A member of a local tribal group of Betta Kuruba, he has worked in the Bandipur forest for 17 years. Most poachers are opportunistic and will come into the forest only if they feel it is risk-free. Since the camp has been fully staffed and armed, poachers seem to have gone elsewhere, Nandesh says. We go to see how Karanth counts tigers. He doesn't do it himself.
Cameras do the job, in the wee hours of the morning.
They are triggered by movement. On one side a transmitter sends out a red beam to a receiver placed about six feet away. When the beam is broken, the cameras fire, capturing the animal on film. Using this information and counting tiger prey, Karanth estimates there are 12 to 15 tigers per 100 sq. Other parks have different densities.