Another cheetah death at Kuno National Park : officials
According to Madhya Pradesh wildlife authorities, the monitoring team spotted the cheetah, Suraj, “in a lethargic state around 6:30 am in the Masavani beat of Palpur East Zone”.
The cheetah was found lying still in Palpur East Forest Range’s Masavani beat by a monitoring team on Friday morning.
A male cheetah died at Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh on Friday — the eighth big cat to have died there this year.
According to Madhya Pradesh wildlife authorities, the monitoring team spotted the cheetah, Suraj, “in a lethargic state around 6:30 am in the Masavani beat of Palpur East Zone”.
The team spotted a fly around its neck, and when they tried to get close, the animal ran away.
“The condition of the cheetah was immediately informed by wireless to the control room at Palpur by the monitoring team. On getting the information, the wildlife medical team and regional officers reached the spot around 9 am. On tracing its location, it was found dead on the spot,” said a wildlife officer.
The officer said that “initial investigation found the cause of death to be wounds on the neck and back”.“The detailed report of the cause of death will be reported by the team of wildlife doctors after the autopsy. The cause of death will be clear only on the basis of the report,” he said.
With Suraj’s death, eight felines, including three cubs born to Namibian cheetah Jwala, have died at KNP since March. The cheetah reintroduction programme was launched at KNP in September last year.
On July 11, a male cheetah, Tejas, was found dead with neck injuries inside enclosure number 6. On May 9, female cheetah Daksha, brought from South Africa, died following a “violent interaction” with two male cheetahs during mating.
Daksha’s death came close on the heels of the death of Uday, who had taken ill in April. On March 27, a Namibian cheetah named Sasha died of kidney complications. Sasha was believed to have contracted the ailment during its captivity in Namibia and had been unwell since arriving at Kuno.
Three of four cubs born to Jwala died in May. While the first cub died on May 23 due to suspected weakness, the other two died on May 25 due to “extreme weather condition and dehydration”.
