Tiger snatches father from boat in front of horrified children
A Bengal tiger dragged a father off a fishing boat in India and took him away into a mangrove swamp in front of his horrified children.
The attack happened on Thursday as Sushil Manjhi was crab fishing in a stream in the Sunderbans National Park with his son and daughter.
According to the NY Post, Sushil's son Jyotish, said the tiger leaped on the boat and clamped its jaws around Manjhi's neck. He told the paper the tiger "quickly flung my father on his back and gave a giant leap before disappearing into the forest".
According to the Indian Express, the tiger attacked Manjhi when he was sitting in the middle of the boat, and Jyotish and his sister were in the front and back to balance the vessel.
Jyotish said both he and his sister tried to beat the tiger with sticks and a knife to no avail.
His father was dragged away, and his body has not been recovered.
The attack was the fourth deadly assault by a tiger this year in the Sunderbans, which is one of the largest reserves for the Bengal tiger.
Development is shrinking the tigers' habitat and poaching is destroying their numbers.
Many poor Indians are forced to make a living by scavenging in the forests and rivers, even though it is illegal in the Sunderbans, and they know they are at risk from predators.
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