The two hyena cubs leap energetically when they hear footsteps approaching their enclosure at the hospital of Indira Gandhi Zoological Park. The curious eyes meet a familiar face as Dr Ch Purushotham, the zoo veterinarian, comes on his morning rounds to check upon them along with the caretaker who brings the first morning meal for the cubs.
All of six months, the striped hyena cubs are ever curious, fidgety and hungry as they transition from the early stages of dependency to a more independent and exploratory phase of life. The zoo’s veterinary hospital and rescue shelter has been their home for the past five months. Here, half a dozen hospital staff attend to their demands as they grow and thrive in a nurturing environment.
“The cubs were brought to the hospital when they were a month old. We saw puncture wounds around their neck, which normally occurs when the mother keeps shifting the cubs from one place to another due to some kind of stress. Initially the cubs were on a liquid diet and gradually solids were introduced. Soon, we will be releasing them in their enclosure,” says Dr Purushotham. The cubs are testimony to successful captive breeding at the 47-year-old Indira Gandhi Zoological Park (IGZP) in Visakhapatnam.
Six months old hyena cubs that were hand reared at the zoo hospital in Visakhapatnam.
| Photo Credit:
KR Deepak
Striped hyenas, one of the three hyena species in the world, are listed as near threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), as the global population continues to be affected due to habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict, poaching, and illegal wildlife trade.
The zoo is not only helping preserve this species but also changing public perception through education and awareness programmes.
While the zoo had in the past experienced several challenges with striped hyena captive breeding after one of its female hyenas Swathi showed maternal stress, forcing her to kills her cubs, over the past seven years IGZP has seen remarkable success after establishing a protocol of hand rearing of hyena cubs. “This is the fourth such instance of hyena cubs being successfully hand reared before being released back into the enclosure. Now we have a very good population of striped hyenas with a total of nine adults and sub-adults,” says zoo curator Nandani Salaria, who is at the helm of the conservation breeding projects.
Asiatic wild dogs
The conservation breeding of hyenas is one of the success stories of IGZP. The zoo is also recognised by the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) for conservation breeding of Asiatic wild dog or dhole. This means it is the only zoo in India that is responsible for creating off-display conservation breeding centres (CBCs) for this species. Dholes are listed as endangered on the IUCN Red List and are considered to be at high risk of extinction.
“As part of the conservation breeding project, we have received a sanction of ₹67 lakh from the CZA to create an off-display enclosure. The design was approved in March this year. This is the first part of the conservation project where a founder population will be established. For this, a special enclosure will be created replicating the features of the natural environment,” says Nandani.
Visakhapatnam zoo has been seeing a series of successful in-breeding of wild dogs since 2014. Its population witnessed a massive increase from just two to 49, the highest number of wild dogs in captivity in the country, according to current records.
Currently, more than 25 of these are kept in the off-display enclosure. “The idea is to limit human interferences with these animals to the maximum extent; and eventually, wherever there is a depleting population of dholes in the wild, we can reintroduce the species,” says Nandani.
The success story of wild dogs conservation breeding has given fillip to IGZP’s animal-exchange programme with other zoos in India. Many new species were added in the recent past in exchange of the wild dogs.
The second part of the project will be reintroduction of the species in the wild. A field study will be done to identify where the need is once the founder population is ready. “A soft release will be done where a pack will be released in an invisible cage spread over a large area. After a behavioural study of the pack, it will be slowly released in the wild,” says curator Nandani, who has been closely monitoring the first-of-its-kind conservation breeding project of Asiatic wild dogs.
Operating in packs of five to 10 individuals, dholes were once widespread across southern and eastern Asia. Factors such as habitat loss, declining prey base and disease have contributed to the decline of its population. The global population of Asiatic wild dogs is estimated to be between 949 and 2,215 individuals, scattered in localised areas of India and Thailand. “In view of the existing pressure on the survival of several animal species in the wild, such conservation breeding in zoos will be a very critical factor in species preservation over the next decade or so,” adds Nandani.
New features
An Alexandrine parakeet being attended by the zoo doctor Ch Purushottam in Indira Gandhi Zoological Park in Visakhapatnam.
| Photo Credit:
KR Deepak
In addition to stripped hyenas and wild dogs, IGZP has seen successful conservation breeding of species such as the Indian grey wolf, ring-tailed lemur, Indian bison, blue and gold macaw, jungle cat and eclectus parrot. With recent upgradation of visitor facilities like new cafetarias, parks and new animal additions and a series of outreach programmes, IGZP’s popularity has increased. In the last weekend of May this year, it received a record 9,851 visitors garnering a gate revenue of ₹7.7 lakh on a single day. Soon, facilities like infant care units, more battery operated vehicles will be added in the zoo.
