印度派民兵保护南部野生老虎

Forest officer Singh in Karnataka state says that unlike some of the northern states where the tiger is poached for its parts, the big cat itself is often not the primary target in southern India.

卡纳塔卡邦的森林官员B.K辛格说，不像印度北部的一些邦，偷猎者为了老虎身体的某个部位而偷猎老虎，在印度南部，这种大型猫科动物并不经常是主要的偷猎目标。

Instead, the hunting of animals like deer reduces possible prey for the tiger. As a result, he says, some tigers come to the edges of the forest in search of food and fall victim to hunters.

猎捕鹿等动物使得猎捕老虎的可能性减小。他说，因此，一些老虎跑到森林边缘来寻找食物，从而成了猎人的囊中之物。

“The weaker ones once they get pushed out of the reserve, they come into human conflict, they are targeted for killing by the people living on the fringes," he says. "Or sometimes a snare is put for a wild boar, a snare is put for hunting a deer and a tiger gets into it and gets killed.”

辛格说：“一旦这些处于弱势的动物来到保护区外，它们就卷入了与人类的冲突，它们成为住在森林边缘的人的捕杀目标。或者有时候，猎人设置陷阱来猎捕野猪或鹿，但是如果老虎落入陷阱就会被捕杀。”

Karnataka, with about 300 tigers in six forest reserves, has the highest tiger population in the country. But about 25 tigers have been killed in the last five years.

卡纳塔卡邦的6个森林保护区共有大约300只老虎，它是印度各邦中老虎数量最多的一个邦。但是在过去五年，约有25只老虎被捕杀。

The state plans to double the commando force from 54 to 108 in the coming years. Similar forces will also be trained to patrol 13 other tiger reserves across the country.

卡纳塔卡邦计划在未来几年里将这个民兵队的人数从现在的54人增加一倍至108人。类似的民兵队也将接受训练，然后到该国的其它13个老虎保护区巡逻。

India, with about 1,700 tigers, accounts for nearly half the world’s tiger population. Experts say the animal's survival here will determine the future of the species.

印度有大约1700只野生老虎，占全世界野生老虎总数的将近一半。专家说，印度老虎的生存状态将决定这种动物的未来。