BHUBANESWAR: Tigress Priyanka died due to old age complications at Nandankanan Zoological Park on Monday. Now, the zoo has 26 tigers and tigresses.
Zoo authorities said Priyanka was 19.5 years old. “Priyanka was born to Tiger Ashok and Tigress Tanuja on March 25, 2000,” Zoo Deputy Director Jayant Kumar Das said. “Priyanka was under old age care and treatment for the two years. She was not suffering from any disease.
The average lifespan of a tiger or tigress is 16-18 years,” said zoo authorities. The zoo now has five normal coloured tigers and eight tigresses, four white tigers and five tigresses and four melanistic tigers.
The tiger population in Odisha has come down from 45 to 26 from 2006 to 2018 while it has gone up significantly at the national level. The Status of Tiger in India, 2018, released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during the 12 years put the total population of the big cats at around 3,000 while Odisha’s contribution was nil.
As per the census, the national figure was 1,411 in 2006 and 2,967 in 2018. On the other hand, tiger population in the State which was around 45 in 2006 declined to 32 in 2010 and 28 in 2014. “The tiger population in the country continues to increase. Its population in NE Hills and Odisha remain critically vulnerable,” stated the report.