Thermal drone technology has offered a rare glimpse into the nocturnal behaviour of a tigress in the Sahyadri Tiger Reserve (STR), capturing footage that would otherwise remain unseen. A thermal drone deployed to monitor radio-collared tigress Tara recorded her separating the carcass of a kill before feeding during night hours — a behaviour seldom seen in the wild. Forest officials said such observations are possible only due to advanced night-monitoring technology.

Field Director of STR Tushar Chavan said, “With the help of researchers, we are closely monitoring radio-collared tigress Tara. While the collar provides detailed information on her movement patterns, we are also using advanced thermal drones to track her activity during night hours. The technology has helped us document rare behaviour, including the tigress tigress segregating her prey after a kill before feeding. Such inputs highlight the importance of new technologies like thermal drones in strengthening night-time wildlife monitoring.”