African Cheetahs to be moved around for healthy gene flow: Expert

African Cheetahs to be moved around for healthy gene flow: Expert

Subject : Environment

Section: Biodiversity

Context: The 12 African cheetahs, which board a flight to India from South Africa next month are being prepared for their transcontinental journey. They are part of the first batch of 20 that India will receive as a part of its cheetah reintroduction plan at Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh

Action Plan for Introduction of Cheetah in India:

• Project Cheetah aims to bring back independent India’s only extinct large mammal – the cheetah. As part of the project, 50 cheetahs will be introduced in various National Parks over five years.
• In saving cheetahs, one would have to save not only its prey-base comprising certain threatened species, but also other endangered species of the grasslands and open forest ecosystems, some of which are on the brink of extinction.
• An important consideration during such conservation efforts is that the sourcing of animals should not be detrimental for the survival of the source population.
• Since it is not possible to source the critically endangered Asiatic cheetah from Iran without affecting this sub-species, India will source cheetahs from Southern Africa, which can provide India with substantial numbers of suitable cheetah for several years.
• Cheetahs from Southern Africa have the maximum observed genetic diversity among extant cheetah lineages, an important attribute for a founding population stock
• Moreover, the Southern African cheetahs are found to be ancestral to all the other cheetah lineages including those found in Iran.
• Amongst the 10 surveyed sites of the central Indian states, Kuno Palpur National Park (KNP) in Madhya Pradesh has been rated the highest. This is because of its suitable habitat and adequate prey base.
• KNP is 748 sq. km. in area, devoid of human settlements, forms part of Sheopur-Shivpuri deciduous open forest landscape and is estimated to have a capacity to sustain 21 cheetahs.

The other sites recommended are:

• Nauradehi Wildlife Sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh
• Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary – Bhainsrorgarh Wildlife Sanctuary, Madhya Pradesh
• Shahgarh bulge in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan
• Mukundara Tiger Reserve, Rajasthan   

Cheetah:

• Cheetahs live in open plains.
• Their habitat is predominantly where their prey live – grasslands, scrubs and open forest systems, semi-arid environments and temperatures that tend to be hotter compared to cooler regimes.
• The locally extinct cheetah-subspecies of India is found in Iran and is categorized as critically endangered