Special Names for Endangered Asiatic Lions in India.

By Rohit Daniel, www.indiasendangered.com | August 10, 2014


If you thought individual names were only for pet animals, you’re wrong! Forest officials – including the trackers and beat guards – of the Gir Forest National Park have a long standing tradition of giving the big cats in Asia’s only natural habitat of lions interesting and apt names based on their behavior in the wild.
Gabbar Singh is an adult male lion who was kicked out of his territory in Dhari recently after he killed two young lion cubs. Gabbar Singh apparently did not like the cubs disturbing him when he was trying to spend some intimate moments with the cubs’ mother.
Gabbar Singh, as the infamous lion is popularly known in the area (after a hugely popular villain’s name of an epic India movie), was named so after the lion got into fights with at least 3 to 4 lions in different territories before it killed the two cubs. It has since become nomadic after being driven out of his territory by another adult lion.
Gabbar has been moving around in search of new territory to settle down after the humiliating defeat. The latest report of the rogue lion came from Savarkundla when local villagers phoned the forest authorities and asked them to relocate the beast that had been roaming the area.
However, Gabbar is not the only lion to be given a unique name. Forest officials reportedly identify almost every pride by individual names. Other humorous but apt examples of such naming are that of Osama Bin Laden (not the terrorist responsible for 9/11) – the lion with a fearsome demeanor, and of course the Karan-Arjun siblings who roam the forest together, almost always.
This tradition of naming lions has gone as far as forest officials holding naming ceremonies for new born cubs such as the one held earlier this year for five cubs born to a lioness called Laxmi.

“Many feel that the lions should not be named. However, the beat guards and trackers who are closely associated with the movement of these big cats feel that naming the lions helps develop a certain intimacy with the beasts and also makes the men-on-duty  feel that the animals are part of their own family,” said Anshuman Sharma, deputy conservator of forest (DCF), Dhari range.

Sharma further added that the lions were usually named according to their individual behavior. For instance, an old lion in Dhari range has been named as Bhagat (or priest) since it has never hurt anyone nor has it ever tried to capture territory. The lion seems to be satisfied with its territory, and hence the trackers of that area thought it appropriate to name it as Bhagat.
The DCF of Gir West, Kasuladev Ramesh, echoed similar sentiments when he mentioned about an old lion living in the tourism zone. The lion has been named as Mullah because of its priest-like behavior. It hunts only for food, and it has never attacked other lions or killed any cubs.
However, quite a few lions have also been given peculiar names because of their distinct physical conditions. For example, Bandi – a famous lioness in the tourism zone – was so named because she had lost her tail. Beat guards have since always identified her as Bandi. Likewise another lioness called Dhari, also known as Langado, was so named because she moved with a limp.

Famous Gir lions and their Unique Names

Karan-Arjun: These two brothers in Mahuya have earned the nicknames of Karan and Arjun from local villagers since they are always seen together, even when hunting. Moreover, these two siblings closely resemble each other in appearance and also follow each other closely. Forest officers report that the villagers fondly refer to the duo as ‘Humare Karan Arjun’, or ‘Our Karan Arjun’. The names are again influenced by an Indian movie that has two of India’s best know heroes playing the role of brothers, Karan-Arjun.
Osama bin Laden or Atankwadi (Terrorist): These two names are quite popular for those lions that harm other lions not only from their own pride but also from other prides in nearby areas. A lion known as Atankwadi in Mityala is said to frequently visit territories of other lions and attack the lions as well as their cubs. These rogue lions are also known to attack young adult males of their own pride.
Collared: This particular lioness has been named by the locals of Liliya village as ‘Collared’ since it wears a radio collar around its neck which scientist attached for research purpose. The local villagers are so fond of Collared that once when she was caught in Gondal town when she wandered there, the villagers launched an agitation to get her back. Similar agitations took place when the forest department decided to cage Collared and keep her in Sakarbaugh Zoo. The people even wrote letters to the department. The lioness was eventually released and sent back to Liliya.
Roopsundari (Female Beauty) and Gulab(Rose): These popular names belong to two female cubs that are said to be very beautiful. While Roopsundari can be seen moving about in the areas around the villages in Savarkundla and Dhari, Gulab is a major tourist attraction in Sasan.
Tofani Kanudo: This is a phrase often used for naughty people, and also commonly found on the rear end of vehicles in Jungadh and Amreli. However, beat guards in the coastal areas of Rajula use this phrase to refer to one of the lion cubs in the area. The cub is reportedly very naughty and often goes missing, even forcing forest officials to launch search missions to trace the missing cub.
This article was originally written and published by Rohit Daniel, a contributing writer for indiasendangered.com. For the original article and more information, please click HERE.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/863155-special-names-for-endangered-asiatic-lions-in-india/?photo=2

Gujarat lions vanish from UP forest.

Binay Singh, TNN | Aug 9, 2014, 04.31AM IST
VARANASI: In one of its kind wildlife mystery, what actually happened to the three Asiatic lions brought from the Gir forests of Gujarat to Chandraprabha Wildlife Sanctuary in Kashi Wildlife Division is still a mystery. Last counted in 1965, their number was 11.

Interestingly, even the Kashi Wildlife Division officials have no idea or recorded facts about the fate of the big cats brought to the sanctuary when it was opened some five decades back. "There is no record with the department about the disappearance of the lions," said a forest official of Kashi Wildlife division. "It is believed that either they would have fallen prey to the hunters or migrated to nearby jungles of Bihar," said the officer.

"As the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, was not in force at that time, there was no effective control on hunting of wild animals," said forest officer of Kashi Wildlife Division Chandra Shekar Pandey, expressing his worst fear over the fate of the lions. But he added he was not sure about the ordeal the lions faced at that time in the sanctuary as there were no records.
"Lions were released in that region years back and probably all those animals died. We do not have any records maintained of that time, so it's difficult to say what happened of them. Moreover, enforcement was not strong at that time and there must not have been proper planning to release them," said PCCF (wildlife), UP, Rupak De.

The concept of reintroduction for purposes of conservation of Asiatic lions was accepted in 1956 by the Indian Wildlife Board, and the offer of UP government to host a population in the Chakia forests was accepted. In 1956 a lion and two lionesses were captured from Gir and placed in a zoo in Junagadh for nine months before being shifted to Chandraprabha sanctuary in 1957.

Initially, the lions prospered increasing in number to four in 1958, five in 1960, seven in 1962 and 11 in 1965, but after that they disappeared. The forest officials admit that there might have been some shortcoming in monitoring the wild cats.

In other such translocation, eight Gir lions -- four males and four females -- were brought from Gujarat's Junagadh and Hyderabad zoos to UP under animal exchange programme. While three pairs were put up at the Lucknow zoo, one was sent to the Kanpur zoo. Later, one pair was shifted to the Etwah lion safari in April.

Spread in an area of 9,600 hectares of forest, the Chandraprabha Wildlife Sanctuary is located between Chakiya and Naugarh in Chandauli district, the neighbouring district of PM Narendra Modi's parliamentary constituency. The sanctuary was set up in 1957, covering the reserved forest area in Chandraprabha and some parts of Jaimohini Range. The sanctuary has a variety of wild animals, including black buck, chital, sambhar, nilgai, wild boar, porcupine, Indian gazelle, gharial and python.

About 70km from Varanasi Chandraprabha Wildlife Sanctuary are the picturesque Rajdari and Devdari waterfalls. The sanctuary is one of the Protected Areas (PAs) of the National Wildlife Action Plan (2002-2016) that was adopted in 2002 emphasizing the people's participation and their support for wildlife conservation.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/environment/flora-fauna/Gujarat-lions-vanish-from-UP-forest/articleshow/39909984.cms

11 Asiatic Lions have disappeared from the Chandraprabha Wildlife Sanctuary, in Kashi Wildlife Division, Uttar Pradesh. [Representational Picture]Reuters

By Soumo Ghosh
August 9, 2014 17:49 IST

The Asiatic lions at the Chandraprabha Wildlife Sanctuary, in Kashi Wildlife Division, Uttar Pradesh, have vanished, according to some reports.
These Lions were brought to this sanctuary from the Gir forest in Gujarat, and have lived here ever since. 11 lions were last counted in 1965, in this area. Their sudden disappearance has caused much alarm, and the reason for this seems to be a complete mystery to the forest officials.
"As the Wildlife (Protection) Act was not in force that time, there was no effective control on hunting of wild animals," said Chandra Shekar Pandey, Forest Officer of Kashi Wildlife Division, to The Times of India. "But, we are not sure what happened to the lions in the sanctuary as there are no records."
The officials say that they have never had a record of these lions post the 1965 counting, and are unaware of how they went missing. Of course, some officials believe that these lions might just have died out, and that their disappearance may not have been influenced by external factors, like poachers.
"Lions were released in that region years back and they probably died naturally," said Rupak De, Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Wildlife), UP. "We do not have any records maintained of that time, so it's difficult to say what happened of them. Moreover, enforcement was not strong at that time and there must not have been proper planning to release them."
"There is no record with the department about the disappearance of the lions," said an anonymous Forest Official of Kashi Wildlife Division. "It is believed that either they would have fallen prey to the hunters or migrated to nearby jungles of Bihar."
The concept of relocating some lions was introduced in 1965, so that the lions, whose numbers were on the decline even back then, could be conserved. The UP government had offered to host one set of them at the Chakia forest, within the Chandraprabha sanctuary.
Three lions were captured in the Gir forest, in 1956 – one male and two females, and were introduced to the Chakia forest. In 1958, there were four lions, in 1960, one was added to the group, in 1962, it was increased to seven and in 1965, there were 11 of them. A few other lions were also captured during that time and were transferred to zoos in Lucknow and Kanpur.

http://www.ibtimes.co.in/11-asiatic-lions-missing-uttar-pradesh-sanctuary-606479

Gujarat lions disappear from UP forest.

DDN Correspondent Posted on 09 Aug, 2014 at 11:05:AM IST

In a mysterious development, the three Asiatic lions brought from the Gir forests of Gujarat to Chandraprabha Wildlife Sanctuary in Kashi Wildlife Division have vanished.

The lions were last counted in 1965 and there number was 11 at that time. Even the Kashi Wildlife Division officials have no idea or recorded facts about the fate of these lions.

"There is no record with the department about the disappearance of the lions," said a forest official of Kashi Wildlife division. "It is believed that either they would have fallen prey to the hunters or migrated to nearby jungles of Bihar," said the officer.

"As the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, was not in force at that time, there was no effective control on hunting of wild animals," said forest officer of Kashi Wildlife Division Chandra Shekar Pandey, expressing his worst fear over the fate of the lions.

"Lions were released in that region years back and probably all those animals died. We do not have any records maintained of that time, so it's difficult to say what happened of them. Moreover, enforcement was not strong at that time and there must not have been proper planning to release them," said PCCF (wildlife), UP, Rupak De.

In 1965, the Indian Wildlife Board had introduced the concept of reintroduction for purposes of conservation of Asiatic lions. The UP government at that time had offered to host a population in the Chakia forests was accepted.

In 1956 a lion and two lionesses were captured from Gir and were shifted to Chandraprabha sanctuary.
The lions prospered initially as their numbers increased to our in 1958, five in 1960, seven in 1962 and 11 in 1965, but after that they disappeared.

Later, eight Gir lions -- four males and four females - were brought from Gujarat's Junagadh and Hyderabad zoos to UP under animal exchange programme. Three pairs were sent to Lucknow zoo and one was put up at the Kanpur zoo. Later, one pair was shifted to the Etwah lion safari in April.

http://www.delhidailynews.com/news/Gujarat-lions-disappear-from-UP-forest-1407564058/

Ritwick Dutta | The case for our forests.

The 40-year-old lawyer has taken the battle for the environment to the courtroom with more than 350 cases.

Ritwick Dutta | The case for our forests.

Another bundle of joy for Dublin Zoo: See the new baby lion cub.

Aug 06, 2014 12:20
By Claire Healy

Can you name this lovely little lion? Dublin Zoo's latest addition is a baby boy

Patrick Bolger

The cutest thing you'll see today, hotfoot it to Dublin Zoo to see him in the flesh

Be prepared to aww - Dublin Zoo has welcomed another new arrival.
A male Asian lion cub was born to mum Zuri and dad Kumar, who relocated from Rotterdam Zoo in the Netherlands to Dublin last year.
Zookeepers had hoped that Kumar would have romance on his mind in Dublin as he had already fathered several lion cubs in his previous home, while Zuri is a first time mum.
The good news keeps coming for Dublin Zoo as it welcomed a as they celebrated the birth of a baby elephant just two weeks ago.
And if these adorable snaps are anything to go by, the cuddly creature is settling in very well.


The cute cub's birth heralds a great success for the international breeding programme for this critically endangered species.
There are less than 350 Asian lions in the wild - all found in one spot - the Gir Forest in India.
Ciaran McMahon from the animal care team at Dublin Zoo said: "We’re thrilled about the arrival of the cub. He has a wonderfully playful and curious personality.
"It’s lovely to see Zuri taking to her role as a new mum so well and Kumar is as cool and calm as ever. At two months old he now weighs an estimated 6.6kg."
But the zoo are looking for the public's help in giving this little roarer a name. They are taking suggestions on their Facebook page.
http://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/another-bundle-joy-dublin-zoo-3997680

Two lion experts from Gujarat on national wildlife board.

Himanshu Kaushik, TNN | Aug 5, 2014, 05.33AM IST
AHMEDABAD: Voice against translocation of lions of Gujarat to MP is getting louder. After three petitions were admitted in the apex court challenging the translocation, the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) has got two representatives from Gujarat — both known advocates of anti-translocation.

Former Gujarat forest official and lion expert H S Singh and director of Gujarat Ecological, Education and Research Foundation (GEER) Bharat Pathak have been appointed to NBWL a fortnight ago. "Bharat Pathak, who has served in Gir, will represent GEER as its director," forest and environment minister Ganpat Vasava said.

There are now three voices from Gujarat on the apex wildlife body, including PM Narendra Modi, who is the de facto chairman of NBWL. However, only time will tell whether this will change the line of central government on the contentious issue of translocating lions to Kuno Palpur.
Singh told TOI, "Kuno Palpur used to be home to lions between 1350 and 1850. This period was termed as the mild ice-age. Now, the temperature in MP often goes beyond 45°C which is not conducive for the big cats. In contrast, the Gir temperature hovers around 36-42°C even during hottest months."

Though Pathak was unavailable for comment on Monday, he has in the past opposed the translocation. "Gir lions are a matter of pride for the people of Saurashtra. Shifting big cats will upset the delicate balance of tolerance and affection that the people share with lions," he had said.

On April 15, 2013, the SC had ordered translocation of Asiatic lions from Gir to Kuno Palpur. Following this, Gujarat had filed a review petition in October which was rejected. Gujarat has filed a curative petition which is pending before the SC. Two more petitions opposing translocation were filed by NGO Wildlife Conservation Trust and Priyavrat Gadhvi, a bio-technologist.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Two-lion-experts-from-Gujarat-on-national-wildlife-board/articleshow/39655042.cms

'Lion survival in Central and North India difficult'.

Himanshu Kaushik, TNN | Aug 5, 2014, 01.26AM IST
AHMEDABAD: Lions would find it difficult to survive in the hot climate of central and north India, particularly during summers. The climate of these areas has changed over time because of loss of forests, reduced flow of water in streams and rivers during summers, and an increase in maximum temperatures.

These are the views of H S Singh, a former officer of the state forest department who has just been appointed to the National Board of Wildlife (NBWL) as a wildlife expert, and also as member of the board's standing committee.

Talking to the Times of India, Singh said that just because lions had existed in central and north India in the past, it does not mean that they can survive in these areas even today despite the change in climatic conditions.
"For introduction of the lion, the habitat of such areas should be examined in the present context of changed climate and also the changing environment. The guidelines of the IUCN Species Survival Commission clearly mention that the new habitat should be evaluated in the background of change in temperature likely in the future due to global warming," said Singh.

Kuno-Palpur used to have lions for nearly five centuries - between years 1350 and 1850. But the climate then was much cooler in comparison, so much so that this period is termed the 'mild ice-age'. Now, temperatures in Madhya Pradesh often rise beyond 45 degree Celsius and this is not conducive to the survival of the big cats, he said.

Singh further said that Agriculture University, Junagadh, has recorded the monthly mean minimum temperatures of the coldest month (January) for the past 26 years (1987 to 2009). According to the data gathered by the university, the mean minimum temperature for January had varied from 11.3 degree Celsius to 14.2 degree Celsius while the mean maximum temperature of the hottest months (April-May) varied from 36.1 to 41.2 degree Celsius. On the other hand, in Kuno-Palpur (which is in central India), the maximum temperatures have touched even 50 degree Celsius.

"Apart from the technical aspect, translocation would have a negative impact on conservation efforts in Gir. The people of Gir have conserved lions for the past 40 years with the help of the forest department. The people here take pride in the presence of lions in their area. Translocation of the lions for 20 years would have a negative impact on the social structure in Gir and also in the prides from which the lions would be chosen for shifting," said Singh.

On Kuno-Palpur having a presence of tigers, Singh said: "I personally feel that when the area is already accepted as an important tiger territory, why shift the lions to the same area? In fact, some plans should be made for tiger conservation in Kuno."

On whether lions and tigers could co-exist, Singh said that it is difficult to say anything on this topic as the habitat of the two big cats is different. "Lions prefer open forest, savannah-type regions which are also shared by human beings. In the case of tigers, it is other way round. In the past also, the two have existed in the same region but did not share the same habitat," he said.

Singh further said that if translocation does takes place, there should be no eco-tourism in Kuno-Palpur in the initial years. "Constant interaction with human beings visiting the area will not allow the lions to settle down in the new environment," he said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Lion-survival-in-Central-and-North-India-difficult/articleshow/39643502.cms