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For the First Time the Official Tale of Kuno Cheetahs

  Ahead of the first anniversary of the  controvertial cheetah project  and the release of African cheetahs in  Kuno national park ,  interesting observations have been shared by the  director of the park where   14 cheetahs await re-release in the wild. They were caught   and brought back to bomas following 6 cheetah deaths after septicemia caused by abrasion from   satellite collars.   Uttam Kumar Sharma , the park director has dwelt in detail on cheetah movements and their exploration of the landscape , their interaction with each other and the  efforts  made by the  park management to  monitor the  animals  round the clock as he tried to hammer home a point- African cheetahs are adapting fast in India.  Asha: The Hope   Based upon his observations, Sharma has released newsletters   revolving around   two cheetah coalitions -Gaurav-Shaurya (Rockstars) and Agni-Vayu (White walkers), Asha, the female cheetah from Namibia and  Jwala and her Indian born cubs. The story  of the two coali

Cheetah Escapes From Kuno , Scares Villagers

 

Cheetah hindind in farmfield

International team of  wildlife experts including those from the union ministry of environment, forest and climate change (MoEFC&C), government of Madhya Pradesh, Cheetah Conservation Fund  ,Namibia among others have  been spending sleepless nights ever since four cheetahs were  released in the open forest of Kuno. Two cheetahs and male and a female each named Oban and Asha respectively, were released on March 11 followed by Elton and Freddie. No sooner did they step out from their enclosures, the cheetahs  vanished in the jungle. Within  no time, their location throught their satellite radio collars was traced in the  territorial forests  around Kuno. There were no media reports as it was not confirmed by the officials tightlipped over the issue. But on Sunday, video evidence broke the news.

"Oban Oban", "Come Oban" , "Go Oban"

Cheetah hiding in farmfield

The video , shot by a villager showed Oban , a male cheetah, trying  timidly to hide himself in  the standing wheat crop of a barbed -wired farmfield in Jhar Baroda  village of Vijapur tehesil of Sheopur district where Kuno is located. In fact , after the cheetah escape, the  villagers were  panicked by the cat's presence and  many of them pelted stones at the cheetah to  scare  him away from the  human settlement of the tribal village , about 20 kms away from Kuno’s boundary.  A rescue team , being trained for this hour, reached and  many of its members  were heard  calling  , “ Oban Oban '' , “ come Oban '' ,“Go Oban '' as they  persuaded    the animal to go back to the jungle. Sources said that the team also carried a cage to capture the cheetah. The villagers said that they were worried over the happening as the cheetah had reached very close to their hutments.  

Also readMore Questions  On Cheetah Project in Kuno 

“ He could harm our animals and children”, they argued. Sources also claimed that the cheetah sustained minor injuries or bruises , may be because of the barbed wire or the  stone pelting.  There wwere also  reports of the cheetah killing a a cattle but it could not be confirmed. “The video showed  how vulnerable the animal was and will continue to be in the  small  jungle of Kuno with 749 square kms of  area to  roam around”, officials said expressing concern.  Experts have already claimed lack of  prey for this fastest animal on the four legs .In fact the  cheetahs have already touched the boundaries of the neighbouring Shivpuri  district, about 120 kms away from Sheopur. They were moving in the territorial forests of Shivpuri.

Not Possible To Chase Cheetah Every Day

cheetah hiding in farmfield

The cheetah escape may have been hogging headlines, it has not surprised  experts. “ This is a small jungle and  we were  expecting it to happen. We were prepared for the moment ”, one of the officials said. For the past two days, the officials were looking for  Oban  but its exact location could not be ascertained. On Sunday, some villagers informed the park officials of the spot where the cheetah was  hiding.  Oban found an open spot in the fencing and saw an opportunity to explore .It is a wild animal’s natural behaviour to venture and explore its surroundings, they said .  The animal was spotted a couple of times after it escaped and its location was roughly known.A team of veterinarians   accompanied the officials as they   chased the cheetah .  

Also readCheetahs in Kuno: Deep Divide Over the Project

Around 6.30 pm , the cheetah was  chased away successfully  and brought back to the jungle.  Imagine the cheetah chase by the team for  more than 24 hours.  " Can this exercise be repeated time and again ", they asked and replied   by themselves, " No, it is not possible to do this every day." There are three more cheetahs already outside the enclosures. They have already wandered outside the park and returned. KNP is currently home to 19 adult African cheetahs brought from Namibia and South Africa as part of the Centre’s aim to introduce the species to India where it was declared extinct in 1952. Twelve of the animals are from South Africa and 7 from Namibia. An eighth cheetah from Namibia, a female named Sasha, died on March 27 due to renal failure. While one of the  female cheetahs , Sasha, died of renal failure while a three-year-old Siyaya, gave birth to a litter of four cubs on March 29.

By Deshdeep Saxena 

Images: Cheetah in the farm field, video grabs

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