Tamil Nadu takes baby steps towards conservation of Bengal fox, golden jackal
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(from left) Bengal fox, golden jackal | Photo Credit: M. Periasamy, Vikas Madhav Nagarajan
The Tamil Nadu government is taking baby steps towards conservation of Bengal foxes and golden jackals which are critical to ensure the ecological balance of the habitats.
In his March 2025 Budget speech, the then Forests Minister K. Ponmudy had announced in the State Legislative Assembly of a conservation plan for the Bengal fox and jackal, which are critical to maintain the ecological balance of the habitats.
Tamil Nadu, renowned for its exceptional biodiversity, has diverse ecosystems — from coastal plains to mountainous terrains. Among the many species that inhabit these landscapes are the Indian Bengal fox (Vulpes bengalensis) and the golden jackal (Canis aureus), both of which play vital roles in maintaining ecological balance as predators and scavengers.
Both species are presently listed under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, affording them the highest level of legal protection in India. The level of their decline in the recent past was made out from the fact that the Indian Bengal fox and the golden jackal were both listed in Schedule V (Vermin category) when the Wildlife (Protection) Act was enacted in 1972.
Advanced Institute for Wildlife Conservation (AIWC) had conducted a preliminary study to identify their presence in landscapes across Tamil Nadu and found that their numbers and ranges had dwindled over the past three to four decades. The survey indicated that they had disappeared in many districts and were found only in pockets in the districts of Dharmapuri, Tiruvannamalai, Salem, Villupuram and Madurai.
The government then decided that immediate conservation interventions were necessary keeping in mind their ecological importance and growing threats faced by them. The Chief Wildlife Warden had sent a proposal to the government for funding for comprehensive assessment of current threats, habitat use, and distribution patterns to develop an effective, long-term conservation roadmap.
The objectives were identification of critical habitats in and outside Protected Areas (PA)and Reserved Forests, habitat protection and improvement measures and control of poaching, creation of awareness on the need to conserve these species amongst the various stakeholders and an establishment of a captive breeding centre in Salem Zoo.
The erstwhile DMK government accorded administrative and financial sanction for ₹2 crore but it required the approval of the Legislature by inclusion in the revised Supplementary Estimates for the year 2025-26. Now, the Chief Wildlife Warden has sent a proposal for ₹92.5 lakh and use the unspent balance from the last fiscal. The State government, after careful consideration, agreed to the proposal and sanctioned ₹1.3 crore this year.
However, forest officials said the conservation plan would require an inter-departmental coordination as these two are considered edge-species, living between the forests and the agricultural landscapes.
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