A narrow escape: Maya and the fawn

Editor’s note: The Tadoba-Andheri forest reserve is one of a kind—quiet, peaceful, leisurely. Tigers in the reserve have personalities and histories and are given names. Maya: The Biography of a Tiger by Anant Sonawane recounts stories from the life of Maya, a much loved tigress with her own special character and history. In 2023, Maya disappeared, never to be seen again. This excerpt documents an astonishing encounter between the tigress and a fawn.

The following excerpt has been published with permission from HarperCollins India.

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In November 2013, a curious incident took place. 

Early one morning, Maya was patrolling the borders of her territory, marking it as she moved. A convoy of tourist vehicles followed her at a distance. From Jamunbodi, she headed toward Magar Tank (a former crocodile-breeding site) and then slipped into the tall grass, leaving the road behind. 

It was nearly 8 a.m. and most tourists assumed she wouldn’t return to the road anytime soon. They moved on. But four vehicles, whose occupants had yet to see her, decided to wait, hoping for a glimpse. With Maya out of sight, some photographers turned their attention to an Indian roller bird, perched on a nearby teak tree. Just then, tourists in one of the vehicles noticed something remarkable. They had spotted Maya—and could see clearly what she was doing.

Inside the grass, Maya had come upon a young spotted deer fawn. It was likely the fawn that had drawn her into the grass in the first place. Capturing such a small animal was no challenge for her—with a single leap, she had it. But she didn’t kill it. 

Instead, she gently held it in her mouth, cradling it almost as if carrying her own cub, taking great care not to injure it with her teeth. Then she delicately placed the fawn in a slight clearing and to everyone’s astonishment, started licking it as if she was tenderly grooming her own young! She thoroughly licked and cleaned the fawn, then began to play with it! Each time the fawn tried to run away, Maya gently pinned it down with a paw and continued the game. This playful interaction lasted a full 15 minutes. 

Some observers wondered: was this a prelude? Cats often toy with mice before killing them. Was Maya planning to do the same? 

But once again, Maya defied expectations. When she was done, she simply let the fawn go. The little one scampered away in search of its mother. Maya, unbothered, moved on and later settled near Panchdhara. 

Why did she behave this way? Perhaps her hunger was already satisfied, so she had no interest in hunting the fawn? But if that were the case, what explained the affection—the grooming, the play? 

Although Maya’s popularity among tourists rose each day by this time, incidents such as this confused even the most seasoned tiger experts.

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This excerpt from Maya: The Biography of a Tiger by Anant Sonawane has been published with permission from HarperCollins India.