are declining all over the globe. The reason is not only because of illegal hunting and poaching but more importantly because of habitat loss, habitat fragmentation and deterioration. Moreover, humans act as a competing top-predator by hunting the prey of large cats. Project ‘Save the Tiger!’ focuses on water and grassland management to save the tiger, the largest and most endangered among large cats with only ca. 4000 individuals left in the wild of Asia.
Large wild cats are declining all over the globe. The reason is not only because of illegal hunting and poaching but more importantly because of habitat loss, habitat fragmentation and deterioration. Moreover, humans act as a competing top-predator by hunting the prey of large cats. Project ‘Save the Tiger!’ focuses on water and grassland management to save the tiger, the largest and most endangered among large cats with only c. 4000 individuals left in the wild of Asia.
The cause
Tigers need large territories with sufficient prey to raise young and maintain genetic and demographic viability. At the foot of the Himalayas, however, grasslands where the tigers hunt for prey are disappearing. The declining area of suitable habitat is causing increasing proximity conflicts with humans with cascading negative effects such as competition for wild prey, livestock hunting and attacks on humans.
Background
To mitigate the threat, it is necessary to focus on the tiger's habitat and its food web to understand the underlying physical and social factors that determine the pressures on the food web. This project will map the ecohydrological dynamics of these grasslands and provide guidelines for sustainable management of the landscape and water systems through co-creation.
The HAN will lead the second work package: Landscape stewardship for water and grassland management strategies. This package gives a central place for social science in landscape management strategies. As such, it goes beyond traditional landscape management strategies are focused on understanding and intervening in natural processes across various system scales.
Target
The objective is to understand the role of landscape stewardship approaches in water and grassland management strategies that are fit for conservation of the tiger habitat in nature reserves along the Terai Arc Landscape (TAL).
the expected results
- Water and grassland management strategies that are fit for conservation of the tiger habitat in nature reserves in Bardia NP.
- A landscape stewardship approach for establishing water and grassland management strategies fit for conservation of the tiger habitat in nature reserves along the TAL.
Other products:
- ‘Poetry Route’ on tiger habitats in Bardia NP.
- Landscape stewardship programme initiated for Bardia NP.
Upcoming publications
- Community art for landscape stewardship: case Bardia NP, Nepal.
- Unravelling social-ecological systems for tiger conservation in the TAL.
- The role of landscape stewardship in water and grassland management strategies across TAL.
Contact
Jeroen Rijke: Jeroen.Rijke@han.nl
Tel: 06-15 08 62 75
Sustainable River Management
Suddenly the streets are flooded. Shortly afterwards, agriculture suffers from drought. Climate change poses increasing challenges for civil engineering, spatial planning and water management.
