Methods For Monitoring Tiger And Prey Populations

K. ULLAS KARANTH (b:1948) is the Director for Science-Asia with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), New York, besides being Emeritus Director at Centre for Wildlife Studies (CWS) based at Bengaluru. Originally trained as a mechanical engineer, he subsequently obtained his graduate education in wildlife biology from University of Florida, Gainesville, USA and Mangalore University, India. Ecology of tigers, sympatric carnivores, and their prey species as well as issues of monitoring of wild animal populations have been his focal areas of research since 1986. Dr. Karanth has published over 125 scientific articles. He has authored or edited 15 technical and popular books.  Over the years, Dr. Karanth has served on India's Forest Advisory Committee, National Tiger Conservation Authority, Governing Body of the Wildlife Institute of India and the Indian Board for Wildlife. He is a Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences and has received the J.Paul Getty Award from WWF-USA forConservation leadership. Dr. Karanth has been honored with India's Presidential award Padma Shri and Rajya Prashasthi by Karnataka State, in recognition of his services to wildlife conservation and science.   JAMES D. NICHOLS (b: 1949)  is now retired after 40+ years of service as a senior scientist, at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and then the U.S. Geological Survey. He received his undergraduate degree in biology from Wake Forest University, Masters degree in wildlife management from Louisiana State University and his Doctorate in Wildlife Ecology from Michigan State University, in USA. His research interests are animal population dynamics and wildlife management with a special focus on estimation of demographic parameters. He has published over 400 scientific articles and is widely recognized for his contributions to wildlife ecology and management. Dr. Nichols is a Fellow of the Ecological Society of America and the recipient of various awards including Outstanding Publication Awards from The Wildlife Society and the American Statistical Association. He is a recipient of the Aldo Leopold Award (The Wildlife Society), Wetland Conservation Achievement Award (Ducks Unlimited), Award of Excellence (Biometrics Working Group of The Wildlife Society), U.S. Presidential Rank Award (Meritorious Senior Professional), and Wings Across America Award (U.S. Forest Service for outstanding contributions to bird conservation).

• Chapter 1. Role of Monitoring in Global Tiger Conservation.- Chapter 2. Tiger Ecology in Relation to Monitoring Issues.- Chapter 3. Animal Population Monitoring: A Unified Conceptual Framework.- Chapter 4. Concepts: Assessing Tiger Habitat Occupancy Dynamics.- Chapter 5. Field Practices: Assessing Tiger Habitat Occupancy Dynamics.- Chapter 6. Concepts: Estimating Abundance of Prey Species Using Line Transect Sampling.- Chapter 7. Field Practices: Estimating Abundance of Prey Species Using Line Transect Sampling.- Chapter 8. Concepts and Practices: Estimating Abundance of Prey Species Using Hierarchical Model-Based Approaches.- Chapter 9. Concepts: Assessing Tiger Population Dynamics Using Capture-Recapture Sampling.- Chapter 10. Field Practices: Assessing Tiger Population Dynamics Using Photographic Captures.- Chapter 11. Concepts and Practices: Assessing Tiger Population Dynamics Using Genetic Captures.- Chapter 12. Concepts: Integrating Population Survey Data from Different Spatial Scales, Sampling Methods and Species.- Chapter 13. Concepts and Practices: Assessing Landscape Connectivity for Tigers and Prey Species.- Chapter 14. Informed Decision Processes for Tiger Conservation. A Vision for the Future.