An important aspect of Forest Management is the estimation of the abundance / population, of the wild life /animals in the forest area and the vegetation in the given area, with the objective to arrive at a figure level, nearest to the actual figures of the abundance, given the resources and facilities available at hand. The actual figures do not hold so much importance, as the primary aim is to gauge / assess the variation in a given time period.

Wild Life Census – WHY ?

• The presence / absence of wild life [animals] can be assessed and ascertained.
• The efforts of the forest department in Forest management can be channelized accordingly with the procured information.[as in step 1].
• A situational analysis can be done and understood, based on the above figures and action plan can be drafted accordingly.
• Future planning can be based on the figures so procured.

A very pertinent question, generally asked by the visitors and tourists out of curiosity, is– “which animal is abundantly found in this forest area?’-   is foremost. Although a simple question but many a times the answer is not so simple.
It is neither practical nor is it required to know the presence of the number of all the animals, individually or as a whole group in any forest area. Wild life estimation is a very tedious and a highly technical exercise, with a number of equipments and inputs required, to arrive at a figure. From a scientific management view point also the population estimation of all the species of wild life present in any forest area is not usually required. Therefore, even with a management perspective, it is only specific species, in a specified area that are covered in any census. This way the mainly important species are assessed and the data gathered is used for situational analysis for intensive research and knowledge of the species.
Estimation data, pertaining to species that are rare or on the verge of extinction, is of prime importance from the Forest Management point of view.

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