NILGIRIS: For the first time in the state, a captured tiger was relocated without sedation.
On Saturday night the forest department shifted a three-year-old male tiger to the core area of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR). It was transferred to a smaller cage from a larger one in which it was trapped before it was released into the forest.
It was captured the other day after it killed more than 13 cows in the surroundings of Devarsholai in the last nine months.
N Venkatesh Prabhu, district forest officer (DFO), Gudalur Forest Division, explained the capture and shifting process of the tiger named ‘GFDT32’.
“The carcass of a cow which was killed by the tiger a few days ago was kept in a big cage. As expected, the tiger became trapped in the cage in the wee hours of Saturday. The staff came to know about it only on Saturday morning at 8 am.
“Usually, a tiger or leopard trapped in a cage would be given sedation by the veterinarian, and then it would be shifted to a portable cage in a semi-conscious state. Moreover, the staff will be engaged to hold the animal and shift it from one cage to another. However, after capturing ‘GFDT32’, our team members didn’t want it to get a human imprint through handling or sedation as it would get stressed if sedated,” the DFO stated.
Though it took time for the big cat to get into the smaller cage on its own, we waited for hours for its welfare,” he added.
“We placed a smaller cage at the mouth of the bigger cage at 11:30 am. It entered the smaller cage on its own only at 2 pm without human interference. As is the character of a big cat, it first explored the cage.
After approaching the smaller cage four times, the animal entered it and the door was automatically locked. The tiger was released inside a reserve forest without the presence of other male tigers,” said the DFO, who thanked the people and farmers of Devarsholai for extending cooperation throughout the operation.
Over 30 members attached to the Gudalur Forest Division were involved in setting up camera traps, placing cages, and creating awareness among the locals to prevent escalation of human-tiger conflict in the last three months.
Thirty more staff from the police and the revenue departments were involved in shifting the tiger from one cage to another, relocating, and releasing it inside the forest on Saturday.
Supriya Sahu, additional chief secretary, Environment, Climate Change, and Forests Department, congratulated the team. “The capture and relocation was carried out to prevent an escalation of human-wildlife conflict. What makes this operation truly exceptional is that no sedation was used at any stage, thanks to the skill, precision, and field experience of our frontline team led by Gudalur DFO Venkatesh Prabhu, veterinarians, and the dedicated team of forest rangers, guards, and watchers,” she said.
“Human-wildlife conflict is emerging as one of the most complex conservation challenges across India. We need to continuously set high standards in scientific wildlife management and conflict mitigation, ensuring that the safety of both people and wildlife remains at the centre of every decision,” she said in her social media post.