Published: Friday, Sep 21, 2012, 16:03 IST
By DNA Correspondent | Place: Ahmedabad | Agency: DNA
Difficult as it might
be to digest but the fact remains that the king of the jungle at Gir
Wildlife Sanctuary is often brought to his knees by lowly insects during
the monsoon. Forest officials say that the nuisance value of insects
and mosquitoes is such that it sends lions scurrying for cover in the
rains.
According to forest officials, the sanctuary remains closed in the
monsoons not just because it could disturb the mating lions, but also
because most of them seek refuge from these pests by abandoning their
usual low-lying habitat and shift to higher terrain.
“Even if one
were to go into the sanctuary during the rains using the routes
designated for tourists it would be very difficult to find a lion
because most would have moved to higher ground to escape the flies and
other insects,” said a forest official.The
chief trouble mongers are lion flies and another small species known as
fusil in the local language. “The lion flies are named so owing to
their big size. They are big compared with an average fly and are blood
sucking parasites. Their bite has the potency to cause severe itching
for a long duration,” said another forest official. Further, mosquitoes
too pose a serious threat to the well-being of lions during the monsoon.
Source: http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_in-rains-gir-lions-shift-to-insect-safe-zone_1743579
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