Another Cheetah Died At Kuno National Park, 8th Death In 4 Months

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• Jul 14, 2023 | Dhupali Das

Another cheetah died on Friday at Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, making it the eighth death in the...

Digital Desk: Another cheetah died on Friday at Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh, making it the eighth death in the last four months. This is a significant blow to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Project Cheetah,' which was started in September of last year. Reportedly, the African cheetah Suraj was found dead at the national park earlier today.

According to Kuno officials, the cause of death has yet to be ascertained.

This comes just a few days after another male cheetah, Tejas, was found dead at the park on Tuesday. According to reports, the post-mortem examination revealed that the big cat was "internally weak" and unable to recuperate from a "traumatic shock" caused by a fight with another female cheetah.

The post-mortem investigation also revealed that the cheetah weighed roughly 43 kilograms, which is less than the typical weight for male cheetahs. His internal body parts were also not functioning, and the possibilities of restoring his health were quite less.

"Prima facie, the cause of death is traumatic shock," according to the report, as cited by PTI.

As per reports, on March 27, another female Cheetah named Sasha died of kidney disease. Before that, on April 23, Uday passed away from cardiopulmonary failure. On May 9, a female cheetah named Daksha died following a struggle with a male cheetah during a mating attempt. On May 25, two cheetah cubs died as a result of "extreme weather conditions and dehydration."

Meanwhile, in the wake of the cheetah deaths in Kuno, wildlife experts have urged that more experienced veterinarians be involved in the care of big cats.

"Although cheetah deaths were expected in this reintroduction program, what was surprising was that these fatalities occurred in the enclosed bomas, where they were least expected. Cheetahs were expected to die after being released from the protected enclosure, rather than while still inside. A female cheetah attacking and killing a male is something that has never been reported anywhere across the cheetah's range," YV Jhala, former dean and senior professor at Dehradun-based Wildlife Institute of India (WII), told PTI.