CSR: Protecting The Endangered Asiatic Lion

By

 Kasmin Fernandes

 -

 September 30, 2019

Three months after at least 20 lions in Gujarat succumbed to a virus, the Centre and the Gujarat governments announced a Asiatic Lion Conservation Project. The Asiatic Lion is listed as ‘Endangered’ under the IUCN Red List. It is exposed to severe threats in the Gir region like shrinking habitat, vulnerability to diseases, death from linear infrastructure such as road, rail and electric fences, man-animal conflict.

The conservation project which has a “Species Conservation over a large landscape” focuses on disease management, habitat improvement and eco-development, making more sources of water available robust wildlife health service with a dedicated veterinary institute, lion ambulances”, back-up stocks of vaccines addressing of man-wild animal conflict issues, voluntary relocation of Protect Area inhabitants (Maldhari tribe), monitoring and tracking of animals, creating a wildlife crime cell, a task force for the Greater Gir region. It would also involve having in place a GPS-based tracking system, which would look at surveillance tracking, animal and vehicle tracking.

There would also be an automated sensor grid that would have magnetic sensors, movement sensors and infra-red heat sensors. The project also seeks to divide The Greater Gir Region that includes, area other than the existing Gir National Park, sanctuaries in Girnar, Pania and Mitiyala, into various zones and formulate various “zone plans and theme plans” for their management. Total budget of the project for 3 years that amounts to nearly INR 9,784 lakh will be funded from the Centrally Sponsored Scheme- Development of Wildlife Habitat (CSS-DWH) with the contributing ratio being 60:40 of Central and State share.

Reasons for translocation

The big cat population in Gujarat is the last of the Asiatic lions in the wild. In 2013, the Supreme Court had issued an order in this regard. Under this, lions from Gujarat are to be relocated to the Kuno sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh. This was ordered as a check against the threat of epidemic. A smaller population with limited genetic strength are more vulnerable to diseases and calamities than a large and widespread population. The court noted how 30% of the lion population in Tanzania’s Serengeti was killed due to an outbreak of a viral disease. Asiatic lion has been restricted to only one single habitat i.e. the Gir National Forest and its surrounding areas. So an outbreak of possible epidemic or natural calamity might wipe off the entire species. Very recently, after the series of deaths, the Supreme Court has asked the Central government to look into it.

Gujarat unwilling to relocate

Gujarat has been unwilling to relocate its lions, calling them “its pride”. Gujarat has responded that lions are now spread over the Greater Gir region and this reduces the threat. When ill, lions are routinely picked up, medically treated, and then released. It thus said that good conservation practices and intensive wildlife healthcare had lead to epidemic free regime. It has also said that the lions there are metapopulations in the State, which may be geographically separate but have interactions and an exchange of individuals. So the current Asiatic lion population is not a single population confined to one place. It consists of “metapopulation spread over several locations within the Greater Gir Region”.

When wild animals go extinct locally, they are reintroduced as in the case of tigers in Sariska, Rajasthan. When hungry, they are fed artificially, and even provided salts as supplements. In other parts of India, wild animals are funnelled through artificial trenches, barriers and fences. But this is wildlife conservation in the age of man, where protected areas sometimes resemble zoos. In nature, wildlife conservation concerns itself with maintaining ecological processes and reducing threats to endangered species.

This does not entail treating wild animals for disease as done for domestic animals. As it is not conducive to the ‘natural’ process of life and death, it goes against the natural selection processes, and ultimately compromises immunity. So intensive artificial medical treatment of wild animals does not augur well for long-term sustainability.

The Kuno-Palpur Wildlife Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh was identified to be the most suitable for reintroducing the species, according to a Supreme Court-appointed technical expert committee.
https://thecsrjournal.in/csr-protecting-the-endangered-asiatic-lion/

Leopard kills two near Gir forest

Posted at: Sep 29 2019 4:07PM
Amreli, Sep 29 (UNI) Close on heels of the killing of a five year old boy by a leopard, the bodies of two people, suspected to be attacked and killed by a similar beast were found on the outskirts of Monwel village in Dhari taluka of Amreli district in Gujarat on Sunday.

Police said that bodies of Karsan B Sagathiya and his relative Bhutabhai A Vala were found in an agricultural field on the outskirts of the village today. They were labourers living in a farm house. There were marks of attack of a leopard on their bodies. It is suspected that they were attacked by the leopard late last night.

http://www.uniindia.com/leopard-kills-two-near-gir-forest/west/news/1744364.html

Asiatic lion to be shifted to Neyyar tomorrow

STAFF REPORTER

Nagaraj, a 10-year-old Asiatic male lion brought from the Sakkarbaug Zoological Garden in Gujarat last month and now lodged at the city zoo, will be relocated to the Lion Safari Park in Neyyar on Monday.

The lion will make the journey to Neyyar alone after Radha, the six-and-a-half-year-old lioness transported along with him, died at the zoo on Wednesday.

The two cats had been brought to the State in exchange for two giant Malabar squirrels.

Mystery

Meanwhile, the cause of Radha’s death remains a mystery. She was seemingly well at the start of the journey. But all through the relocation, the lioness hardly ate anything. After reaching the zoo on August 18, its feeding pattern was erratic.

Finally, a blood test was done on August 25 and bacterial infection was suspected owing to the high total blood count. The lioness was then put on a range of antibiotics, to which she failed to respond.

A team of doctors was put on the case and they suspected pyomoetra caused by sepsis. In the meanwhile, the lioness was paralysed on September 2. When scanning ruled out pyometra, the doctors were back to square one.

They consulted with experts from veterinary colleges and even doctors working in critical care for human beings to get a break. The blood analysis of the cat, done every three days, did not match her physical condition or the fact that she continued to be alive. Even after the death of the lioness, the exact cause continues to elude the doctors.

Chief Forest Veterinary Officer Easwaran E.K. says tests are being considered using fresh kits for feline infectious peritonitis (FIP).

The doctors say deaths of Asiatic lions relocated from Sakkarbaug have been reported in other places, and if they are able to identify the cause of death, it will be a breakthrough. “Radha was the first Asiatic lion to be received by the State. For us, her death is not a closed chapter as yet.”

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/asiatic-lion-to-be-shifted-to-neyyar-tomorrow/article29479799.ece

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, SEPTEMBER 22, 2019 00:46 IS

Gujarat: Gay lion pride on march in rainbow Gir

Bharat Yagnik & Himanshu Kaushik | TNN | Updated: Sep 22, 2019, 10:47 IST

 AHMEDABAD: Same-sex couples among humans have to navigate through a forest of societal norms and penal codes, but no being can dare to cage the kings of the Gir jungle in the closet of prejudice.
Homosexuality in Gir lions and lionesses has been noted by forest officials, wildlifeconservators, and researchers in 1973, 1999, 2016, and most recently in 2017. So far, seven separate cases have been studied.
The 2017 case was recorded in the Devaliya interpretation zone near Sasan where zoo-bred lions are housed. "To avert conflict between two prides we released two males and two females with cubs separately," a keeper at the zone said. "Two days after the first set of male lions were released, they began a mating ritual and copulated."
Homosexuality in male lions was also recorded in the previous year in "Ecology of Lions In Greater Gir Area", a study carried out by Amreli naturalists Dr Jalpan Rupapara and Purvesh Kacha.
2 gay lions ruled over 70 sq km
"We used to track lion movements in the greater Gir outside the protected area," naturalist Dr Jalpan Rupapara said. "Often among male sub-adults - aged between 2.5 and 3.5 years - we observed pseudo-homosexuality, in which penetration did not occur. However, all the other characteristics of a sexual encounter were seen."
H S Singh, an Asiatic lion expert - and a member of the National Board of Wildlife - said: "This tendency is generally observed in nomadic lions without female mates."
The 1999 observation was recorded by B P Pati, the additional principal chief conservator of forests at the time. "During my posting at the Gir National Park and Sanctuary, homosexual behaviour in male lions was observed and reported multiple times, mainly from 1998 to 2000," Pati said. "The first photographic evidence of copulating male lions was recorded in 1999 in Khokhra range of the national park."
In 1999, Pati and two other forest officials - Chaitanya Joshi and Kautilya Bhatt - had observed two prime male lions engaging in an elaborate mating ritual for almost a week. The case was published in a paper in the Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society in 2000.
Pati's paper, titled "Homosexuality in Asiatic Lion: A Case Study from Gir National Park and Sanctuary", said: "The Asiatic lion is a social animal and its natural sexual behaviour is in general restricted to heterosexualism, but there are a few exceptions." The paper went on to say: "The heterosexual behaviour of Asiatic lions of the Gir Protected Areas is recorded and described in detail by Paul Joslin in 1973 and S P Sinha in 1987."
The paper said that in 1982, Sanat Chauhan - a forest official - reported lesbianism in lionesses of Gir. "But homosexuality in male Asiatic lions, which are prime territorial males, has never been recorded before in detail with photographic evidence," the paper said. It said a pair of prime territorial males of about 6 to 7 years from Khokhra showed this behaviour when they were not with females.
According to Pati, for one and a half years this dom

"Homosexual activity among these two males was first observed by a group of trackers in November 1999, for five days continuously, and later in December 1999, for three days," the paper said. "The method of mounting, the time taken during mounting, and repulsive action after mounting seen in the Khokhra males is similar to heterosexual mating."
The paper said that during the homosexual liaison, the animals avoided food but changed their area - which is unusual during heterosexual mating. inant pair held territory of about 70 sq km in Sasan. The two lions had their separate families including female partners and cubs. This area had four prime females with cubs. The Khokhra males had an established record of mating with three females, of which two had four cubs.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/gay-lion-pride-on-march-in-rainbow-gir/articleshow/71240297.cms

Leopard kills 70 yr old woman near Gir forest in Gujarat

Amreli, Sep 20 (UNI) A leopard on Friday attacked and killed a 70 year old woman in Mujiyasar village close to Tulshishyam range of Gir East forests in Amreli district of Gujarat.

CCF Junagadh D T Vasavada said that the leopard attacked Nanuben Rambhai Parmar at around 530am this morning when the lady had gone out to attend the nature's call.

Her body was later found from a farmland at around 700 meters away from her home.

Cages have been put in the area to nab the leopard.
UNI RAJ ASN 1604
http://www.uniindia.com/leopard-kills-70-yr-old-woman-near-gir-forest-in-gujarat/west/news/1735214.html

Proposal for leopard safari in Gurugram to be ready by next month

Updated: Sep 19, 2019 21:12 IST

Dhananjay Jha 

Gurugram A detailed project report (DPR) for setting up a leopard safari and a lake in the foothills of the Aravalli forest at Gairatpur Bas — located 15 kilometres from Rajiv Chowk, close to Sector 77/78 — is likely to be ready by October 31, state forest minister Rao Narbir Singh said on Thursday.

He said that a sum of ₹300 crores will be allocated for the development of the leopard safari and lake over an area of 1,000 acres. A consultant, appointed last week, is likely to submit the DPR by the end of next month, when the next government will likely be formed in the state.

“The DPR preparation work began a week ago and I have asked the forest officials to submit it to the forest department by the end of October. We will have to place the DPR before the Cabinet for approval, after which a tender will be floated to start work. A sum of ₹300 crores will be allocated,” said Singh, adding that this will be the first safari in the entire National Capital Region (NCR) and Haryana.

The government hopes that the leopard safari will become a tourist hub, as Gairatpur Bas is a natural leopard zone. He said there is also scope for developing a lake for boating.

The locals said that leopards can be spotted moving freely in Gairatpur Bas. They said that the leopards rarely enter areas of human habitation and that barricades for setting up the safari would confine the movement of leopards.

Rambir Singh, a resident of Gairatpur Bas, said, “Leopards are wild animals and they are already facing a threat of losing their territory because of the ruin the Aravalli forest has been facing over the past two to three decades. They should not be put in any enclosure.”

Vinod Kumar, additional principal chief conservator forest Haryana, said, “Once the DPR is ready, we will be in a better position to comment what kind of safari it will be. We will not disturb the natural movement, feeding and breeding of leopards. We are working in consultation with wildlife experts of the country and under the guidance of the ministry of environment and forest.” He said there are about 100 leopards in the Aravallis, including 18 cubs.

A team of forest and wildlife officials, including Singh, had visited the lion safari at Gir in Gujarat, and Etawah (UP) last month ago. CR Babu, a Delhi-based wildlife expert and the man behind the development of the biodiversity park in south Delhi, said, “Without disturbing the natural movement of leopards, people can watch them, like in Gir forest and others. The leopards should not be confined to an enclosure.”
https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/proposal-for-leopard-safari-in-gurugram-to-be-ready-by-next-month/story-g7jRLFmixwfJB0Sjcdqe6I.html

Asiatic lioness brought from Gujarat dies at Thiruvananthapuram zoo

Aswin J Kumar | TNN | Updated: Sep 19, 2019, 12:11 IST
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Radha, the Asiatic lion brought from Sakkarbaug Zoological Garden, Gujarat died at Thiruvananthapuram zoo on Wednesday late night. She had been ailing since the day of her arrival and a team of experts comprising pathologists and veterinarians were trying to identify the source of infection which had weakened her considerably. Nagaraj, the male lion and Radha were brought from Gujarat and officials were planning to shift them to Neyyar Safari park when Radha fell ill.

The team was planning to conduct a digital X-ray on her on Friday. The post-mortem will be conducted by a team from the State Institute for Animal Diseases, Palode on Thursday. She will be cremated in the zoo premises. Radha was rescued as a cub and brought to Gujarat zoo where she was handraised by zoo-keepers. She had two cubs.
Radha was also diagnosed with posterior paralysis. The veterinarians were hoping that she would recover after 45 days however Radha’s condition deteriorated.
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/thiruvananthapuram/asiatic-lioness-brought-from-gujarat-dies-at-thiruvananthapuram-zoo/articleshow/71194954.cms

Gir lions in London Zoo beat heat with ice lollies

Himanshu Kaushik | TNN | Updated: Sep 19, 2019, 13:11 ISTAHMEDABAD: The five Asiatic lions at ZSL London Zoo were in for a cool treat when zookeepers came up with the idea of providing them ice lollies to beat the heat.
With the mercury soaring above 30°C in September, the zookeepers were busy finding ways to make the big cats comfortable. Their solution was to dangle blood-soaked ice candies in front of the lions, who readily approved of the measure and licked them clean. Onlookers said the lions were seen springing with joy when the ice-lollies arrived.

From a large stone wall entrance with the words ‘Land of the Lions’ inscribed on it, to a train station, a crumbling temple clearing, a high street and a guard hut, a piece of Gujarat’s Sasan Gir has been replicated at the ZSL London Zoo. The zoo, one of the world’s oldest, houses five Asiatic lions.
Spread out meal for Lions in UK
Land of the Lions’ tells the story of this critically endangered species, which is only found in one small area of India — the Gir forest region.
The Asiatic lion pride at ZSL London Zoo is fed fresh raw meat including beef, chicken and duck, said Emma Edwards, head of content and communications, Zoological Society of London (ZSL). The London Zoo is run by ZSL.
The lions are fed every day in a variety of ways. Sometimes the keepers scatter food for them to chase; other times they hide their food and leave scent trails for them to follow, Edwards added. At times, large joints are hung from trees so that lions are required to use their natural strength and skills to feed.

“In India, we cannot feed anything other than fresh meat to the lions. According to Central Zoo Authority guidelines it has to be served within six hours of slaughtering,” said R K Sahoo, director of Ahmedabad’s Kankaria zoo.
He said that in the absence of such guidelines in foreign countries, frozen food is served to carnivores in small quantities to keep them active. “In overseas zoos, the big cats are seen following the keeper for food, which is not the case in India,” Sahoo added.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/gir-lions-in-london-zoo-beat-heat-with-ice-lollies/articleshow/71198578.cms