Tiger Landscape: Sunderban
Mangrove forest on an island in the Sundarbans Tiger Reserve. Ganges Delta, India.
The Ganges-Brahmaputra delta
The Sunderban is the only mangrove forest in the world inhabited by tigers.
Most waterways originating in the Himalayas flow into the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers, depositing silt and forming the alluvial Sunderban delta where they meet the Bay of Bengal.
Sunderban (Sanskrit for 'beautiful forest' or 'forest of the Sundari trees') is a UNESCO World Heritage Site on both the Bangladeshi and Indian sides. The 3 protected areas on the Bangladeshi side and the Sunderban Tiger Reserve on the Indian side together total around 4,000 sq km.
People living in and around this landscape depend on the mangroves for a variety of resources – honey, firewood, deer meat, thatch, fish and shrimp. Inevitable conflicts arise when they encroach upon the tiger's habitat.
Generating alternative livelihoods
WWF is working on one island to introduce alternatives for income generation so that local people would not have to depend heavily on mangrove forest resources. The communities of Chota Molla Khali are now engaged in batik painting, poultry and improved agriculture that bring them better income. They depend less on resources from prime tiger habitat.
Sunderban (Sanskrit for 'beautiful forest' or 'forest of the Sundari trees') is a UNESCO World Heritage Site on both the Bangladeshi and Indian sides. The 3 protected areas on the Bangladeshi side and the Sunderban Tiger Reserve on the Indian side together total around 4,000 sq km.
People living in and around this landscape depend on the mangroves for a variety of resources – honey, firewood, deer meat, thatch, fish and shrimp. Inevitable conflicts arise when they encroach upon the tiger's habitat.
Generating alternative livelihoods
WWF is working on one island to introduce alternatives for income generation so that local people would not have to depend heavily on mangrove forest resources. The communities of Chota Molla Khali are now engaged in batik painting, poultry and improved agriculture that bring them better income. They depend less on resources from prime tiger habitat.
Related links
Fishers, Sunderbans National Park, Bangladesh.
Contact us
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WWF India,
Secretariat172 B Lodhi Estate New Delhi 110003
India
+91 11 4150 4815
+91 11 2469 1226
