Gharial number rises by 2 in Mahanadi gorge
Bhubaneswar: Gharial population in the Mahanadi gorge in Satkosia Tiger Reserve increased by just two this year compared to last year. With this, the gharial numbers touched 16 in the gorge. Satkosia is the only place in the state where gharials breed in the wild. The reserve also has a Gharial Research and Conservation Unit (GRACU).
In Jan 2024, Nandankanan, which is involved in Satkosia’s gharial recovery programme, extended the four-year planned breeding project by another three years after a gap of one year. The four-year project’s tenure was from 2019 to 2022.
“It is an indication of improvement in habitat that two gharials were born in the wild. Gharials are sensitive aquatic animals, and their survival rate in the wild is very low. We don’t count gharials that are less than 5-ft-long as it is certain they won’t survive. So, we count gharials that are more than 5-ft-long,” said chief wildlife warden Prem Kumar Jha.
The project aims to recover the endangered species in the 21-km-long Mahanadi gorge. Gharials are radio-collared and released into the water to track their movement through radio frequency. Between 2019 and 2022, altogether 19 gharials were released in five different batches into the gorge, with the last batch being released in Feb 2022. In Feb 2023, Satkosia authorities found seven naturally bred gharials and four radio-collared ones survived. In 2024, a total of 14 gharials were counted.
Recently, the wildlife wing sought approval from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) to bring eight sub-adult gharials from Nandankanan zoo to be released in the wild later to continue the recovery programme. Additionally, four gharials will be brought from GRACU to Nandankanan to create a new gene pool .
Wildlife officials said several conservation measures are being taken up, including declaring a 10-km stretch of the Mahanadi gorge as a ‘no-fishing zone’, releasing gharials longer than 3 metres, and raising public awareness about gharial conservation. Fishermen are provided Rs 1,000 as compensation in case of damaged fishing nets.
The eight sub-adult gharials to be brought to GRACU include two males and six females, and the four adult gharials to be given to Nandankanan include one male and three females, officials said.
In Jan 2024, Nandankanan, which is involved in Satkosia’s gharial recovery programme, extended the four-year planned breeding project by another three years after a gap of one year. The four-year project’s tenure was from 2019 to 2022.
“It is an indication of improvement in habitat that two gharials were born in the wild. Gharials are sensitive aquatic animals, and their survival rate in the wild is very low. We don’t count gharials that are less than 5-ft-long as it is certain they won’t survive. So, we count gharials that are more than 5-ft-long,” said chief wildlife warden Prem Kumar Jha.
The project aims to recover the endangered species in the 21-km-long Mahanadi gorge. Gharials are radio-collared and released into the water to track their movement through radio frequency. Between 2019 and 2022, altogether 19 gharials were released in five different batches into the gorge, with the last batch being released in Feb 2022. In Feb 2023, Satkosia authorities found seven naturally bred gharials and four radio-collared ones survived. In 2024, a total of 14 gharials were counted.
Recently, the wildlife wing sought approval from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) to bring eight sub-adult gharials from Nandankanan zoo to be released in the wild later to continue the recovery programme. Additionally, four gharials will be brought from GRACU to Nandankanan to create a new gene pool .
Wildlife officials said several conservation measures are being taken up, including declaring a 10-km stretch of the Mahanadi gorge as a ‘no-fishing zone’, releasing gharials longer than 3 metres, and raising public awareness about gharial conservation. Fishermen are provided Rs 1,000 as compensation in case of damaged fishing nets.
The eight sub-adult gharials to be brought to GRACU include two males and six females, and the four adult gharials to be given to Nandankanan include one male and three females, officials said.
