Sheopur (Madhya Pradesh): Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park welcomed nine new Cheetahs from Botswana on Saturday, increasing the total number of wild cats in the state to 48. Union Environment and Forest Minister Bhupender Yadav symbolically released Cheetahs into special qurantine enclosures as they landed after over 7k km long journey.
Out of nine, six are female cheetahs and three are males.
This is the second wildlife achievement in a week after Cheetah Gamini gave birth to 4 cubs at Kuno National Park.
This is the third time Kuno has embraced a batch of Cheetahs from foreign countries. The first historic moment took place on September 17, 2022 when 8 Cheetahs were brought from Namibia.
Later, on February 18, 2023, the second batch brought 12 Cheetahs from South Africa itself.
Botswana Cheetahs travel 7.6k kms
This time, the third batch of 9 Cheetahs travelled approximately 7.6k kilometers to arrive at Kuno National Park.
The cheetahs completed a nearly 12-hour flight and first landed at the Air Force Station in Gwalior. From there, three Air Force helicopters transported them to Kuno National Park.
Union Environment and Forest Minister Bhupender Yadav was present at Kuno during the arrival. He symbolically released the cheetahs into special quarantine enclosures by turning the handle of the crates one by one.
Wildlife experts said this will improve the gender balance at Kuno and increase future breeding chances. After the arrival, Kuno now has 18 adult female and 16 adult male cheetahs.
All 9 cheetahs will stay in special quarantine enclosures for about one month under expert supervision.
Kuno to witness genetic diversity
After cheetahs from Namibia and South Africa, this is the first group from Botswana. Experts believe that bringing cheetahs from three different countries will improve genetic diversity and strengthen the long-term success of the project.
Wildlife officials say the arrival of cheetahs from Botswana marks another important step in making the Cheetah Project a long-term success story for India.
