International Tiger Day
Global Tiger Day 2025 July 29
How do plants kill tigers and lights save tigers?
For International Tiger Day on July 29, 2025 we are hoping to fund two projects both of which help save tigers, but they require explanation.
Tiger Lights. One of the most significant issues is avoiding conflict between the tigers and local humans to avoid “manhunter” tigers being killed. Village Mardari in the Magadhi Range is particularly at risk of tiger encounters as villagers walk home after work in the dark. Tigers avoid light at night and are much less prone to attack a human in a lighted area. By installing solar powered street lights at strategic locations we can save both human and tiger lives. The street lights we funded last year at a different village have been a huge success that we would like to repeat in this village.
The lights cost $416 each which includes the cost of light, pole, battery, installation charges, AMC for two years, transportation and monitoring costs. We are hoping to raise $8,320 to provide 20 of these life saving lights.
Invasive Plant Removal. Lantana camara, introduced in India as an ornamental plant during British rule, has now become one of the most aggressive invasive species, disrupting natural ecosystems, altering forest composition, and negatively affecting wildlife.
The worst-affected regions include the deciduous forests of Central India where Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve is situated. Lantana outcompetes native vegetation impacting the tiger in two ways:
1. Reducing food sources for herbivores, thereby reducing the quantity of tiger prey.
2. Increasing human-tiger conflict because tigers and leopards often hide in Lantana thickets.
Much of the clearing must be done by hand to avoid removing what native plants do still exist. The cost runs $120 per acre. We hope to raise $12,000 to treat 100 acres in the tiger reserve area.
International Tiger Day 2024 was July 29th
Human-tiger conflict is one of the biggest threats to keeping the tiger from going extinct. When a human is attacked by a tiger, the natural reaction is to demand the killing of the tiger. Reducing the opportunities for this human-tiger conflict to occur plays a critical role in preserving the tiger.
One proven, very cost effective way to reduce the number of attacks is to place solar powered street lights on the paths that run along the perimeter of these villages. Predators avoid lighted areas.
Big Cat Rescue’s International Tiger Day 2024 Products
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