Corbett reserve and surrounding areas in Uttarakhand have recorded the highest tiger mortality rate this year. TRAFFIC India, a wildlife trade monitoring agency, has recorded 19 deaths in Corbett this year. Park management maintains that most of the deaths were natural. Observers are concerned that the high tourist numbers in Corbett are affecting tiger’s migratory habits and bringing them more into conflict with surrounding villages. According to the head of TRAFFIC India, the biggest threat faced by Corbett’s tigers is leakage of tigers into peripheral areas of the reserve. Others worry that poaching is the main issue. The anti-poaching program manager for the Wildlife Protection Society of India says that poaching and tourism are not related and that if regulated well, tourism should not be an issue.
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