Sundarbans
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The Sundarbans delta is the largest mangrove forest in the world. It lies at the mouth of the Ganges and is spread across areas of Bangladesh and West Bengal, India. Interestingly, the Bangladesh and Indian portion of the jungle are listed in the UNESCO world heritage list separately as the Sundarbans and Sundarbans National Park respectively, though they are simply parts of the same forest. The Sundarbans is intersected by a complex network of tidal waterways, mudflats and small islands of salt-tolerant mangrove forests, and presents an excellent example of ongoing ecological processes. The area is known for its wide range of fauna. The most famous among these are the maneating Bengal Tigers, but numerous species of birds, spotted deer, crocodiles and snakes also inhabit it. It is estimated that there are now 400 Bengal tigers and about 30,000 spotted deer in the area.
Most of the plot of prize-winning anthropologist Amitav Ghosh's 2004 novel, The Hungry Tide, is set in the Sundarbans.
Ecosystem Details
The mangrove-dominated Ganges delta – the Sundarbans - is a complex ecosystem comprising one of the three largest single tract mangrove forests of the world (Blasco 1975). Shared between two neighboring countries, Bangladesh and India, the larger part (62% of the total mangrove ecosystem) is situated in the southwest corner of Bangladesh between latitudes 21°27′30″ and 22°30′ North and longitude 89°02′ and 90°00′ East. The western boundary of the Bangladeshi Sundarbans follows the Harinbhanga–Raimangal–Kalindi river system and abuts with the Indian Sundarbans. To the south the forest meets the Bay of Bengal; to the east it is bordered by the Baleswar River and to the north there is a sharp interface with intensively cultivated land. The natural drainage in the upstream areas, other than the main river channels, is everywhere impeded by extensive embankments and polders. The total land area is 4,143 km² (including exposed sandbars: 42 km²) and the remaining water area of 1,874 km² encompasses rivers, small streams and canals. Rivers in the Sundarbans are meeting places of salt water and freshwater. Thus, it is a region of transition between the freshwater of the rivers originating from the Ganges and the saline water of the Bay of Bengal (Wahid et al.. 2002).In terms of biodiversity, the Sundarbans contrasts the other large mangrove forests for its extraordinarily diverse wildlife and designated as a UNESCO’s World Network of International Biosphere Reserves since 2001. The forest also has immense protective and productive functions. Constituting 51% of the total reserved forest estate of Bangladesh it contributes about 41% of total forest revenue and accounts for about 45% of all timber and fuel wood output of the country (FAO 1995). A number of industries (e.g. newsprint mill, match factory, hardboard, boat building, furniture making) are based on the raw material obtained from the Sundarbans ecosystem. Various non-timber forest products and plantations help generate considerable employment and income generation opportunities for at least half a million poor coastal population. Besides production functions of the forest, it provides natural protection to life and properties of the coastal population in cyclone prone Bangladesh.
However, despite the fact that the Sundarbans is mostly free of permanent human habitation and retained a forest closure of about 70% according to the Overseas Development Administration (ODA) of the United Kingdom in 1985, forest inventories reveal a decline in standing volume of the two main commercial mangrove species—sundri (Heritiera fomes} and gewa (Excoecaria agallocha}—by 40% and 45% respectively between 1959 and 1983 (Forestal 1960 and ODA 1985). Also, despite a total ban on all killing or capture of wildlife other than fish and some invertebrates, there appears to be a pattern of depleted biodiversity or loss of species (notably at least six mammals and one important reptile this century), and that the "ecological quality of the original mangrove forest is declining" (IUCN 1994).
Maneaters of Sundarban
The Sundarbans is one of the most dangerous places in the world, due to tigers who have taken a preference to devouring humans. Depending on the source, these tigers kill between twenty and eighty people per year. They are the only maneating tigers left in the world, but they are not the only tigers who live in close proximity to humans. In Bandhavgarh, villages encircle the tiger reserves, and yet only one person is on record as having been attacked.
The locals and government officials take certain precautions to prevent attacks, although few of them work. Local fishermen will say prayers and perform rituals to the forest god, Bonbibi, before setting out on expeditions. Fishermen and bushmen make facial masks to wear on the back of their heads, due to the fact that tigers always attack from behind. This worked for a short time, but the tigers quickly realized it was a hoax, and the attacks continued. Government officials wear stiff pads that rise up the back of the neck, similar to the pads of an American football player. This is to prevent the tigers from biting into the spine, which is their normal kill method.
There are several speculated causes as to why these tigers maul humans:
- Since the Sundarbans is located in a coastal area, the water is relatively salty. In all other habitats, tigers drink fresh water. It is rumored that the saltiness of the tiger's water in this area has put them in a state of constant discomfort, leading them to be extremely aggressive. Freshwater lakes have been artificially made but to no avail.
- The high tides in the area destroy the tiger's scents which serve as territorial markers. Thus, the only way for a tiger to defend its territory is to physically dominate everything that enters.
- Another possibility is that these tigers have grown used to human flesh due to the weather. Floods in this part of India kill thousands, and the bodies drift out in to the swampy waters, where tigers scavenge on them.
- Another possibility is that the tigers find hunting animals difficult due to the continuous high & low tides making the area marsh-like and slippery. Humans travel through the Sunderbans on boats gathering honey and fishing, making an easy/accessible prey. It is also believed that when a person stoops to work, the tiger mistakes them for an animal, and has (over time) acquired a 'taste' for the human flesh.
References
- Blasco, F. (1975). The Mangroves of India. Institut Francis de Pondichery, Travaux de las Section Scientifique et Technique, Tome XIV, Facicule 1. Pondichery, India.
- FAO (1995). Integrated Resource Management Plan of the Sundarbans Reserved Forest - Final Report. FAO Project BGD/84/056. FAO, Rome, Italy.
- Forestal (1960). Forest Inventory 1958-59 Sundarbans Forests. Oregon: Forestal Forestry and Engineering International Ltd, Canada.
- IUCN (1994). Mangroves of the Sundarbans. Volume 2: Bangladesh. The IUCN Wetlands Programme. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland.
- ODA (1985). A forest inventory of the Sundarbans, Bangladesh. Main Report. Land Resources Development Centre, Surbiton, England.
- Wahid, S.M., Alam, M.J. and Rahman, A. (2002). "Mathematical river modelling to support ecological monitoring of the largest mangrove forest of the world – the *Sundarbans". Proceedings of First Asia-Pacific DHI software conference, 17-18 June, 2002.
External links
- [Tiger Research Project on Sundarbans Tigers]
- [Sundarbans mangroves (World Wildlife Fund)]
- [Sundarbans - Royal Bengal Tiger in World’s largest Mangrove forests]
- [Notes on the Sundarbans by Samuel Snedaker]
- [Description of Sundarbans-officially]
- [Visit the Bangladesh part of Sundarban]
- [The Indian part of Sundarban]
- [Wildlife tour]
- [Bird-watching in Sundarban]
- [Another Sundarban factfile]
- [Sundarban in Banglapedia]
- [West Bengal Govt site on Sundarban, with info on travel]
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