Maharashtra Tiger ‘Walker II’ safe captured on camera in Gautala sanctuary after 2 weeks

    Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Mar 19 (PTI) Walker II, the lone tiger at Gautala wildlife sanctuary in Maharashtra, has been spotted on a camera trap, nearly two weeks after going off the radar, an official said on Wednesday.
    The big cat, around four years old, has stayed in the protected forest since March 2021, when he came in search of new territory. It has marked its area between Kannad and Chalisgaon in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Jalgaon districts, respectively, the official said.

    The tiger was spotted on February 27 before it went “missing” for about two weeks, raising the speculation that it might have been killed by poachers. To everyone’s delight, he was captured on camera traps on March 13 and 14, the official said.

    “The tiger is safe and is in the core area of Gautala. He stays in the jungles of Kannad taluka for nearly three weeks and then shifts to Chalisgaon for about a week,” the official said, adding that it has enough prey in the sanctuary.

    Honorary wildlife warden Dr Kishor Pathak said a tiger has come to the area after nearly 50 years.

    “To keep the tiger safe, regular patrolling should be done in the jungle area. There should be speed limits for vehicles passing through the sanctuary,” he said.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)