Climate Crisis Threatens Tigers and People of the Sundarbans

As acids a man Shamrat

Asaduzzaman Shamrat

The Sundarbans, stretching across the southern coast of Bangladesh, is the largest mangrove forest on Earth and one of the country’s greatest natural treasures. It is a living fortress against cyclones and tidal surges, a storehouse of biodiversity, and the last stronghold of the legendary Royal Bengal Tiger. For centuries the tiger has been the guardian spirit of this land, inspiring myths, poems, and fears. Yet today, the very existence of the Sundarbans tiger hangs in the balance. Climate change, sea level rise, salinity, and deforestation are steadily shrinking its habitat, while human pressure on forest resources is forcing tigers and people into deadly encounters. The conflict between man and tiger is no longer an occasional tragedy—it has become a harsh reality of life in the coastal belt.

The numbers tell a sobering story. According to the Bangladesh Forest Department’s 2024 census, the Sundarbans is now home to only about 114 Royal Bengal Tigers. Just twenty years earlier, the official figure stood at more than 440. The decline is staggering, reflecting how rapidly their habitat and prey base have been destroyed. Independent organizations, including the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Wildlife Trust of Bangladesh (WTB), have reached similar conclusions. Scientists have further warned that if sea levels continue to rise at the present pace, up to forty percent of the Sundarbans could be submerged by 2050. For the tiger, which depends on dense mangroves and abundant prey, this would be a death sentence.

At the same time, the conflict between tigers and people who depend on the forest has intensified. Each year, an estimated 25 to 30 people—mostly fishermen, honey collectors, and woodcutters—are killed in tiger attacks. In many cases tigers wander into villages, where they prey on livestock or occasionally attack humans. Villagers, terrified and angry, often retaliate by killing the animal. From 2010 to 2022 alone, at least 350 people were killed by tigers in areas surrounding the Sundarbans, while villagers killed more than 50 tigers in revenge. The Forest Department admits these figures are conservative, as many incidents go unreported.

For families living on the edge of poverty, the forest is both a source of life and a source of danger. To catch fish, gather honey, or cut wood is to put food on the table, but it also means venturing into tiger territory. A fisherman from Satkhira put it simply: “Every trip to the forest feels like risking my life. But we have no choice. Without the Sundarbans, we cannot survive.” Such testimonies capture the cruel dilemma of people whose lives are intertwined with an ecosystem that is collapsing under pressure.

Several overlapping crises are driving this dangerous relationship. Rising sea levels and salinity intrusion are killing the freshwater vegetation on which deer and boars—tigers’ natural prey—depend. Cyclones like Sidor in 2007, Aila in 2009, and Amphan in 2020 destroyed vast tracts of mangroves, flooding breeding grounds and scattering wildlife. River erosion is swallowing forest land each year. On top of this, nearly 3.5 million people live around the Sundarbans, many of whom rely directly on the forest for livelihoods. Illegal logging, overfishing, and poaching further disturb the ecosystem, leaving tigers with fewer choices. When their food runs out, they look to villages. Experts emphasize that the tiger is not naturally a “man-eater.” It turns to humans only when its survival is threatened.

Recognizing the scale of the problem, the government of Bangladesh and international organizations have launched several conservation initiatives. The Tiger Conservation Project and the Village Tiger Response Team (VTRT) are among the most notable. Today, 49 response teams operate in villages around the Sundarbans. When a tiger strays into a settlement, these volunteers rush to the scene and attempt to drive it back into the forest without harming it. Their interventions have saved dozens of tigers from being killed by mobs. International donors such as the United Nations Development Programme, the World Bank, and USAID have provided funding for long-term projects that aim to protect tiger migration corridors, strengthen breeding habitats, and support alternative livelihoods. Efforts have included eco-tourism, honey farming, and training for handicrafts, all designed to reduce people’s dependence on forest resources.

There has been modest progress. According to the IUCN, retaliatory killings of tigers have declined compared to the 1990s and early 2000s. Awareness campaigns in schools and communities are slowly shifting perceptions. In some places the tiger is being reframed not as a menace but as a source of pride, an animal whose survival is linked directly to the survival of the Sundarbans itself. Yet these successes remain fragile. A government report published in 2023 concluded that despite decades of conservation programs, tiger-human conflict persists and the overall tiger population continues to decline. Weak enforcement, corruption, lack of coordination between agencies, and the relentless advance of climate change all threaten to undo the gains.

Ultimately, the greatest danger lies not within local mismanagement but in the planetary crisis of climate change. The Sundarbans is uniquely vulnerable to global warming because of its low-lying geography and dependence on freshwater flows from the Ganges and other rivers. Each new cyclone batters the mangroves, uprooting trees, flooding breeding grounds, and leaving saline scars on once fertile land. River erosion gnaws at the forest’s edges, while shrimp farming and dams upstream reduce the flow of fresh water. Scientists warn that if these trends continue unchecked, the Sundarbans may not exist in its present form by the end of the century. Without the forest, the tigers will vanish.

But the loss would not end with the tiger. The Sundarbans acts as Bangladesh’s first natural barrier against cyclones and tidal surges. When Cyclone Sidr struck in 2007, experts estimated that the forest absorbed nearly half of the storm’s energy, saving countless lives inland. If the mangroves disappear, millions of people along the coast will face catastrophic exposure. The fate of the tiger is therefore inseparable from the fate of Bangladesh’s climate security.

Conservationists and policymakers argue that protecting the tiger is about much more than saving a species. The tiger is what biologists call an umbrella species. By ensuring its survival, one also ensures the survival of countless other animals, plants, and the ecosystem as a whole. As wildlife biologist Monirul H. Khan explains, “If we can save the tiger, we save the deer, the fish, the crabs, the trees—and ultimately, ourselves.” The tiger, then, is not just a symbol of wilderness but the guardian of ecological balance.

What is needed now is a long-term, integrated strategy that addresses both local realities and global pressures. Families who lose loved ones or livestock in tiger attacks must receive timely compensation, so that anger does not boil over into revenge killings. Alternative livelihood programs must be expanded so that fishermen, honey collectors, and woodcutters are not forced to depend entirely on the forest. Enforcement against poaching and illegal logging must be tightened, with better patrols and stronger penalties. Education campaigns must be deepened, particularly among youth, to foster a culture that values conservation.

Most importantly, Bangladesh cannot bear this burden alone. International climate financing must be channeled into protecting the Sundarbans, while cross-border cooperation with India is crucial to safeguard shared tiger corridors. Above all, unless the world drastically cuts greenhouse gas emissions, local efforts will be overwhelmed by rising seas and intensifying cyclones. The survival of the tiger is tied to the global struggle against climate change.

The Royal Bengal Tiger remains the pride of Bangladesh and an irreplaceable part of world heritage. Its amber eyes and striped body are symbols of both majesty and fragility. If urgent steps are not taken, future generations may encounter this animal only in the faded pages of books or behind the glass of museum displays. But if Bangladesh, with international support, can succeed in saving it, then the Sundarbans will continue to stand as a living fortress against storms and a sanctuary of life. The tiger’s struggle is our struggle. Protecting it is not a choice, but a necessity for the survival of both nature and humanity in a world increasingly defined by climate uncertainty.

Asaduzzaman Shamrat, Executive President, South Asian Climate Change Journalist Forum (SACCJF).