End of the line for lion walks

IT hasn’t been a good month for big cat tourism. The Indian Supreme Court ruled against visitors entering tiger protection areas, a decision which the conservation charity Care for the Wild International has welcomed.

A case was taken against local authorities who allow hotels and shops to be built within reserves. It was argued that these, and tourist pressure generally, threaten the 1,600 or so tigers left in India. The court agreed.

Buffer zones are to be created around core areas of the country’s 40 tiger reserves and visitors will be kept out. Tour operators are dismayed. They claim the ban will ruin the wildlife tourist trade and that thousands of jobs will go. The presence of visitors, they say, helps protect wild animals.