Where land ends and the tide decides everything.
The Sundarbans defies easy description. It is neither land nor sea but something continuously negotiated between the two — a 10,000 km² network of tidal rivers, creeks, and mudflats where the combined force of the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Meghna rivers finally disperses into the Bay of Bengal. The word "sundarbans" means "beautiful forest" in Bengali, named for the sundari tree whose pneumatophores — those pencil-shaped breathing roots projecting from the mud — are the first thing a first-time visitor notices rising from every bank.
This is the only place in the world where tigers regularly swim in saltwater. The Bengal tigers of the Sundarbans have adapted to this tidal landscape over generations, crossing channels between islands, hunting spotted deer and boar, and navigating a territory that changes shape with every tide. Approximately 100 tigers inhabit the Indian side; another 114 are estimated in Bangladesh. They are rarely seen. Their presence is felt, which is a different and more affecting thing.
These 88 photographs were taken from boats, from watchtowers, and from the muddy banks of the delta — a record of the water, the light, the forest, the wildlife, and the fishing communities who have lived alongside the tiger for generations.
"The Sundarbans tiger is the only tiger in the world that swims regularly in saltwater — sometimes crossing channels 5 km wide between hunting grounds."
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