Big cats have a solitary streak and are ruthlessly possessive about their turf and cubs, but three-year-old
Bijli (T-114) of Maharashtra’s Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve is displaying astonishing behaviour by grooming the lone cub of her mother, Chhoti Tara (T-7).

The two dominating tigresses of Tadoba — Maya and Chhoti Tara — had meticulously marked their territory, splitting the vast forested sweep into equal halves.

While Maya (T-12) is feared dead, possibly in a bloody territorial skirmish, there is an entire family of tigers and their young siblings showing astounding traits of peaceful coexistence in the luxury of nature, defying blurring bloodline bonds after attaining adulthood.
With Maya gone, Chhoti Tara has taken over her territory and handed over her domain to her two daughters, Roma and Bijli.
Picture 1: Choti Tara with her Cub

Chhoti Tara (12), who ruled Jamni meadows, delivered two female cubs in 2020 and these were nicknamed by tourists as Bijli (T-114) and Roma (T-115). Both Bijli and Roma delivered two cubs by the end of 2022. Mother Chhoti Tara, too, had a lone cub around the same time her daughters gave birth. Both offspring occupy the territory of their mother.
In January this year, a forester sighted Chhoti Tara with her lone cub. A few days later, news trickled in that Chhoti Tara’s cub was missing. “After Bijli and Roma pushed Chhoti Tara out of her turf, she would move near Waterhole 97. I saw T-7 (Chhoti Tara) with her lone cub in January,” says Nikhil Abhyankar, a wildlife expert.

Picture 2: Choti Tara with one of her own cubs and one of Bijli before Bijli came and took both of them along with her

The tiger tale doesn’t end here. “A few months later, tourists were perplexed to see Bijli with her own cub along with the lone cub of Chhoti Tara. One cub looked big, the other a little younger as it was born later. Even as she (Bijli) is regularly sighted with the two cubs, Chhoti Tara’s cub is not seen with her now,” says Abhyankar.
Sources say Bijli delivered three cubs, but two succumbed to the vagaries of nature. Some tourists recalled seeing Bijli play with the lone cub of Chhoti Tara. The two siblings, too, were on a roll.
“Recently, while checking camera traps in the forest, we spotted Bijli leading the way, making friendly vocalizations to call the cubs. Soon, both cubs strolled towards her. One snuggled into the mother and the other played with her tail. There was a significant difference between both cubs, yet their mutual love was a heart-warming story,” says Prajakta Hushangabadkar, a wildlife biologist with the Tadoba reserve.

Picture 3: Bijli with her cub and one cub of Choti Tara. PC - Sudeep Mehta

Although there doesn’t seem to be any scientific basis to this episode, it is extremely puzzling. “Was Bijli nurturing two generations — her own cub and her brother? The more you delve into the tigers’ lives, the more you are entangled in secrets and their remarkable behavior,” Hushangabadkar said.

Such instances are rare and something akin was reported from Sanjay Dubri National Park in Madhya Pradesh in August 2022, where a tigress with four cubs groomed.
three cubs of her sister after she was found dead. The tigress, nicknamed “Mausi” (T-28), showed rare maternal sentiments by training the orphaned cubs.

“No one can claim to know everything about nature. The behavior of wild animals changes according to survival strategies and is not always scientifically encoded. It’s heartening to see Chhoti Tara’s lineage not only surviving but also thriving,” Hushangabadkar said.