PANAJI: World wide fund for nature (WWF) Goa has found some evidence of a sambhar being killed by a tiger in Satrem, within the limits of the Mhadei wildlife sanctuary recently, while two buffaloes have been reported killed or injured last week in nearby Choraundem.
"We have submitted photographic evidence of the remains of the sambhar killed by a tiger a few weeks back at Satrem to forest dept," WWF (Goa) director Nitin Sawant told TOI on Monday. Tiger pug marks were also noticed by the side of the carcass, he added.
WWF conducted investigations at the site with the help of three volunteers, Kashinath Gaonkar, Trupti Jadhav and Anand and made a cast of the tiger pug marks for further study. "Only a tiger can kill a sambhar," Sawant said.
The WWF team traced the tiger pug marks trailing right up to the Surla river.
Speaker Pratapsingh Rane (a WWF trustee and Poriem MLA) asked for the Satrem evidence and it was submitted to him, Sawant said. "The habitat is rich with floral and faunal biodiversity and is ideal also as a tiger habitat," Sawant said.
Forest department officials said that they do not rely on evidence provided by others alone, but also carry out their own investigations. "We have also taken pug marks of a tiger near Anjunem dam about a fortnight back," deputy conservator of forest (wildlife and ecotourism, north) D N F Carvalho said.
Two incidents of killing of buffaloes by a tiger on February 3 and 5 have been reported in Choraundem. The village lies in the foothills of Chorla ghat on Goa's border and within the Mhadei wildlife sanctuary, and a few miles away from Satrem.
Both buffaloes belong to Mano Phale, 67, who also lost one buffalo on February 4, 2009.
A forest department source said that movement of the big cats is being monitored.
"The people near the sanctuary have been asked not to let their animals in the sanctuary," Carvalho said.
As part of the wildlife census conducted last year, the forest department had plans to use the camera trap method for more clinching evidence of the tiger's presence in Goa's forests. "We are waiting for directions to employ this method from wildlife institute of India, Dehra Dun," Carvalho said.
Stating that use of camera trap method is a difficult task, he said WII guidelines would help in completing the phase two of the census.
The animal census which was conducted for ten days, including two-day training for participants prior to their entry in the field, is largely over. "Two days were set out for the count of big cats," sources said.
No comments:
Post a Comment