The presence of the royal Bengal tiger in the Buxa Tiger Reserve (BTR) of Alipurduar district was found again, after a gap of two years.

A few days ago, forest department guards found the pugmarks of the big cat in certain locations of the reserve. In 2021, a photo of a tiger had been clicked by a trap camera that had been installed in the BTR. That was the first evidence of the tiger's presence in Buxa after around three decades.

“Recently, pugmarks of a male royal Bengal tiger were spotted in the Buxa forest. We are verifying the route which the tiger used. After the pugmarks were seen, more trap cameras have been installed in that area to get photos of the big cat. Our officers are also trying to find out which area of the reserve the tiger prefers as its habitat,” Debal Roy, the chief wildlife warden of Bengal, said over the phone from Calcutta.

Sources said the pugmarks had been spotted on the bank of a stream that flows through the BTR on December 21. Senior forest officers arrived and examined the pugmarks. They confirmed that the pugmarks were those of a tiger.

“We are trying to find out whether the tiger is staying in the BTR or has come from adjoining forests of Bhutan and Assam,” said a source in the state forest department.

The foresters have also confirmed that the pugmarks don’t match those of a tiger that had been sighted in 2021. “It seems to be a new one,” said a forest officer.

As no tiger had been sighted in the BTR for over three decades till 2021, the forest department, in consultation with the National Tiger Conservation Authority, had planned to reintroduce big cats in the reserve. Accordingly, initiatives were taken to develop a prey base by releasing herbivores in the forest. Also, work is in progress to relocate two forest villages which are in the reserve.

“Last month, two photos of the tiger were clicked by trap cameras in the Neora Valley National Park of Kalimpong district. Now, pugmarks have been found in the BTR. It is indeed good news. The central and state governments should work together for the conservation of tigers and the protection of their habitats,” said Animesh Bose, a wildlife conservationist based in Siliguri.