The condition of the fourth cheetah cub born in Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park (KNP) is stable. A forest official gave this information on Friday. A female cheetah named Jwala, who was brought to KNP from Namibia in September last year, gave birth to four cubs in the last week of March this year, out of which three cubs have died three days ago while the fourth cub is undergoing treatment. . Jwala was earlier known as Siya.
The death of three Indian-born cheetah cubs in KNP has dealt a blow to “Project Cheetah”, an ambitious plan to reintroduce cheetahs to the country. KNP director Uttam Sharma said, ‘The condition of the fourth cheetah cub is stable. But it is very difficult to tell whether any (sick) animal survives. We are working day and night to save him.
Another forest department official blamed the scorching heat for the death of the three cubs on May 23. He said that when these three cubs died on May 23, the temperature there was more than 45 degree Celsius, which was not favorable for them.
He explained that cheetahs in Namibia give birth at the beginning of the rainy season, which is followed by winter, while Jwala gave birth to four cubs in KNP in early summer, which is unfavorable for cubs in terms of temperature. had time.
However, the weather in KNP is pleasant now due to rains last night, he said. The death of a cub was reported on 23 May in KNP. Two cubs also died in the afternoon of the same day, but their deaths were reported two days later, on 25 May.
According to an official release issued on Thursday, after the death of a cheetah cub on May 23, the monitoring team tracked the movements of the female cheetah Jwala and her remaining three cubs. It was told in the release that on May 23, the surveillance team found that the condition of the three cubs was not good and it was decided to treat them. The day temperature at that time was around 46 to 47 degree Celsius.
According to the release, the cubs were found to be severely dehydrated and despite treatment, the cubs could not be saved. The condition of the fourth cub is stable and is undergoing intensive treatment. One of the Namibian cheetahs, Sasha, died of kidney disease on March 27, while Uday, a cheetah brought from South Africa, died on April 13.
At the same time, Daksha, a female cheetah brought from South Africa, died on May 9 this year. Jwala’s four cubs were the first to be born on Indian soil after the last cheetah hunt in Chhattisgarh’s Korea district in 1947. In addition to three cubs, three of the 20 adult cheetahs brought from South Africa and Namibia have died in KNP.
These cheetahs were brought to KNP from Namibia and South Africa in September last year and February this year respectively. This wildlife, characterized by the fastest running on earth, was declared extinct in the country in 1952. On September 17, 2022, five female and three male cheetahs brought from Namibia were released into enclosures in KNP in an event organized by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Another 12 cheetahs were brought from South Africa in February 2023 and kept in separate enclosures.
