Death Stalking Last Asiatic Lions

Death Stalking Last Asiatic Lions



   
April 2007  So many rare Asiatic 
lions have been found dead recently in and around Gir National 
Park that the government of India has created a committee to 
determine why they are dying and recommend measures to improve 
the situation. The panel's report is due within 30 days. 
Only about 350 Asiatic lions, Panthera leo persica, still 
survive, clinging to existence in Gir National Park in the 
western state of Gujarat. The park and surrounding wildlife 
sanctuary was created in 1965 to conserve the rare lions, but 
13 poaching deaths over the last two months have raised 
concern for the future of the species. 
Male Asiatic lion, Panthera leo persica, relaxes in India's 
Gir National Park. 
India's National Tiger Conservation Authority, a statutory 
body under the Ministry of Environment and Forests, today 
announced the composition and the terms of reference of the 
three member committee. 
Shri Pramod Krishnan, joint wildife director of the Ministry 
of Environment and Forests, will head the panel which will 
include regional deputy directors for wildlife Meeta Banerjee, 
for the Western Region and Shri Santosh Tiwari for the 
Northern Region. 
The panel will consider natural causes of death, disease and 
poaching. They will investigate the dependency of local people 
on Gir habitat for natural resources and the steps taken 
towards addressing park-people interface conflicts and 
fostering co-existence. 
They will look at managerial constraints in the area and the 
possibility of restorative management in crucial corridor 
linkages around Gir to prevent insularization of the lion 
population. 
Dr. Rajesh Gopal, member secretary of the National Tiger 
Conservation Authority said committee may co-opt state 
officials as needed. 
State officials in Gujarat are establishing their own 
committee to investigate the lion deaths headed by Gujarat 
Chief Secretary Sudhir Mankad. 
Asiatic lions in Gir National Park 
It is already known that the Gir lions travel outside park 
boundaries to find food and water and that when they do, they 
can get caught in poachers' traps. On Friday night, police 
arrested 12 people in connection with the killing of Gir 
lions. 
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday announced 
that he would establish the Gujarat Lion Conservation Society 
and allocate about US$9 million over five years to protect the 
Gir lions. 
As part of this effort, a task force will explore modern 
techniques such as the DNA profiling of lions, use of Global 
Positioning System signals to track guards, and video cameras 
to identify vehicles entering Gir. 
A Wildlife crime unit will be set up to exchange information 
with other agencies in India, wildlife experts and other state 
governments. Modi said he is considering fast-track courts to 
hear wildlife crime cases. 
Although Asiatic lions are classed as Critically Endangered by 
the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, their claws and bones 
are desired for use in traditional Chinese medicine. 
International trade in Asiatic lions or their parts has been 
banned since 1977 by the Convention on Trade in Endangered 
Species. 

---