Similipal Tiger Reserve: Bhubaneswar, (Reporterspen), Nov 9: Jamuna, a Bengal tigress brought from the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) in Maharashtra, was released into the wild at Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district on Saturday.
Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF), Susanta Nanda, shared images and videos of the release on his X (formerly Twitter) account, stating: “For the first time, we have a tiger supplementation project anywhere in the world aimed at enhancing the gene pool of tigers.”
The 2-and-a-half-year-old tigress had been kept in a soft enclosure within the core area of STR since her arrival on October 27, after a 36-hour journey covering over 1,000 km. This translocation project is part of an effort to combat inbreeding and improve the gene pool of tigers in the reserve. Currently, 50% of the tigers in Similipal are melanistic. Of the 24 tigers in the reserve, 13 are pseudo-melanistic due to a genetic disorder caused by inbreeding. Experts believe that this could adversely affect the population of normal yellow-coated Bengal tigers in the long term.
In addition to Jamuna’s release, the wildlife wing of the Forest Department has initiated plans to relocate another Bengal tigress from TATR. A 10-member team has already arrived at TATR and is expected to bring the second tigress to Similipal within a week.
