Eight cheetahs brought from Namibia are now in the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh.
New Delhi:
On a day when eight cheetahs were brought from Africa as part of the animal’s historic reintroduction to India, prominent conservationist Valmik Thapar spoke at Kuno National about “how the big cat will move, hunt, feed and raise its cubs”. Concerns listed. Park in Madhya Pradesh, where it faces a “lack of space and prey”.
He said in an interview to NDTV, “The area is full of hyenas and leopards, which are major enemies of cheetahs. If you see in Africa, hyenas chase cheetahs and even kill them. Huh.” “There are 150 villages around, which have dogs that can tear up cheetahs. It is a very gentle animal.”
speed vs space
When asked why the cheetah, the fastest mammal on Earth, could not outrun its attackers, he cited differences in terrain. “In places like the Serengeti (national park in Tanzania), cheetahs can run away because there are large expanses of grassland. In Kuno, unless you convert woodland to grassland, it’s a problem … stony It’s a big challenge (for the cheetahs) to turn corners quickly on the ground, amidst complete obstacles.”
“Can the government convert woodland into grassland? Does the law allow it,” he asked rhetorically.
Originally, the plan was to relocate some lions from Gir (Gujarat) to another population in Kuno, to prevent the spread of the disease. The Supreme Court initially supported the transfer of the lion, but rectified the cheetah plan nearly two years ago.
Mr. Thapar listed the tiger in Kuno as another potential threat to the cheetah: “Sometimes tigers also come here from Ranthambore, a reason why lions cannot be relocated. This doesn’t happen often.” But we have to circle that aisle as well.”
What will they eat?
He also listed the problems faced in finding prey. “In the Serengeti, there are about a million plus gazelles available. In Kuno, unless we breed and bring in black deer or chinkaras (which live in grasslands), cheetahs will hunt spotted deer, which That they are forest animals and can hide. These deer also have big horns and can injure cheetahs. And cheetahs can’t hurt, it’s mostly fatal to them.”
“We already needed to produce chinkaras and blackbucks. Still we want to make history,” he said, adding, “I’m not sure why we’re doing this at this stage.” There are a lot of problems with indigenous species. balance.”
He said the cheetah had long been a “royal pet” and had “never killed a human”. “It’s so tender, so delicate. [The relocation] It’s a big challenge.”
Earlier today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, wearing sunglasses and a safari cap Cranked the lever to release a pack of cheetahs From Namibia in a special enclosure in Kuno.
The Prime Minister – it was his birthday today – was seen clicking pictures of big cats after he was released. The cheetahs, five females and three males will be kept in quarantine enclosures for about a month before being released into the open forest areas of the park.
creatures were Declared extinct in India in 1952,
Valmik Thapar underlined that they do not do well in breeding. “There are only 6,500 to 7,100 left in the world. And the mortality (death in cub stage) is 95 percent. Eight have just been brought in, and more will be brought in, which will be 35 in years. It’s a huge task. They need to be monitored 24-by-seven to make sure they are alive.”