Massive tiger spotted near Corbett, tourists name it ‘Hercules’

Dehradun: A massive tiger sighted on Friday in the Phato tourism zone of the Terai West Forest Division, near Corbett Tiger Reserve, has sparked excitement among wildlife enthusiasts. Awed by the big cat's imposing build, tourists have nicknamed it ‘Hercules', with many on social media speculating that "it could be the largest tiger in Asia."Divisional forest officer (DFO) PC Arya acknowledged the animal's unusual size, estimating its length to be around 7ft. "At least so far, we have not seen this big a tiger in this area. It roams here regularly along with a tigress," he added. Wildlife experts, however, struck a more cautious note. "It is a big tiger, all right but it's difficult to say if it's the biggest. Territorial males do get this big quite often," said Dr YV Jhala, renowned big cat expert and former senior scientist at the Wildlife Institute of India (WII). Other experts added that while the tiger's build is impressive, individuals measuring up to 10 feet 17 inches have been previously recorded in India.Kanwar Deep Juneja, a wildlife enthusiast from Delhi who spotted the tiger, told TOI, "I was watching the tigress sitting by the waterhole, waiting for her cubs who came out briefly before she pushed them back into the bushes. Then this big male tiger emerged from the opposite side of the road, growled near the waterhole, turned back, and disappeared into the bushes, as male tigers are even more shy." A regular visitor to Corbett, Juneja added, "This one is certainly among the biggest I've seen in the forests of India."