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Subject: Flagship SpeciesXCharacteristics

  • Asiatic lion population rises from 523 (2015) to 891 (2025) under Project Lion

    Why in the News

    India’s Asiatic lion population increased from 523 in 2015 to 891 in 2025, the highest recorded count. Project Lion, launched in 2020, aims to strengthen conservation of the species and its Gir landscape.

    What is Project Lion?

    • Launched: 2020 for long-term conservation of the Asiatic lion.
    • Focus: Habitat improvement, disease surveillance, scientific monitoring and community participation.
    • Tools: Radio-collaring, camera traps and genetic/gene-pool conservation.
    • Need: The entire wild population is concentrated in one landscape, creating a major single-population risk.

    Latest Population Status

    • 2015: 523 lions
    • 2025: 891 lions
    • Key concern: Many lions now occur outside protected areas, increasing human-wildlife conflict.
    • Habitat: Gir is approaching its carrying capacity, strengthening the case for a second home.

    Back2Basics: Asiatic Lion

    • Scientific name: Panthera leo persica
    • IUCN: Endangered
    • CITES: Appendix I
    • Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I
    • Only wild population: India
    • Natural range: Gir landscape, Gujarat
    • Proposed second home: Barda Wildlife Sanctuary, Porbandar.

    Why is a Second Home Needed?

    1. Single-site risk: Disease or disaster in Gir could threaten the entire species.
    2. Habitat saturation: Increasing population is pushing lions beyond protected areas.
    3. Human-wildlife conflict: Greater interaction with people and livestock.
    4. Disease risk: Outbreaks such as Canine Distemper Virus (CDV) can threaten large carnivores.
    5. Habitat fragmentation: Mining, roads and railways can disrupt dispersal corridors.

    Statutory Framework

    • WLPA, 1972: Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, provides legal protection to wildlife.
    • FCA, 1980: Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, regulates forest diversion.
    • BDA, 2002: Biological Diversity Act, 2002, promotes conservation and sustainable use.
    • EPA, 1986: Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, provides the broader environmental framework.

    Government Initiatives

    • Project Lion (2020): Asiatic lion conservation.
    • Project Tiger (1973): Tiger conservation.
    • Project Elephant (1992): Elephant and corridor conservation.
    • Project Snow Leopard (2009): Snow leopard and Himalayan ecosystem conservation.
    • Integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats: Supports protected areas and endangered species recovery.

    [2019] Consider the following statements:

    1. Asiatic lion is naturally found in India only.

    2. Double-humped camel is naturally found in India only.

    3. One-horned rhinoceros is naturally found in India only.

    Which of the statements given above is / are correct?

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 only

    (c) 1 and 3 only

    (d) 1, 2 and 3

  • The road ahead for the Asiatic lion as its range spreads

    Why in the News

    The Asiatic lion population has recovered strongly but is increasingly living outside protected areas. The tension is between a conservation success in numbers and the rising conflict and risk that dispersal brings.

    What is the Asiatic lion?

    1. Endemic species: The Asiatic lion (Panthera leo persica) survives only in and around the Gir landscape of Gujarat.
    2. Status change: The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) moved it from Critically Endangered to Endangered.
    3. Single population: The entire wild population is concentrated in one region, making it vulnerable to a single event.

    How has the population and range changed?

    1. Recovery: Numbers grew from about 100 to 150 six decades ago to over 1,000 today.
    2. Dispersal: Nearly half the lions now live outside protected areas.
    3. Satellite groups: For the first time, data shows that more than half—497 lions—now live outside the core Gir protected areas in nine distinct satellite populations spread across 11 districts, spanning a territory of 35,000 square kilometers.

    Why does the spread create new risks?

    1. Habitat threat: A proposed limestone mine in the Babarkot corridor threatens a dispersal route.
    2. Disease risk: Past outbreaks of Canine Distemper Virus and babesiosis killed many lions.
    3. Green Status: The species remains assessed as “largely depleted” despite the numeric recovery.

    Back2Basics: Asiatic Lion (Gir)

    1. IUCN status: Endangered.
    2. Legal protection: Listed in Schedule I of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.
    3. Habitat: Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary and surrounding landscape in Gujarat.
    4. Significance: Gir is the only natural home of the wild Asiatic lion.

    “[2024] Consider the following statements:
    1. Lions do not have a particular breeding season.
    2. Unlike most other big cats, cheetahs do not roar.
    3. Unlike male lions, male leopards do not proclaim their territory by scent marking.
    Which of the statements given above are correct?
    (a) 1 and 2 only
    (b) 2 and 3 only
    (c) 1 and 3 only
    (d) 1, 2 and 3

  • “Tigers Outside Tiger Reserves” initiative targets the 35 to 40% of India’s tigers living outside protected areas

    Why in the News

    The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change’s (MoEFCC) new “Tigers Outside Tiger Reserves” (TOTR) initiative addresses the 35 to 40% of India’s tiger population living outside formally protected areas. It is built on two pillars, conflict reduction and community coexistence, across 40 forest divisions in nine states.

    Pillars of the Tigers Outside Tiger Reserves (TOTR) initiative

    1. Conflict reduction: The first pillar focuses on reducing human-tiger conflict incidents in forest divisions where tigers range outside the boundaries of formally notified reserves.
    2. Community coexistence: The second pillar builds mechanisms for local communities to coexist with tigers present in shared, non-reserve landscapes, rather than treating their presence as purely a conservation enforcement problem.
    3. Coverage: The initiative spans 40 forest divisions across nine states, reflecting the geographic spread of India’s tiger population beyond reserve boundaries.

    Why does India need a policy specifically for tigers outside reserves?

    1. Population share at stake: With 35 to 40% of India’s tiger population living outside protected areas, conservation policy focused only on reserve boundaries misses a large share of the actual tiger population.
    2. Corridor dependence: Tigers outside reserves typically use forest corridors connecting reserves, and conflict in these corridors threatens the genetic connectivity between reserve populations.
    3. Land use pressure: Non-reserve forest divisions face agricultural and settlement pressure that formally protected reserves do not, making conflict management here structurally harder than inside a reserve.

    Conclusion

    1. The Tigers Outside Tiger Reserves initiative extends India’s tiger conservation focus beyond reserve boundaries to the corridors and shared landscapes where a large share of the tiger population actually lives. Its success will depend on whether conflict reduction and community coexistence measures can be sustained in areas without a reserve’s formal protection status.

    Back2Basics

    Conservation Status

    • IUCN Red List: Endangered (EN)
    • Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I species (highest level of legal protection).
    • CITES: Appendix I.

    Tiger Reserves in India

    • Total Tiger Reserves: 58 (under the National Tiger Conservation Authority).
    • Largest Tiger Reserve: Nagarjunsagar Srisailam Tiger Reserve (Andhra Pradesh & Telangana).
    • Smallest Tiger Reserve: Bor Tiger Reserve (Maharashtra).
    • State with the most Tiger Reserves: Madhya Pradesh (9).
    • Latest Tiger Reserve: Madhav Tiger Reserve (Madhya Pradesh), notified in 2025.

    Tiger Population

    • India’s tiger population increased from 1,411 (2006) to 3,682 (2022), reflecting the success of sustained conservation efforts under Project Tiger and landscape-based protection.
    • India is home to over 70% of the world’s wild tiger population, making it the global stronghold for tiger conservation.

    Project Tiger

    • Launched in 1973 by the Government of India to ensure a viable population of tigers in their natural habitats through habitat protection, anti-poaching measures, scientific monitoring, and community participation.

    National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA)

    • The NTCA is a statutory body established under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 (through the 2006 amendment) under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
    • It formulates policies and standards for tiger conservation, oversees the management of Tiger Reserves, approves reserve notifications, and monitors implementation of Project Tiger across the country.

  • Consider the following kinds of organisms

    Consider the following kinds of organisms:
    1. Bat
    2. Bee
    3. Bird
    Which of the above is/are pollinating agent/agents?

  • Consider the following

    Consider the following:
    1. Butterflies
    2. Fish
    3. Frogs
    How many of the above have poisonous species among them?

  • Consider the following statements

    Consider the following statements:
    1. Lions do not have a particular breeding season.
    2. Unlike most other big cats, cheetahs do not roar.
    3. Unlike male lions, male leopards do not proclaim their territory by scent marking.
    Which of the statements given above are correct?

  • Among the following, which one is not an ape

    Among the following, which one is not an ape?

  • In making the saffron spice, which one of the following parts of the plant is used

    In making the saffron spice, which one of the following parts of the plant is used ?

  • The Panda belongs to the same family as that of

    The Panda belongs to the same family as that of

  • King Cobra is the only snake that makes its own nest. Why does it make its nest

    King Cobra is the only snake that makes its own nest. Why does it make its nest ?