Spot Tiger in Your Very First Trip to India

by Uday Patel Seo Professional & Content Writer India

Tigers are elusive animals which live in dense jungles or grasslands. They need enough cover to hide and ambush their prey since they do not chase their victims unlike the lions and cheetahs. These predators in India are not found in open country and prefer the jungles over the Savannah.

Being elusive they are difficult to spot or track. They are only aggressive whence hunting but usually they are shy and afraid of humans. In the jungles they prefer to move into the bush or tall grass whence they hear or see humans. Their senses are far more acute than ours and always on alert.

Large as they are hiding in small crop grass, or getting camouflaged in bush is not at all astonishing. They are large animals with an average length of nine feet plus and height of two and half feet. They weigh up to 250 kilograms and yet they hide so effortlessly. It is difficult to spot them from a distance and they slide into the bush to melt out of your sight. Stealth and silence is their major attribute whence on hunt. Padded soles, powerful limbs, deadly claws, sharp canines, acute hearing and eyesight enables them to hunt successfully. but once in twenty ambush on the average.

On safaris it is difficult to come across them as they live deep inside the forests and come out only for a purpose. They now live in protected areas or tiger reserves in India of which there are more than fifty.

Wildlife is always elusive especially the predators and many tourists on safari come back disappointed without having seen one. This is the case with tourists coming to India for sighting this magnificent and extremely beautiful beast...many have to return disappointed.

Well if you plan well and take some steps your chances of sighting the animal will increase tremendously. First choose the reserve with good record of sightings. There are seven destinations which I recommend. They are:

Kanha National Park
Corbett Tiger Reserve
Bandhavgarh National Park
Pench National Park
Ranthambore TR
Tadoba Andhari TR
Panna TR

These destinations offer the best opportunity to see the big cat in its natural environment. For excursions in the park you will need a permit book that online through the website or write to the Field Director of the Park. You can purchase a permit at the gate but since there is a limit to entry it is better to book well in advance as soon as you have finalized the trip. Book permit for safari in open jeep which is more costly than a canter with twelve or twenty seat.

Next choose a high end resort for accommodation, and check whether they provide a naturalist service or not. He or she is one person who will assist you in tracking the elusive predator in the thick jungles. You can hire one for a trip if the resort does not offer services as part of tariff. Remember a forest guide will accompany you anyway. Some of these guides are very good in tracking the animal, but many are not skillful about tracking and not familiar with the birds which are part of your recreation in the reserves. A naturalist will increase chances of sighting tiger immensely though there is no hundred percent guarantee. They have wider knowledge about the diversity of the reserves hence you will be well informed.

Choose the period wisely, during post monsoon season visibility of tigers is less obviously due to green cover which is extensive and availability of water and prey. In summers big cats limit themselves to few remaining water holes and so does the prey. This increases chances of sighting the tiger near water tremendously during hot summer. Hence this is the best period. But for overseas visitors the extreme summers are too hot for comfort hence I suggest them to visit in March April whence the conditions are just about right and the heat is not overcoming.

Always book a number of safari depending upon your budget and the span of stay available for holiday. Maximize this since it may be a long time before you come to India for a holiday again.

During the tiger trips to India choose the zones wisely. The tourism area in the reserves is divided into zones, and some zones have greater sightings of the big cats. Discuss this with your accommodation provider or anyone in your contacts who knows the destination well. My advise is to book safaris only in the core area which have high density of tigers. Safaris in the outer ring or buffer zone are not so productive for mammals. Most of the reserves are well connected and accessible from Mumbai or New Delhi which is the capital city. Both the metros are with International Airport