RAS question
The Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) was recently sighted for the first time in which Tiger Reserve of Rajasthan?
Correct answer: (C) Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve.
The Fishing Cat (Prionailurus viverrinus) was first recorded in Rajasthan at Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve in Bundi district.
Explanation
Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve is the answer because camera-trap evidence from Ramgarh Range in Bundi confirmed the Fishing Cat inside the reserve for the first time. The sighting matters beyond a one-off record: it made Fishing Cat the fifth small cat species known from RVTR, alongside Jungle Cat, Rusty-spotted Cat, Asiatic Wildcat and Caracal. It also added to RVTR's small-cat population and biodiversity records. So the exam point is not merely the animal's name, but the link between a recent faunal record, its protected-area location and the reserve's growing carnivore assemblage.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Ranthambore Tiger Reserve is not the location of the first confirmed Fishing Cat record in Rajasthan; that record belongs to Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve.
- (B) Sariska Tiger Reserve is a wrong match because the camera-trap evidence came from Ramgarh Range in Bundi, inside RVTR.
- (D) Mukundra Hills Tiger Reserve is not linked to this first sighting; the fifth-small-cat-species update applies specifically to RVTR.
Concept
This tests Rajasthan protected-area geography through a current biodiversity record. Such questions recur in RAS because recent wildlife sightings tie location, species and conservation significance into one factual map point.