FOR the constant rise in sea levels and rapid climate change, the famous Royal Bengal Tigers of the Sunderbans could be disappeared within 50 years, especially from the Bangladesh part, according to a new study published recently in the journal Science of The Total Environment. A team of Bangladeshi and Australian scientists carried out the study titled: “Combined effects of climate change and sea-level rise project dramatic habitat loss of the globally endangered Bengal tiger in the Bangladesh Sunderbans”, which revealed that a catastrophic situation could be raised to the Royal Bengal Tiger’s last coastal stronghold — the mangroves of the Sunderbans.
The Bangladesh Department of Forest and some international agencies have already launched several initiatives to help protect this endangered species while the Royal Bengal Tiger is believed to be the most numerous of tiger species. A co-author of the study and also Professor of James Cook University said, “Fewer than 4,000 Bengal Tigers are alive today. That’s really a low number for the world’s biggest cat, which used to be far more abundant but today is mainly confined to small areas of Bangladesh and India… Apart from it, the Sunderbans is under growing pressure from industrial developments, new roads, and greater poaching.”
To assess the future suitability of the low-lying Sunderbans region for tigers and their prey species, the researchers used computer simulations using mainstream estimates of climatic trends from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The Sunderbans region of Bangladesh and India is the biggest mangrove forest on Earth spanning more than 10,000 square kilometers. It is also the most critical area for Bengal Tiger survival. What’s most terrifying that ecosystem of this region is destroying gradually due to the implementation of unplanned development projects.
The Royal Bengal Tiger is our national animal. And it is beyond any doubt that there is no other place like the Sunderbans left on the Earth. So, we have to maintain and preserve the iconic ecosystem if we really want to save the Royal Bengal Tiger and other amazing animals from disappearing. It needs proper conservation of the Sunderbans to save the rare species of animals.
The Bangladesh Department of Forest and some international agencies have already launched several initiatives to help protect this endangered species while the Royal Bengal Tiger is believed to be the most numerous of tiger species. A co-author of the study and also Professor of James Cook University said, “Fewer than 4,000 Bengal Tigers are alive today. That’s really a low number for the world’s biggest cat, which used to be far more abundant but today is mainly confined to small areas of Bangladesh and India… Apart from it, the Sunderbans is under growing pressure from industrial developments, new roads, and greater poaching.”
To assess the future suitability of the low-lying Sunderbans region for tigers and their prey species, the researchers used computer simulations using mainstream estimates of climatic trends from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The Sunderbans region of Bangladesh and India is the biggest mangrove forest on Earth spanning more than 10,000 square kilometers. It is also the most critical area for Bengal Tiger survival. What’s most terrifying that ecosystem of this region is destroying gradually due to the implementation of unplanned development projects.
The Royal Bengal Tiger is our national animal. And it is beyond any doubt that there is no other place like the Sunderbans left on the Earth. So, we have to maintain and preserve the iconic ecosystem if we really want to save the Royal Bengal Tiger and other amazing animals from disappearing. It needs proper conservation of the Sunderbans to save the rare species of animals.
