Representative image showing a tiger.
Credit: DH Photo
Kolkata: In all, 1,484 trap cameras have been installed across the Sundarbans Tiger Reserve for the tiger census that began on November 25 and will continue for five days, a senior forest official said on Wednesday.
According to the 2022 big cat census, there are "100-plus tigers in the Indian part of the Sundarbans," the official told PTI.
The camera-trap area includes the entire Sundarbans Tiger Reserve, Sajnekhali Wildlife Sanctuary, and tiger habitats in South 24-Parganas — Raidighi, Ramganga and the Matla range.
All-weather night-vision cameras have been installed at strategic locations in the mangrove delta.
While the exercise will be conducted till November 30, the cameras will be in place for one-and-a-half months, and data will be retrieved in the second week of January 2026.
The Sundarbans spans around 4,000 sq km on the Indian side, split between the tiger reserve and the contiguous areas of the South 24 Parganas forest division.
More than 200 forest personnel are involved in the camera-trapping exercise.
The second-phase survey, which will analyse pug marks through an app, is scheduled for the second week of December.