Save Tigers!!! Save Tigers!!! But Why?

For the last few years, a lot of campaigns and promotions are carried out in India on the need to save and preserve Tigers.

But why all this hue and cry?

What is the real need to save a tiger?
What if a few tigers get killed in the forest?
Are they doing anything useful in the forest except eating and roaming around?
Why we are so concerned for an animal which is doing nothing productive?
When many people starve here and when farmers suicide, why the need to take so much care to protect one animal?

These are very simple questions which anyone can ask. I am neither a preserver nor an environmentalist. But let me try to explain here very shortly what happens if Tigers are no more.

Each and every creation or living being in this planet earth has its role to play in the Eco-system. A drastic change in the proportion of population of these living beings will create chaos ‘tomorrow’, if not ‘today’ for sure. Being a part of this system, and being the so called ‘Thinking’ being, we have to play a crucial role and take initiate in maintaining the balance of our eco system for a better ‘tomorrow’. If this initiative is not taken today, the days and years to come will witness various natural disasters and disorders which mankind cannot handle.

Tigers are signs of a healthy forest. They need lots of land area (forest) to roam around and live. Now here, when Tiger being on top of the list is reduced or if no more, it affects the food chain from top to bottom and thereby affecting the nature. This is too slow a process for us to realize now and it will be too late to act if we don’t initiate ‘now’. A simple food chain example will make the picture even clearer.

(you can click on the image to look closer)
The above picture shows clearly the inter-dependency in an eco-system.

Here the Tiger prey on various animals like deer, boar, bull, yak, monkey and other carnivorous animals. To make sure tigers live in a healthy environment, there should be enough food and water for them; i.e. those above said animals should live and then these second string herbivorous /carnivorous animals to live, they need their prey, plants and trees as well. In short, from tigers to the minutest of insects from huge trees to small herbs, all are directly or indirectly related in the eco-system in the form of food chain. A change in the proportion of population of these will shake the whole system. Ultimately, less forests simply means no ground water perseverance during rain, more floods, soil erosion, no agriculture and thereby more trouble to mankind.

This clearly shows the whole system is inter-reliant. Hence, a decrease in Tiger population in the forest will trigger a chain reaction that ends up inviting problems to mankind. As it is on top of the food chain, Tiger rightly is the mark of shield for all other species including human beings.

There is a natural order in this eco-system where one animal or plant is prey to another with Tiger on top of this food chain. This natural order goes on. This natural flow should not ideally change. And a change in this will invite untold ‘Changes’ not just for mankind but for all living beings.

Now the answer for all those questions above is simple.

We should save Tigers to save ourselves and save the one and only Planet Earth
(pics taken from net)*