By Neena Bhandari
Gothkali (West Bengal, India), 28.12.2018 (The Weekend, Khaleej Times): Three cubs frolicking around a tigress sprawled under the shade of a Sal (Shorea robusta) tree is one of the many enduring images I have of tigers in the wild. Encounters with big cats are not uncommon in India’s 50 tiger reserves, but in the mangrove forests of the Sunderbans, this shy predator remains elusive.
A common refrain from visitors to the 2,585 square kilometre Sunderban Tiger Reserve, comprising the world’s largest delta formed by the confluence of three rivers – the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna – flowing into the Bay of Bengal, is that sighting a Royal Bengal Tiger is near impossible.