Inadequate space for cheetahs at KNP, says ex-WII official

Bhopal, April 30

Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park (KNP), which has seen the death of two cheetahs in less than a month, has “inadequate space” for these felines brought from Africa, a former official of the Wildlife Institute of India has claimed.

The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), which is overseeing the ambitious cheetah reintroduction project in the country, has called a meeting in New Delhi on Monday in the wake of the death of two cheetahs of the 20 felines translocated to KNP from Namibia and South Africa over the last eight months, an official said.

According to experts, a cheetah needs about 100 sq km area for its movement. The KNP is spread over an area of 748 sq km and has a buffer zone of 487 sq km. Wildlife Institute of India’s (WII) former dean Yadvendradev Vikramsinh Jhala, who was part of the cheetah project in the past, said KNP had “inadequate space” for these animals. “Kuno is a protected area, but the landscape in which cheetahs can live in Kuno is spread over 5,000 sq km, which includes agricultural parts, forested habitats and communities living within the area. If the cheetahs adapt to this environment, they will be able to thrive in KNP,” he said.

Asked about the population (theory), he said Kuno, Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve (Rajasthan), Gandhi Sagar Sanctuary and Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary in MP were not viable sites. “To shift one or three cheetahs after one or two generations from one place to another is called metapopulation management so that there is genetic exchange. This is an important exercise. Without this, we can’t manage cheetahs in our country,” he said.

Earlier this month, the MP Forest Department wrote to the NTCA seeking an “alternate site” for the translocated cheetahs. “We have sent a request letter by official mail to the NTCA….They have not replied yet,” a forest official said. “We can’t release all 18 cheetahs into the wild at KNP,” he said, citing lack of logistical support and space for the felines.

Notably, months before the cheetahs were brought to India from Africa, a risk management plan was drafted, stating a “contingency plan” was in the process of being put in place for dealing with serial escapees. Permissions are being obtained for the release of these animals into Mukundara Hills Tiger Reserve. — PTI

Recent trouble

• One of eight Namibian cheetahs brought to KNP, died of a kidney ailment on March 27
• Six-year-old male feline ‘Uday’, translocated from South Africa in February,
• died on April 23
• Cheetah ‘Pavan’ has strayed out multiple times; cheetah Asha has wandered out of park twice