The sloth bear is the most widespread of the four bear species found in India. More popularly known as “Baloo” from the Jungle Book, sloth bears are found across a large variety of habitats below an altitude of 1,500m, such as tropical forests, scrubland and grasslands. Sloth bears are regionally extinct in Bangladesh and [are listed as “Vulnerable” by the IUCN Red List due to extensive habitat loss and degradation. Additionally, the rising demand for bear bile in Eastern Asia makes the sloth bear susceptible to the illegal wildlife trade. Historically, sloth bears were used for the disturbing “Dancing Bears” practice by the Kalahadhar Tribe. Fortunately, persistent efforts from NGOs, such as Wildlife SOS has ended this horrific practice and rescued all 600 affected bears.
Another major threat to the sloth bear is human-wildlife conflict. Interactions between these bears and humans peak during the flowering of the mahua trees in the summer. The mahua fruit is crucial for the livelihoods of indigenous and tribal communities, as they are used not only as fodder and fuel but also to brew local alcohol. However, sloth bears often forage these fruits during the summer, which often leads to fatal human-bear conflicts in central India.
In this episode, I interview Dr. Nishith Dharaiya, the co-founder of the Wildlife Conservation Biology Research Foundation. He is also the co-chair of the IUCN Sloth Bear Expert Team. In this episode, Nishith talks candidly about his conservation and research work on sloth bears in Gujarat over the last few decades. We also revist his PhD on Gir’s lions. Tune in to also learn about the work being done by WCB Research Foundation.
Episode 58: Creating a Future for Clouded Leopards with Chrishen Gomez, DPhil Student, WildCRU, University of Oxford
Episode 57: Exploring the Conservation of Borneo’s Primates and Felines with Susan Cheyne, Borneo Nature Foundation International
Episode 56: Safeguarding the Mammals of the Eastern Ghats with Dr. Vikram Aditya, Principal Scientist at the Centre for Wildlife Studies
Episode 55: Reviving India’s Seagrass Meadows for Dugong Conservation with Elrika D’Souza from Nature Conservation Foundation
Episode 54: Creating an Encyclopedia of India’s Wildlife with RoundGlass Sustain
Episode 53: Bringing back the Markhor with Tanushree Srivastava from Wildlife Trust of India
Episode 52: Understanding Amphibian Conservation and the IUCN Red List with Dr. Sanjay Molur, Founder of Zoo Outreach Organization
Episode 51: Conserving India’s Wildlife through Nature Writing with Neha Sinha
Episode 50: Tackling human-wildlife conflict in the Western Ghats with Dr. Sanjay Gubbi, Wildlife Biologist
Episode 48: The Growing Challenges of Human Carnivore Conflict with Dr. Andrew Stein, Founder and Director of CLAW Conservancies
Episode 47: Rewilding Scotland with Peter Cairns, Executive Director, SCOTLAND: The Big Picture
Episode 46: Protecting Rainforests with Bioacoustics and Artifical Intelligence with Bourhan Yassin, Founder of Rainforest Connection
Episode 45: Uncovering India’s Free Ranging Dog Problem with Chandrima Home
Episode 44: Saving Gorillas, Elephants and Marine Turtles with Adam Henson, Wild Earth Allies
Episode 43: Protecting Asia's Rhinos with Markus Hofmeyr, Director of the Rhino Recovery Fund
Episode 42: Conserving Arctic's Polar Bear with Krista Wright, Executive Director, Polar Bears International
Episode 41: Painting a Bright Future for Africa's Wild Dogs with Gregory Rasmussen, Founder of Painted Dog Research Trust
Episode 40: How do we restore the world's forests?
Episode 39: Creating a future for the Iranian Cheetah with Morteza Pourmirzai, CEO at Iranian Cheetah Society
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