Species become endangered due to several reasons and a multi-pronged approach is needed to boost their numbers, says wildlife-biologist Sumit Dookia, faculty member at GGS Indraprastha University, who also works on conservation projects in Rajasthan.
Sumit Dookia: Every species has its distribution at the landscape level, irrespective of any political (state or national) boundary, where it is found as a contiguous population. Such populations are affected globally due to various reasons, which could be manmade or natural like floods, earthquakes, etc. Scientists studying these organisms may notice changes in their population patterns, following which they assess the causes and actionable points for conservation efforts.
This work is generally done at the international level under the aegis of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which is the final authority to give any species a particular status, which ranges from ‘least concern’ to ‘extinct’. They also publish the Red Data book that has all the details of assessed species of the world. Endangered species are at risk of becoming extinct if they are not taken care of by the countries where they are found.
Sumit Dookia: As per the IUCN mandate, all countries have to prioritise the conservation and population recovery of endangered animals and large funds are sanctioned under different projects to work on the identified issues causing the decline of those target species.
Project Tiger in India is one of the best examples of such a project being carried out on a large scale.
Sumit Dookia: Let us use the example of the tiger to elaborate on this. It is an apex predator that feeds on a variety of herbivores and keeps its population in control. If we remove tigers from the food chain, then the herbivores will become overpopulated in any forest.
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This will lead to more consumption of green vegetation, which will further change the number of other animals through either competition or mass migration. Such a situation will not sustain good biodiversity, impacting forest health and sources of water. So the tiger is important for us to get water. Most rivers in central and south India originate in tiger reserves.
Sumit Dookia: Prey-predator balance is essential for the health of any ecosystem. We have almost lost wolves in western Rajasthan, and there is no major predator left in the Thar desert ecosystem. This is an alarming situation as there is no one to hunt herbivores like chinkara, blackbuck and blue bulls. In the absence of a natural predator, the increased bluebull population is now posing challenges for farmers as the animals invade the fields. Also, stray dogs have taken the place of the largest predator, and they start causing problems in urban areas.
Sumit Dookia: Every individual has a unique gene pool and the loss of these individuals means the loss of the gene pool, too. The endangered status is used for any species whose population has shrunk to a great extent and which needs immediate attention. The next level is ‘critically endangered’. That is the last stage after which population recovery is a humongous task. We have very few examples where species have been revived from the ‘critically endangered’ status.
Tiger has been in the endangered category for many decades and huge money is invested in its habitat management, conservation and population monitoring. Every species has its special status in the ecosystem and we can’t lose any species.
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Sumit Dookia: If the habitat and food of the animal are secured and we are able to check all the identified threats like poaching, diseases and road accidents, then we can believe that its population will get revived. Revival again depends upon the species. Every species has its own resilience, and so we have to wait and watch for the measures to take effect.
Sumit Dookia: Project Lion was started in 1972. Now the lion population has become too much at a single site and the government. is trying to relocate a few to other areas. This has been a successful project. Project Crocodile was started in 1975 in Odisha wherein conservation work on all species of this reptile was taken up in India. The population of the magar crocodile was revived well before the deadline and this species was removed from the conservation project. Currently, work is going on for the gharial crocodile.
Sumit Dookia: All major large-bodied animals are facing challenges from the increasing human pressure and their habitat is shrinking each day. They include the elephant, rhinoceros, great Indian bustard, wolf, caracal, leopard, tiger, snow leopard, lion-tailed macaque, dolphin, sarus crane, vultures, gharial, hornbills, barasingha and dhole (wild dog).
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Among these, the sarus crane, barasinggha, dolphin and gharial are dependent on the wetland ecosystem, which is facing a huge challenge from agricultural activities. Chemical fertilisers and pesticides get drained into the wetlands, catchments are encroached upon, and dried wetlands are occupied by human settlements.
Sumit Dookia: Yes, the climate crisis is also a man-made problem. All natural calamities, except earthquakes and volcanoes, are due to anthropogenic pressure. Climate change events are also impacting other species.
Sumit Dookia: We have to use natural resources in a very judicious manner. No development is nature friendly, but we can make it sustainable if we allow nature to revive. More and more research-oriented, fact-based media reports are required for the common people to understand the complexity of the natural world. The ERDS Foundation is working on biodiversity conservation through community participation in western Rajasthan. We undertake documentation and research activities and raise awareness through outreach initiatives with the local residents.
The lead at the top shows eyes of the tiger (Photo by Canva)
