Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Female cheetah Jwala and her four cubs have been moving freely in the open ranges of the Kuno National Park since their recent release.
On Wednesday, they crossed a shallow river with great ease. Currently, twelve cheetahs — five adults and seven cubs — are roaming in the open areas of the Kuno forest.
They are also hunting to satiate their hunger. Of them, Jwala and Asha are accompanied by their cubs. Asha has her three cubs. The other adult cheetahs out in the open are Agni, Vayu, and Dhira.
A dedicated team of forest employees is monitoring the movement of all the 12 cheetahs. How the cheetahs have adapted to Kuno raises hope for the Cheetah project, which is the first such intercontinental cheetah translocation globally.
A forest officer of Kuno said the 12 cheetahs are exploring the terrain and trying to understand their surroundings. They could establish their territory later.
In September 2022, eight cheetahs from Namibia were released in Kuno by PM Narendra Modi while 12 others from South Africa were released there in February 2023. Of those, eight died due to sundryreasons. Now, there are 12 adult cheetahs in Kuno.
14 big cats still inside enclosures
There are seven adult cheetahs still inside the enclosures at the Kuno National Park. They are: Veera, Nabha, Prabash, Pavak, Gaurav, Gamini, and Nirbha. Seven cubs, two of Veera’s, four of Gamini’s and one of Jwala’s, are also inside the enclosures. This takes the total population of cheetahs at Kuno to 26, including the 12 released outside.
