The number of cheetah dying in Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park has reached nine, the latest being a female cheetah, identified as Dhatri (Tiblisi). The cheetah was found dead on Wednesday morning. The authorities said a post-mortem is under way to ascertain cause of death.
Among the nine cheetahs died at the park so far, three were cubs. While 14 cheetahs – seven males, six females and one female cub – are kept in the bomas in Kuno, a female cheetah is out in the open and is being kept under close observation. The team is trying to bring her back to the boma for a health checkup, the statement said.
The government had introduced 20 cheetahs – eight from Namibia and 12 from South Africa – to Kuno on September 17, 2022 and February 18, 2023 respectively under the ambitious inter-continental cheetah translocation project. On March 23, one of the cheetahs, Jwala, had given birth to four cubs, but soon a series of deaths started in Kuno – with five adults and three cubs succumbing between March 27 and July 14. The latest death has further deteriorated the situation.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh tweeted, “Something has really gone wrong at Kuno… The ninth cheetah death took place this morning. The argument that all these deaths are expected mortality is complete nonsense and has been debunked by international cheetah experts. This is what happens when science and transparency take a backseat. This is what happens when one man's vanity and desperate need for self-glory takes over.”
In an exclusive interview with THE WEEK, Tordiffe, the top name on the consulting panel of international cheetah experts linked to the Cheetah Project Steering Committee, had cautioned that if the situation related to deaths was not turned around, Project Cheetah could be in jeopardy as the South African government might decide against sending more big cats to India.
Chairman of the Cheetah Project Steering Committee Rajesh Gopal had told THE WEEK in July that in-depth studies were required to find out the exact cause of infection in the animals. He claimed that mortalities are expected during inter-continental translocations due to changes in their biological clocks and circadian rhythms. “Our action plan mentions that the mortality rate may even go up to 90 per cent (of the founder population),” he said.
“They have to get used to this and also to the anti-predator strategies of the prey animals in the new areas, the forest cover and the presence of other competitive animals. They do this through exploration. The Kuno cheetahs are currently in that exploratory phase. In this phase, there might be wrong turns and they can get killed or die. Only finally when they call out their territories will they settle and stabilise. This can take at least three or four years,” said Gopal. “Collar-related deaths are unusual and require more studies to find the exact cause. Meanwhile, other animals need to be examined urgently and possible preventive measures taken,” he said.
But the cheetahs released in the wild being returned to enclosures due to health concerns casts a shadow on the ambitious project. This has also dimmed the possibility of tourists being permitted to visit the cheetahs, with many commercial projects, especially those of hotels and resorts, being reportedly halted.
A timeline of cheetah deaths
March 27: Sasha from Namibia dies, likely of renal infection.
April 23: Uday from South Africa dies, likely of cardio-pulmonary failure.
May 9: Daksha from South Africa dies, likely of injuries due to violent mating.
May 23: One of Jwala’s cubs dies.
May 25: Two more cubs of Jwala die–all three deaths likely because of low birth weight and severe dehydration caused by extreme heat.
July 11: Tejas from South Africa dies due to “traumatic shock”. He was underweight and his internal organs were compromised.
July 14: Suraj from South Africa dies of septicaemia caused by wounds on neck and back, and consequent shock.
August 2: Dhatri (Tiblisi) from Namibia dies. Post-mortem under way, cause yet to be ascertained.