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Nepal’s Wild Tiger Estimate Rose from 355 to 429 in Four Years

Wild Bengal tiger crossing a forest track in Bardia, Nepal
Conservation · Population & status

Nepal’s population of Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris) has risen to an estimated 429 animals, according to the national tiger survey released by the Government of Nepal on 29 July 2026. The previous nationwide survey in 2022 estimated 355 tigers, making the new estimate 74 higher than in 2022.

The survey recorded 145 tigers in Chitwan National Park and surrounding areas, 112 in Bardiya, 71 in Parsa, 51 in Banke and 50 in Shuklaphanta. Tiger numbers increased in four of the five landscapes. Bardiya was the exception, falling from 125 tigers in 2022 to 112 in the new survey.

The largest numerical increase occurred in Parsa, where the estimate rose from 41 to 71. Banke increased from 25 to 51, Shuklaphanta from 36 to 50 and Chitwan from 128 to 145. Nepal’s national total has grown from 121 tigers in the 2009–2010 period to 198 in 2013, 235 in 2018, 355 in 2022 and 429 in 2026.

The census used camera traps across Nepal’s Terai Arc Landscape. The Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation led the survey with government agencies, the Nepal Army and conservation partners. Camera-trap photographs allow individual tigers to be distinguished by their unique stripe patterns and are used to estimate population size across the protected areas and connected forests.

The new estimate confirms continued national population growth but also shows that the trend is not uniform across all tiger landscapes. Nepal repeats the national census every four years, tracking tiger numbers, prey species and habitat conditions to guide future conservation planning.

Sources and image credit

  1. Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, Nepal (2026) — National Tiger Survey 2082 press releasePrimary Government of Nepal source released on 29 July 2026. Announces the new national tiger survey results.
  2. IUCN (2026) — Tiger census: Nepal's tiger number increases to 429Conservation-partner summary published 29 July 2026. Reports 429 tigers nationally, park-level estimates and comparison with previous national counts.

Image: Bbasranamagar — wild Bengal tiger in Dalla Community Forest near Bardia National Park, Nepal, photographed 14 May 2026. Source: Wikimedia Commons. CC BY-SA 4.0. Representative Nepal image; not necessarily an individual recorded in the census. · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

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