The Project Cheetah, which launched in India in January 2022 is now facing a lot’s and lots of problems as some of the Cheetah’s which were brought under the Project have died due to Various kinds of illness and also some other reasons. With-in a year’s time from the launch of the project, 8 cheetah’s have lost their lives at the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh. (Suraj was the name of the 8th Cheetah who died and was a part of this project).
The Extreme Weather Condition is the main reason?
The Extreme weather conditions such as scorching heat and heavy monsoon is termed as the reasons for the death of cheetahs. It is said that due to the change in weather(which brings some changes in the animal body) there would have been a wound formed near the neck of the cheetah’s because of the Radio-collars strap, which must have led to septicaemia (an infection of the bloodstream) and then the death of the cheetah.
What Expert has to say on this?
The South-African Veterinary Wildlife expert has termed this problem (which is causing cheetah deaths) as unique and said that “It is quite a unique problem and is associated with the very moist conditions in Kuno which got double the amount of rainfall that it normally gets at this time of the year. The constant moisture led to maceration of the skin near the collars, which led to infection and further infestation by flies and maggots. Eventually, it led to a systemic infection, causing septicaemia, and the animal died of a septic shock”.
The Radio-collar Problem with the cheetah’s
Such incidents which are leading a big question mark on the material which is used in the making of these Radio-collars to track the Cheetah’s. A South Africa-based veterinarian Adrian Tordiffe has once explained that How Suraj (the Cheetah) must have died because of the radio-collar in that he told that “Suraj died due to septicaemia (an infection of the bloodstream) caused on its neck by the radio collar, a device used to track animal movement. The humid or wet weather could have caused water to accumulate underneath the collar, keeping the skin constantly wet, Tordiffe had said. Flies attracted to the spot lay eggs and the maggots that emerge “feed on tissues and create wounds that get infected and can lead to systemic infection”.
Even the chairman of the Cheetah Project Steering Committee Mr. Rajesh Gopal has also said that he has never seen Radio-collars giving such a problem and also that “cheetahs Tejas and Suraj died due to collar-related infections] is true and it is a cause for concern
What are the steps that should be taken to control the Problem
The Experts have now suggested to re-capture Each-and-every cheetah and bring them to the Enclosure to study the problems facing by them. So far, the NTCA has re-captured 5 felines and the rest 10 are still set into the wild.
But, the Cheetah’s who are set in wild and are connected with the Radio-collar are going to be monitored everytime even after their Medical check-up.s