With the monsoon season nearing its end, Kuno National Park is focused on enhancing the prey base for its cheetahs. To achieve this, the park has requested spotted deer (cheetal) from various tiger reserves and national parks in Madhya Pradesh.
Request for Spotted Deer from Reserves
Kuno National Park has demanded a total of 2,500 spotted deer from the following forest reserves:
- Kanha Tiger Reserve: 1,000 deer
- Pench Tiger Reserve: 500 deer
- Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve: 500 deer
- Madhav National Park: 500 deer
The primary goal of this translocation exercise is to boost the prey base for the cheetahs at Kuno.
Government Approval and Strategic Planning
The Indian government has given its consent for the translocation of spotted deer to Kuno National Park. Following this, the officials from the mentioned tiger reserves and parks have started planning the strategy for capturing and transporting the deer.
A significant development occurred when a batch of spotted deer was successfully translocated from Kanha Tiger Reserve to Kuno on September 17-18, 2024. Additional efforts are underway to catch more deer and send them to Kuno in phases.
Kanha’s Contribution
Kanha Tiger Reserve has the highest density of spotted deer compared to other reserves in Madhya Pradesh, making it a crucial contributor to this translocation effort.
Current Prey Base Situation at Kuno
According to the recently released Cheetah Project report, the current population of cheetal in Kuno is around 6,700, which serves as the primary prey for cheetahs. However, with 12 adult cheetahs and 91 leopards in the park, there is a significant prey base deficit.
To address this, the report suggests the immediate translocation of at least 1,500 spotted deer to bridge the gap. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of maintaining the spotted deer population within predator-proof enclosures to ensure a consistent supply of prey for the cheetahs.
Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs):
- What is the total number of spotted deer requested by Kuno National Park from various reserves?
- a) 1,000
- b) 2,500
- c) 6,700
- d) 1,500
- Answer: b) 2,500
- Which tiger reserve is contributing the highest number of spotted deer to Kuno National Park?
- a) Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve
- b) Pench Tiger Reserve
- c) Kanha Tiger Reserve
- d) Madhav National Park
- Answer: c) Kanha Tiger Reserve
- When was a batch of spotted deer translocated to Kuno National Park from Kanha Tiger Reserve?
- a) August 20-21
- b) September 10-11
- c) September 17-18
- d) October 1-2
- Answer: c) September 17-18
- What is the current population of cheetal (spotted deer) in Kuno National Park as per the Cheetah Project report?
- a) 2,500
- b) 1,000
- c) 6,700
- d) 10,000
- Answer: c) 6,700
- How many adult cheetahs are currently present in Kuno National Park?
- a) 10
- b) 12
- c) 15
- d) 18
- Answer: b) 12
- What is one key recommendation from the Cheetah Project report for maintaining the spotted deer population?
- a) Increase the population of cheetahs
- b) Use predator-proof enclosures
- c) Reduce the number of leopards
- d) Translocate 500 deer from Kanha
- Answer: b) Use predator-proof enclosures