A stunning image of a tiger with thick black stripes close together covering most of its golden brown hair, and eyes looking straight into the camera, has made it to the cover of National Geographic’s October 2025 edition.
Prasenjeet Yadav, an Indian wildlife photographer, captured the image. The subject is a melanistic tiger in its only known habitat, the Similipal National Park, Odisha.
“This remarkable photograph, taken in the lush forests of Similipal National Park, Odisha, brings global attention to one of India’s most mysterious wildlife treasures. Few Indians have ever reached this level of global recognition, placing Prasenjeet in a select league of Indian photographers,” the National Geographic has said.
“For over 135 years, National Geographic has been the gold standard in authentic, impactful storytelling, capturing the rare, the wild, and the extraordinary. With this cover story, the brand continues its legacy of showcasing powerful, untold narratives from around the world — bringing global attention to India’s understanding of fragile ecosystems and inspiring collective action to protect them,” it added.
Melanistic tigers are rare genetic variants of the Bengal tiger found almost exclusively in India’s Similipal Tiger Reserve in Odisha. This melanism results from an overproduction of melanin, the pigment that gives hair and skin its colour, leading to a dark coat with thick, almost fused black stripes. Similipal National Park is home to around 30 tigers, nearly half of them are black. The one on the cover is T12, an adult male.
The picture was taken in January after Yadav spent over three months tracking, observing, and patiently waiting for the perfect shot.
In the initial days, the tiger was shy and kept to himself, often sniffing trees and exploring his surroundings cautiously. Over time, Yadav understood the movement patterns and behaviour, culminating in the image featured on the cover.
“Photographing T12 was intense and humbling, with days and months of patience distilled into a single moment. Now to see that story on a National Geographic Magazine’s international cover is an honour and a reminder of why we document India’s extraordinary wild heart,” said Yadav, a molecular biologist turned National Geographic Explorer and photographer focusing on science and natural history.
National Geographic explorers are exceptional individuals in their fields. “Explorers receive funding and support from the Society to illuminate and protect our world through their work in science, exploration, education, and storytelling,” says the website of the National Geographic Society.
Based in Bengaluru, Yadav holds a master’s in molecular biology and has pursued research in molecular ecology for several years at the National Centre for Biological Sciences in Bangalore.
Dhritiman Mukherjee, an award-winning nature photographer from India who has been featured in National Geographic Traveller, Lonely Planet, BBC and The New York Times, told this newspaper: “Prasenjeet is a hardworking photographer with a solid knowledge and deep passion for natural history. He spent a lot of time in Similipal. For a great shot, a wildlife photographer must blend with the setting. Prasenjeet has done that.”
Efforts are underway to boost the gene pool of Similipal by bringing in non-melanistic Bengal tigers into the reserve. One such tigress, Zeenat, was brought from Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) in Maharashtra in November 2024.
She left Odisha and led her pursuers in three states into a merry dance, evading every attempt to entice or ensnare for nearly a month. Zeenat was finally conquered in a forest in Bankura, Bengal, around 280km from Similipal.
“I saw first-hand the Odisha Forest Department’s dedicated on-ground management and the commitment of its officers to safeguarding the future of these majestic tigers,” said Yadav.
Nathan Lump, editor in chief, National Geographic Media, said: “The subject of this month’s cover feature… is a surprising corollary to a success story: the tale of a great male tiger with a rare genetic mutation, which has highlighted what happens when an animal population rebounds but remains sequestered in a reserve, without access to a diverse gene pool. It’s a powerful reminder that saving animals is only the first step, and we must find ways to help them thrive. That’s exactly what a team in India has set out to do.”