BHUBANESWAR: The Nandankanan Zoological Park has started consulting wildlife and veterinary experts to address infertility among certain species of wild animals and encourage conservation breeding of the endangered species. It will improve their birth rate for animal exchange programme and rewilding.
The zoo authorities held a meeting in this regard with the expert members of Centre for Wildlife Health (CWH) and veterinary officers at OUAT recently. They will soon carry out ultrasonographic evaluation of reproductive tracts of three lioness and supplementation of trace minerals of wild dogs and wolves initially.
“If required we will conduct hormonal therapy of the felines and canines as per the recommendation of the experts,” said zoo deputy director Sanjeet Kumar. Kumar said, “During weekend health review of zoo animals, we found that the birth rate among herbivorous species is much higher compared to carnivorous species. Radha, a lioness, brought from Bangalore has been able to give birth to cubs only twice in 2015 and 2017, while her sister Rukmini, brought from the same place, has not been able to reproduce in last 11 years.”
Radha’s daughter Kalpana, born in 2015, has also not been able to conceive in the last six years, though female lions in captive usually start breeding after four years of age. Besides, he said the two female Indian wolves and two female wild dogs have also not been able to breed even after three years of age. “If these issues are not addressed, these felines and canines may gradually loss their reproductive potential,” Kumar said.
The zoo has also started consulting experts as it plans to double the white tiger population in the park. The zoo has six tigers at present. “This way the overall population of tiger will also increase helping us to go for animal exchange programme as well as their rewilding,” he said. Kumar said a portable ultrasound scanner from CWH will be brought to Nandankanan for ultrasonography of the animal, while help of members of department of Genetics, LPM and ARGGO will be considered to improve the fertility rate among the felines and canines in the zoo.
The zoo is seeking suggestions from CWH coordinator and HoD of Preventive Medicine at OUAT Dr Niranjan Sahu, head of surgery and CWH expert Prof Indramani Nath and four other experts.