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Study

Tigers and their prey: predicting carnivore densities from prey abundance

Karanth, K. U.; Nichols, J. D.; Kumar, N. S.; Link, W. A.; Hines, J. E.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2004

Peer-reviewedcomparative studywild

What they did

Tiger densities estimated by camera-trap capture–recapture and prey densities estimated by line-transect sampling were measured at the same sites, using methods that account for animals present but not detected, and the two sets of estimates regressed against each other.

Studied in
Panthera tigris
Sample size
11 sites across India with paired tiger and prey density estimates

What they found

Tiger density is predicted by prey biomass across a wide range of sites. Where large ungulates are abundant, tigers are abundant; where prey has been hunted out, tigers are scarce or absent regardless of how much forest remains.

What it means

The authors' reading, and ours. Where they differ, that difference is the point.

How the authors put it

Prey depletion, rather than habitat loss alone, is the proximate limit on tiger numbers, and protecting prey is the operative conservation lever.

How NatureHQ reads it

This is the most consequential tiger paper for anyone trying to understand why the species is in trouble, and it is not about poaching tigers. Empty forest is the problem: a forest can look perfect on a satellite image and hold no tigers because its deer have been eaten. The methodological point matters too — both densities are estimated with detection probability accounted for, which is why the relationship is trustworthy rather than an artefact of easier counting at high density.

Limitations

  • Eleven sites, all in India, all with some protection.
  • A correlation across sites, not an experiment; prey and tigers are both affected by protection effort.
  • Density estimates carry substantial uncertainty that the relationship partly absorbs.

What this study is used for on NatureHQ

One study can inform several subjects. Here is everywhere this one is cited.

Finding the paper

Published by: Proceedings of the National Academy of SciencesPublished in PNAS.

doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0306210101

This reference was resolved automatically against Crossref on 2026-08-11.

NatureHQ summarises research in its own words and does not reproduce published text. Reviewed 2026-08-11.