CHEETAH REINTRODUCTION - ENVIRONMENT
News: Cheetahs introduced without considering spatial ecology: Study
What's in the news?
● Three
scientists from the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin,
Germany, have pointed out serious shortcomings in the reintroduction plan.
Key takeaways from the
news?
1. High density:
● The
researchers pointed out that high cheetah densities have not been recorded for
other free-ranging African cheetah population roaming in unfenced areas.
● India's
density is three cheetahs per 100 sq.km.
● Instead,
just one cheetah is present per 100sq km of unfenced area. Even in prey-rich
landscapes such as the Maasai Mara in Kenya, the cheetah density is just about
one per 100sq km.
● Male
cheetahs brought from South Africa will be forced to settle outside the Kuno
National Park.
2.
Spatial tactics of Cheetah:
● The
territories will be distributed in the landscape with a separation distance of
20-23 km.
● The
researchers predict that irrespective of the territory size, the three males
will occupy the entire national park, leaving no space for additional
territories for males introduced from South Africa.
3.
Man Animal conflict:
● The
researchers predict that the eight cheetahs will move outside the park during
their exploration phase and could potentially come into conflict with livestock
farmers.
Cheetah Reintroduction Plan:
● About:
Under the plan, 50 Cheetahs will be introduced in the different National Parks
in the country in a span of 5 years.
● Countries:
Initially, translocating around 8-12 cheetahs from South Africa, Namibia and
Botswana will be done.
● First project:
This is the first time in the world that a large carnivore will be relocated
from one continent to another.
● Place of reintroduction:
The cheetahs have been introduced in an unfenced area of about 750 sq. km. in
the Kuno National Park.
● Implementation:
The Ministry is coordinating with the National Tiger Conservation Authority
(NTCA) as well as the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), which has been
spearheading the project on behalf of the Indian government.
IUCN status:
● Asian
Cheetah - Critically Endangered
● African
Cheetah - Vulnerable