Tiger Safari in Kanha; this is a report by Kabir Shah, the young wildlife connoisseur. His numerous visits to Kanha over the years have been extraordinary for reasons beyond sensible comprehensions. How could someone have so much of Tiger luck as far as Tiger Safaris in Kanha is concerned? I personally deliberated on the topic and reconciled that that there are two reasons why Kabir Shah has such sightings. First, his genuine love for nature, wildlife, and the Tiger. And the second, close attention to what kind of sightings are happening in which zone etc. He would usually stay in touch with the ground naturalists, and accordingly request for those zone bookings 120 days before.
Umarpani male
Kabir arrives with a solitary mission in any national park, safaris, and productive safaris. And he has more than met his expectations consistently.
Tiger Safaris in Kanha
To travel in April 2017, the permits were booked in early December (120 days before safari date). He arrived in Kanha in April and began his sojourn with safaris. Being a young safarist it is noteworthy that he keeps a daily record of all his sightings. I am sharing below his April 2017 summary of Tiger Safaris in Kanha.
Saw Dhawajhandi female crossing the road in the 3rd and 5th safari (both mornings). She had made a kill near Dhawajhandi handpump. As she was roaring while moving towards the water body we had a doubt that there was another tiger in the area, probably a male.
Sighted Mahaveer female and 3 cubs (1 male and 2 females) in Ghorella anicut (1 female cub was missing).
Also sighted Umarpani male at Pathak puliya (1st nallah after the mukki gate) in the 6th (evening) safari.
Observations during Tiger Safaris in Kanha by Kabir
Saw Babathenga tigress and her male cub crossing the Belkundri road. Then she came back and sat for 10-15 mins on the road. We observed that while crossing the road with her cub she was extremely alert and cautious but when she came back after leaving him in the safety of the thickets her behaviour was bold as usual. She then made a half hearted failed attempt to stalk a sambar and disappeared in the jungle. After the safari ended we got to know that another vehicle had seen her killing a fawn towards the end of the morning drive.
Babathenga Tigress
Saw Umarpani male on Pathak puliya in the first half-hour in the 9th (morning) drive. We had seen pugmarks on a road turning left from the puliya coming from the opening of a meadow and going towards the Banjar river beneath the puliya where his kill was lying in the river bed. Other cars went away without checking the pugmarks and we caught a brief sight of him crossing the bridge. A short but exciting sighting of a secretive male tiger.
Also saw Mahaveer female and all four cubs in Ghorella anicut in the same hour of the morning. 3 cubs were playing, one was sitting in the grass and the mother was sitting in the shade.
Tiger Safaris in Kanha, Mukki zone
Again sighted the shy Umarpani male at Ghorella anicut in the 10th (evening) safari. We had to take his leave as our safari time was up.
Umarpani male
Saw Dhawajhandi female crossing the road behind the Babathenga lake in the last morning drive. She had come down roaring from the District line hill. That morning there were sambar calls near the lake and two forest guards told us that a tiger had been roaring all night. Chances were of Link 7 male being there for the whole night as he was sighted there the previous evening. Probably the two were trying to contact each other.
Also saw a male cub of Mahaveer female at Ghorella anicut towards the end of the drive. He was cooling off in the water and then went up on the other side of the anicut, passing by two gaurs and alarming them. He was cautious but bold enough to challenge the gaurs. The cubs are around a year old now. Explore the biggest tigers in India with our Just Tigers Tour – Covering Bandhavgarh, Kanha & Pench National Parks for a perfect tiger safari experience.
Above is a brief run of his six days Tiger Safaris in Kanha. Should you want to interact with him and know more on Kanha, please write to us, and we will request Kabir for his expert guidance on the same.
Best Wishes
– Sharad Vats
