The bar chart illustrates the total population of tigers in all tiger reserves in India between 1972 and 2002, while the line graph compares the number of tigers in five specific reserves over the same period.
Overall, the total number of tigers in Indian reserves increased significantly throughout the thirty-year period. Among the five individual reserves, Bandipur consistently had the largest tiger population, whereas Buxa had the smallest.
In 1972, there were only 268 tigers across all reserves in India. This figure rose dramatically to 711 in 1979 and then continued to increase steadily, reaching 1576 by 2002. Although there were minor fluctuations during the 1990s, the overall trend remained upward.
Regarding the five tiger reserves, Bandipur showed a sharp increase from about 80 tigers in 1972 to over 250 by 1984, maintaining this high level until 2002. Corbett and Kanha both experienced gradual growth, with their populations reaching around 140 and 120 respectively in 2002. The number of tigers in the Sunderbans reserve grew modestly from roughly 50 to 80, while Buxa had consistently low numbers, never exceeding 20 tigers throughout the period.
To sum up, the total tiger population in India improved remarkably, and Bandipur remained the dominant reserve in terms of tiger numbers during the 30 years shown.