Water for Bandhavgarh's Tigers - Reducing Conflict

During the Monsoon season it is almost impossible to construct new wildlife waterholes as the heavy rainfall washes away roads and tracks turning some into mini rivers for hours at least. In addition, unstable ground makes it challenging and sometimes impossible for us to get drilling equipment and pipelines on site. It is however a good time for confirming seasonal wate resources in Bandhavgarh which helps us to determine the location of potential underground water resources for use at future sites. This research is becoming more and more important as the wild tiger population. Tigers4Ever wildlife waterholes play a critical role in keeping wild tigers alive and safe! Without these safe havens human-wildlife conflict and tiger-tiger conflict would escalate exponentially leading to multiple deaths of both tigers and humans! Your continued support is vital to ensure that we can keep wild tigers safe throughout the year, so thank you for making it possible.

Despite the challenges presented by the monsoon rains, we have had a busy few months with all our projects in Bandhavgarh and this has challenged our resources too. In June, our fifteenth anniversary since formation and when we started to save India’s wild tigers, came and went. Looking back, we reflected on what we’ve achieved with your help. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your loyal and generous support of our work, especially as we strive, with this project, to reduce both human-wildlife conflict and Tiger-Tiger conflict, which have increased at an alarming rate in the last few years, Every day we fight to ensure that wild tigers can have the wild future they deserve, but this means that we need adapt and quickly respond to the changing environment in which they live. Without your help, this would be impossible. We are also grateful to the 4 charitable trusts and our friends at Typical Tigers NFT for their generous support of our projects too. Thank you again, for your continuing loyal support.

Early Monsoon Rains

When the early monsoon rains arrived in May this year, we knew that constructing new waterholes before the start of the heaviest rainfall which usually comes in July would be difficult. With that in mind we focussed our attention on the work we could do in fewer days and paused our major construction projects until late October, after the monsoon rains have subsided. Digging work at the new Salkhania waterhole were completed but the pipeline to connect to the solar-powered borewell pump will need to be finished after the monsoon. However, all is not lost as heavy rainfall has filled the waterhole and will provide wildlife water for a few weeks after the monsoon until the pipeline can be connected.

This waterhole will take on even greater importance as our new Forest Rehabilitation project will plant trees and grasses in a neighbouring 125-acre (50.6 hectare) area where forest fires and former agricultural activities have deprived wildlife of a safe forest habitat. A second waterhole will be essential in the new forest habitat but previous surveys have shown an absence of underground water sources so we will need to use rainwater harvesting techniques and channels to create a new stream between the waterholes to ensure that there will be year-round wildlife water at both waterhole sites.

Water is life and in the wild jungles of Bandhavgarh, wildlife waterholes are lifelines for endangered species like wild tigers. Access to reliable year-round water sources is not just a matter of survival, but a cornerstone of ecosystem stability. In this report we’ll try to share the ecological, behavioural, and conservation significance of our wildlife waterholes, and highlight the urgent need to protect and maintain these vital resources.

Strong winds and heavy rainfall during the monsoon can play havoc with water pumps and other equipment, which means around £2000 ($2700) per annum is needed to ensure that our 26 wildlife waterholes are repaired and in tip-top condition when needed. As water pumps and motors fail, the Tigers4Ever dedicated local engineer is on hand to repair and service all our waterholes to ensure that are functioning fully before the hotter drier weather takes hold.

These additional repairs stretch our resources both financially and operationally, the impact of which has been that we are behind schedule with our new waterhole construction at the proposed site in Goghra and completion of the pipeline at Salkhania. We hope to be back on track in October, subject to when the monsoon rainfall ends.

The Tigers4Ever waterhole project funds will be completely depleted by the current schedule of works and we must raise further funds to cover annual maintenance costs and the future waterhole construction at the new forested site (above) and before we can do more. If you are able to help at all, all donations however large or small will be most welcome https://goto.gg/34315

Why Waterholes Matter for Tigers

Hydration and Thermoregulation: Tigers, like all mammals, need regular access to water for drinking and cooling down, especially in Bandhavgarh where temperature in the hot dry season can reach 49°C (120°F). Wild tigers often sit in our waterholes after a heavy meal so that they feel comfortable as they digest their prey. Whilst females with young cubs will often spend time in our waterholes as the cubs play and learn to swim their mothers can take respite from the heat.

Territorial Behaviour: Waterholes often serve as territorial markers. Wild tigers may patrol and scent-mark around our waterholes, to reinforce their territorial dominance and seek to reduce conflict. Tigers4Ever waterholes currently benefit around 135 wild tigers.

Hunting Grounds: Prey species congregate at waterholes, especially when the temperatures soar. This makes Tigers4Ever waterholes strategic hunting locations for tigers, leopards and other predators especially during dry seasons. Tigers will often lie in wait on the prey species regular route to the waterholes and pounce as the unsuspecting deer or wild boar passes where the tigers are hiding.

Importance for Prey Species

Essential for Survival: Herbivores such as deer, wild boar, and antelope rely on Tigers4Ever waterholes for hydration, particularly during the prolonged drought season from January to July.

Breeding and Social Behaviour: Many prey species use Tigers4Ever waterholes as gathering points, which are crucial for mating and social interaction. As the spotted deer (chital) breeding season coincides with the hottest time of the year, our waterholes not only provide essential drinking water when most natural water sources are dry, they also provide essential water for newborn fawns and their lactating mothers.

Migration Patterns: The presence or absence of waterholes can influence seasonal movements and distribution of prey species, directly impacting tiger hunting success. When natural prey is absent, wild tigers are more likely to enter the villages in search of food and to kill livestock which results in human-wildlife conflict. Similarly, the prey species are also more likely to wander into the villages in search of water during the drought season which frequently leads to them eating crops and causing human-wildlife conflict. Where there are Tigers4Ever waterholes, the risk of both these types of human-wildlife conflict are reduced.

Ecological Impact

Biodiversity Hotspots: Tigers4Ever waterholes support a wide range of species from insects and amphibians to birds and large mammals which makes them crucial biodiversity hubs. Our waterholes also play a critical role in quelling and extinguishing forest fires as other water sources are absent and the terrain is unsuitable for fire engines.

Vegetation and Soil Health: The presence of water promotes the growth of vegetation, which supports the herbivore populations and stabilises soil, thus reducing the risk of soil erosion.

Climate Resilience: In the face of increasing droughts and prolonged drought seasons due to climate change, Tigers4Ever waterholes act as buffers, helping local ecosystems to remain resilient.

Conservation Implications

Mitigating Human-Wildlife Conflict: As highlighted above, when natural water sources dry up, wildlife can venture into human settlements in search of water, which in turn leads to conflict. Maintaining our waterholes within the protected areas helps reduce this risk.

Supporting Rewilding and Habitat Restoration: Creating new, regenerating seasonal or reinforcing existing wildlife waterholes can revitalise degraded habitats and support the return of key species. This will be important as we regenerate lost wildlife habitat and expand wild tiger territories too, for more information see also our new project at: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/wild-tiger-habitat-restoration-project-in-india/.

Monitoring and Research: Tigers4Ever waterholes are useful locations for camera traps (during the wildlife and tiger censuses) and wildlife monitoring (throughout the year), as they provide valuable data both for conservation planning and for the measurement of conservation success. For example, without our 26 wildlife waterholes it would be impossible to support the 226 wild tigers and their prey base in Bandhavgarh because there would be insufficient prey and water to keep wildlife from becoming entirely dependent on human settlements for survival.

Waterholes are more than just puddles in the forest, they are the keystones of survival for wild tigers and their ecosystems. Investing in the protection and restoration of our waterholes, and the construction of new waterholes is not only a conservation priority but a moral imperative in our fight to save one of the planet’s most iconic species. If you can support our efforts to reduce human-wildlife conflict and save wild tigers please donate whatever you can afford here: https://goto.gg/34315 thank you.

Reducing Conflict with Solar-Powered Lighting

In 2024-25, Tigers4Ever extended its project to reduce human-wildlife conflict by installing Solar-powered PIR street lighting at 55 high-risk locations. These locations which are now protected by Tigers4Ever installed Solar-Powered Street lighting have been free of nocturnal wildlife intrusions for 1.5 years (initial 20 locations) and 9 months (subsequent 35 locations) which has dramatically reduced human-wildlife conflict in these areas. In June this year, we identified a further 20 high risk locations for the installation of more solar-powered PIR movement sensitive lighting but have been unable to raise sufficient funds to install these yet.

The solar=powered PIR lights provide illumination at the edge of the forest where wild tigers, elephants, leopards, sloth bears and other animals enter the villages during the hours of darkness to raid and feast on crops and kill livestock/humans. Traditionally machan lookouts in the fields would be sufficient to protect crops from intruding wildlife but the increased wild elephant population is undeterred by traditional protection methods and loss of life is sadly not uncommon as the farmers try in vain to save their crops from them. As wild animals approach the new solar-powered lights, their movement triggers the PIR sensors which intensifies the brightness ten-fold causing the animals to turn back into the forest without causing the human conflict which risks the lives of both the intruding animal and their human counterparts. Whilst this is a simple and effective solution to deter night raids, it does not negate the need for more waterholes and more forest habitat.

Whilst there is still a long way to go with this project, we cannot stand still as wild tiger and other wildlife numbers increase future human-wildlife conflict is inevitable. Tigers4Ever waterholes and other innovative solutions increase in importance each day so we must look for new ways to fund future projects alongside those we are already committed to complete. Your kind donations are essential to ensure that we can make wildlife waterholes possible and to complete other projects to reduce human-wildlife conflict. Whilst our efforts to fight the effects of climate change on wild tigers will need to continue too. Without your help we can’t provide more safe forest homes for dispersing young wild tigers! Please help, if and whenever you can, as tomorrow may be too late. https://goto.gg/34315.

More Help is Needed

To sustain the growth of Bandhavgarh’s wild tiger population, more permanent wildlife waterholes are needed in areas which can support both prey and predator dispersal. It will be a major challenge for Tigers4Ever to provide more wildlife waterholes right now when they are needed most, as fundraising for these is still a challenge. Your support and donations are vital to ensuring that our waterholes project (https://goto.gg/34315) can address the need as soon as possible. We NEED to raise £25000/US$34500 to provide another 3 medium-large sized waterholes and 16+ are needed which will cost at least another £133350/$182000 to complete! With funding we can mobilise local labour, but without funding it will take too long and more tigers and elephants will die.

The best way to reduce Human-Wildlife conflict is to prevent the prey animals and predators entering the villages in search of water and food. We prioritise our permanent wildlife waterhole projects, every year, before the drought season takes hold.

If 500 people could read this report and donate just £10 ($13) per month each it would take just 3 months to raise enough funds to construct 1 more medium to large wildlife waterhole and that would be incredible: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/water-for-bandhavgarhs-tigers/?show=recurring. Permanent wildlife waterholes are critical to preventing tiger-tiger and human-animal conflict, which arise from increased wild tiger numbers. There are more tiger cubs (82) in Bandhavgarh than the total number of wild tigers (37) counted in the 2010 Tiger Census, when Tigers4Ever started work there. One waterhole isn’t enough to reduce the conflict caused by wild tigers encroaching on the territories of other tigers and humans, so we need your help to provide at least 2 more waterholes before it is too late for the wild tigers and other wildlife: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/water-for-bandhavgarhs-tigers/.

We need to keep wild tigers safe every day. Our anti-poaching patrols are quadrupled right now to counter the risks of retaliatory poisoning and poaching. If, with your help we can complete another 2 waterhole projects sooner it will help us to keep at least 16 more wild tigers including cubs safe.

Your donations will help us to save wild tigers by funding the following:

- £10 ($13) per month for a year will help to drill 12 metres (39 feet) of bore-well to access underground water.

- a one-off £20 ($26) gift will help to drill 2 metres (6.5 feet) of bore-well to access underground water.

- a one-off £40 ($52) gift will help to drill 4 metres (13 feet) of bore-well to access underground water.

- £90 ($117) can pay a team of workers to prepare a site for a new waterhole for wild tigers;

- £120 ($169) can cover the cost of labour and preparation of a 1.5 metre wide by 1.5-metre-deep elephant proof moat to protect a solar-pump system.

- £2000 ($2600) will enable the creation and lining of one larger waterhole.

Every donation, no matter how large or small, helps to increase and protect the wild tiger population. Thank you on behalf of the wild tigers, which you help us to keep safe; and on behalf of the wider tiger community in Bandhavgarh, which benefits from providing equipment and labour for our waterhole projects. We couldn’t do this without you, thanks to you, the wild tigers can live peacefully and those who live beside them can protect their livelihoods.

All donations are welcome https://goto.gg/34315. If you can’t afford to donate perhaps you could become a Tigers4Ever fundraiser, here: https://www.globalgiving.org/dy/v2/fundraisers/start/?fundraiser.projids=34315 and ask your friends, colleagues and family to donate to your fundraiser to help us keep wild tigers safe.

Links:

• Tigers4Ever website
• Become a Fundraiser for wild Tigers
• Buy Greetings Cards to help save wild Tigers