The Champawat Tiger is known for representing a period of extreme human-animal conflict that gripped a vast region for years. This single animal was responsible for an estimated 436 human fatalities, earning her a place in the record books. The terror she inflicted paralyzed entire communities, forcing people to abandon their daily lives out of fear. Her notoriety transformed the perception of large predators and shaped the careers of those who sought to stop her.
The History of the Notorious Tigress
The tigress began her attacks in the late 1890s within the Rupal area of western Nepal, quickly establishing herself as a man-eater. Her initial killing spree claimed over 200 victims, leading to sustained panic among the local population. Her activities became so disruptive that the Nepalese Army was called upon to stop her, but she managed to evade capture.
Despite the military’s efforts, the tigress was forced to abandon her territory and crossed the Sarda River boundary into the Kumaon region of India. She continued her deadly pattern of predation across the border, terrorizing villages around Lohaghat and Champawat. Over the next four years, she added an estimated 234 more victims to her count, traveling long distances between villages to avoid detection.
The reason for her sustained hunting behavior was later discovered to be a grievous physical injury. A post-mortem examination revealed that the upper and lower canine teeth on the right side of her mouth were severely damaged, with the lower one broken down to the bone. This injury prevented her from effectively seizing and holding natural prey, such as deer or wild pigs, leaving her with humans as the only viable alternative.
The Hunt and Conclusion of the Human Conflict
The tigress’s reign of terror in the Kumaon region ended in 1907 near Champawat, following a final act of predation on a young girl. The hunter, Jim Corbett, arrived and began tracking the animal using the blood trail left after the attack. His initial pursuit into the dense jungle nearly resulted in an ambush, forcing him to abandon a solitary hunt and devise a new strategy.
Corbett realized the need for a coordinated effort to flush the tigress out of her hidden location within the Champa River gorge. He enlisted the help of the local tehsildar and nearly 300 villagers to organize a large-scale beat. The villagers created a loud, human barrier, using noise and movement to drive the predator into an open area.
On May 12, 1907, the plan succeeded when the tigress broke cover, attempting to escape the advancing line of people. Corbett took a shot, striking the animal, but she did not fall immediately. He fired a second shot, which proved to be the fatal blow, ending a ten-year conflict that had cost hundreds of lives.
The subsequent examination of the dead animal confirmed the physical ailment that had turned her into a man-eater. The broken canine teeth were clearly visible, corroborating the theory that a permanent injury, likely caused by an old gunshot wound, had compelled her to target easier human prey.
Biological Classification and Conservation Legacy
The question of whether the Champawat Tiger is extinct requires a distinction between the individual and the species. The individual tigress responsible for the attacks was killed in 1907 and is therefore extinct. However, the animal was a Bengal Tiger, scientifically classified as Panthera tigris tigris, a subspecies that is not extinct and continues to inhabit the region.
The notoriety of this specific man-eater ultimately had a profound, positive impact on conservation efforts. Jim Corbett’s experiences hunting the tigress and other man-eaters led him to realize that human encroachment and habitat destruction were the root causes of such conflicts. His perspective shifted from that of a hunter to an advocate for wildlife preservation.
Corbett’s subsequent work was instrumental in establishing India’s first national park in 1936, initially named Hailey National Park. This protected area, situated in the Kumaon hills, was later renamed Jim Corbett National Park in his honor. The park’s creation marked a turning point, establishing a lasting conservation legacy that protects the Bengal Tiger lineage today.