For almost 30 years, the rugged forests of Kailadevi Wildlife Sanctuary in Rajasthan’s Karauli district showed no confirmed evidence of tigers successfully raising cubs. Tigers moved through the landscape, but sustained breeding remained elusive. That long silence has now been broken. A new study by WWF-India and the Rajasthan Forest Department has documented three adult tigers and eight cubs over the past five years, raising measured hopes that the sanctuary could support a second breeding population beyond the famous Ranthambore Tiger Reserve.
The findings, contained in the report Status and Conservation of Carnivores and Wild Ungulates in Kailadevi Wildlife Sanctuary, mark a significant moment for tiger recovery in western India. For international readers following global big-cat conservation, the development underscores both the progress and the unfinished work of protecting one of the world’s most iconic endangered species.
A Landscape Connecting Key Habitats
Kailadevi Wildlife Sanctuary covers approximately 674 square kilometres of rocky hills, deep ravines known locally as khos, and dry deciduous forest. Established in 1983, it forms the northern extension and buffer zone of Ranthambore Tiger Reserve. The Banas River borders it to the west and the Chambal River to the southeast, placing the sanctuary within a broader landscape that links Ranthambore to the Dholpur-Karauli Tiger Reserve and, further east, Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park.
In India’s tiger story, connectivity matters as much as core protection.
Ranthambore has recovered strongly under Project Tiger and sustained management, with recent counts placing the reserve’s population in the range of 70 to more than 90 animals depending on whether cubs and landscape dispersers are included. As young tigers mature and seek territories of their own, they need safe routes through intervening forests. Kailadevi provides one of those critical pathways. A forest that allows passage, however, is not the same as one that supports breeding. Mothers require secure dens, sufficient prey and relatively low disturbance for cubs to survive the vulnerable early months.
The recent records suggest parts of Kailadevi are now meeting those conditions. K.C.A. Arun Prasad, Rajasthan’s Chief Wildlife Warden, described the sanctuary as “emerging as a vital landscape for tiger conservation, with successful breeding after three decades.” Protecting the forests and the corridors that link them, he noted, could help establish a second breeding population alongside Ranthambore.
What Camera Traps Revealed
Between November 2023 and February 2024, researchers deployed 186 camera-trap stations across the sanctuary. The cameras recorded 27 mammal species, painting a picture of a diverse carnivore and ungulate community. Among large carnivores, striped hyenas appeared most frequently in photographs, followed by wolves and leopards. Jackals, Indian foxes, jungle cats and caracals were also documented. Smaller carnivores included the small Indian civet, Asiatic wild cat, grey mongoose and rusty-spotted cat.
For the first time, the study produced a robust leopard density estimate for the sanctuary: 29 individual adult leopards and a density of approximately 3.65 animals per 100 square kilometres. Prey species – the plant-eating ungulates that sustain tigers – were also assessed through camera data and line-transect surveys. Their abundance is critical. Breeding is only the first step; growing cubs and dispersing sub-adults need reliable food and space if a population is to become self-sustaining.
These baseline data give managers clearer tools for adaptive conservation. They also highlight the ecological value of Kailadevi beyond tigers alone. A landscape rich in hyenas, wolves, leopards and smaller carnivores indicates a functioning food web that can, with careful stewardship, support apex predators.
Why a Second Breeding Population Matters
India now holds more than 70 per cent of the world’s remaining wild tigers. The 2022 national estimate of 3,682 animals reflected steady growth since systematic monitoring began in 2006. Yet success brings its own challenges. Core reserves such as Ranthambore face space constraints. Territorial disputes push young animals outward. Without connected habitats and additional breeding sites, genetic isolation and local overcrowding can undermine long-term gains.
Kailadevi’s location makes it strategically important. Dispersing tigers from Ranthambore can move through its forests toward other protected areas. Maintaining those links requires protecting forest patches, managing roads and settlements, and reducing human pressure on the habitat. The study emphasises that corridors are as essential as the reserves themselves.
Communities at the Heart of Conservation
Conservation in this landscape cannot succeed without the people who live around it. WWF-India and the Rajasthan Forest Department have worked with nearly 8,000 residents across 46 forest-fringe villages near Ranthambore and Kailadevi. Initiatives include livelihood support, cleaner energy options and community programmes that involve local people in protecting the forests they depend on.
In many parts of rural India, forests supply fuelwood, grazing and other daily needs. When those needs are met through sustainable alternatives, pressure on wildlife habitat declines and coexistence becomes more realistic. Local institutions such as village committees that historically restricted axe use in forests illustrate how community norms can reinforce formal protection. Sustained engagement remains essential if the eight cubs recorded so far are to contribute to a stable population.
Challenges That Remain
The return of breeding is encouraging, yet it does not yet constitute a secure, self-sustaining tiger population. Eight cubs over five years represent a promising start rather than a finished recovery. Continued camera-trap monitoring, protection of forest connectivity, and maintenance of adequate prey numbers will determine whether Kailadevi can support successive generations.
Threats persist. Expanding settlements, roads and habitat degradation can fragment movement routes. Human-wildlife conflict remains a risk wherever people and large carnivores share space. India’s broader tiger programme has shown that combining strict protection of core areas with community support and scientific monitoring can reverse declines. The same combination will be needed in Kailadevi.
Recovery Tempered by Realism
The story of Kailadevi fits into a larger narrative of recovery tempered by realism. India’s tiger numbers have risen, but space, prey and connectivity will decide whether that growth continues. Sanctuaries like Kailadevi, once peripheral, are becoming essential pieces of a connected landscape. The message is clear: protecting a species of global significance requires attention not only to famous reserves but also to the quieter forests that allow animals to move, breed and disperse.
With continued protection of its forests and active partnership with the communities that live around them, Kailadevi Wildlife Sanctuary could become a lasting home for future generations of tigers. The eight cubs already recorded offer a tangible reason for hope – and a clear call for sustained effort.
Credit: owsa.in
