With a generous grant from the Canadian International Development Agency(CIDA), the Wilderness Committee was able to work together with Tiger Trust India(TTI) on a project to help save India's endangered tigers. Tiger Trust India helps various species of tigers in India by keeping their preserve park open and curbing needless poaching. This report explains why this work is so important.

Tiger, tiger, burning dim...

Wilderness Committee Educational Report Vol.16 - No.08, Fall 1997

Tiger Trophy Hunter Record Holders

Mararaja, guests and beaters after a successful early 20th century tiger hunt. From the book Return of the Tiger by Kailash Sankhala

As with most other endangered and threatened large mammals around the world, habitat loss and trophy hunting are the two sides of the destruction coin. Today, protected habitats constitute only 3 percent of India's land base. Although trophy hunting has been banned since 1973, poaching has now replaced it as a major threat. In the past, trophy hunting took its toll as illustrated by this very partial list:

  • 1707 tigers killed by Maharajah of Surguja (lifetime total, ending 1964)
  • 500 tigers killed by Raja of Gauripur(1884-1940)
  • 400 tigers killed in 25 years by George Udney Yule (19th Century)
  • 104 tigers killed by Maharaj Ganga Singh incl. 17 tigers in 10 days in 1920
  • 700 tigers killed by Maharaj of Gwalior plus over 200 killed by guests
  • 17 tigers killed in one week by the Prince of Wales (1921)
  • 1 tiger killed by Prince Philip (1961)