Young tiger cub returns to the wild after rescue in India

Recent reports and evidence suggested that a mother with cubs had been seen in the area. Led by Dr Panjit Basumatary of IFAW-WTI's Centre for Bear Rehabilitation and Conservation, the team set out for a riverine island upstream. The cub travelled along the Brahmaputra aboard a bhut-bhuti, a mechanised country boat commonly used on the waterways of Assam, while the team provided food and hydration along the way. Once at the selected site, they installed a camera trap to watch for signs of an adult tigress.

"For a cub this young, its mother is still its best chance of survival in the wild. Our priority was to minimise human intervention while creating the safest possible opportunity for them to find one another again. Every decision we made, from where we placed the cub to how we monitored the area, was guided by the goal of keeping this young tiger wild," said Dr Panjit Basumatary of WTI's Centre for Bear Rehabilitation and Conservation.

Wildlife rescue rarely follows a predictable path. The following afternoon, a drone survey showed that the cub remained at the site, but it revealed another concern. Rising river levels threatened to submerge the area around the transport crate.

The team responded quickly, moving the cub to more secure ground. The new location was selected with both the surrounding habitat and likely tiger movement routes in mind. The crate was positioned beneath a tree to shelter the young tiger from direct sun and rain, while still allowing the team to monitor from a distance and provide food and care when necessary.