Female Cheetah Daksha Dies In Kuno; Third Fatality Within 40 Days

Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park was suggested to be a site to reintroduce cheetahs in the Indian habitat. The animals, which lived in India about 75 years ago, were brought from Namibia and South Africa in September 2022 with the hope that they will survive the climate. However, the situation took an unexpected turn.

Three cheetah deaths have been reported from Kuno National Park in the last three months. Recently, the female cheetah Daksha got involved in a violent interaction with two other male cheetahs, Agni and Vayu, who are known as the White Walkers at the national park for their notorious activities. Daksha, unfortunately, died as she could not survive the injuries. She was the third cheetah to pass away following Sasha and Uday who died due to health issues in March and April respectively.

Suggested Reading: Another Cheetah Brought From South Africa Dies At Madhya Pradesh's Kuno National Park

Cheetah Death In Kuno National Park

Twenty cheetahs were brought to Kuno National Park, eight from Namibia in September 2022 and 12 in February 2023 from South Africa. The cheetahs were brought for the purpose of reintroducing the species in Indian habitat and Indian Army helicopters assisted in their transportation to the national park. Back in January 2023, one of the female captive-bred cheetahs Sasha started showing health issues as she has already been suffering from a kidney ailment before being brought to India. She was moved to a quarantine enclosure when her health deteriorated but she could not survive and died in March.

The second cheetah death happened in April when male cheetah Uday died during treatment after getting sick. On May 9, Union Environment Ministry reportedly announced that citing the onset of monsoon in June, three female and two male cheetahs of KNP will be released into free-ranging conditions from their acclimatisation camps. Earlier, four cheetahs brought from Namibia were released from the acclimatisation camps into free-ranging conditions. The ministry also said that unless the cheetahs wander into dangerous areas of KNP, they will not be recaptured and will be allowed to move freely. The ministry is trying to avoid such deaths in future and promote a better habitat for the cheetahs to survive and breed.