Thiruvananthapuram zoo gets a new striped resident

Thiruvananthapuram zoo welcomes new tigress from Wayanad, undergoing quarantine for injuries before public display.

The Thiruvananthapuram zoo got a new fanged, striped resident on Sunday.

An eight-year-old tigress that was caught by the Forest department from the Pulpally locality in Wayanad was brought to the zoo in the evening.

The officials had interrupted the free-ranging days of the predator after she caused scare among the people in the area and developed a taste for livestock. After much public furore, the Forest department captured the tigress in a cage, using a decomposing carcass bait.

Veterinarians who examined the tigress counted several injuries, possibly from territorial fights with other big cats in the 350 square kilometre area of the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, which has more predators than in the 777-sq-km Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR). 

On Sunday evening, animal caregivers and helpers at the zoo unloaded the tigress from a specially prepared cage inside a truck container. A 10-member team accompanied the tigress from Wayanad.

Ajesh Mohandas, Assistant Forest Veterinary Officer from Wayanad, oversaw the operation. He told The Hindu on Monday that they had taken a carefully scheduled break in the journey every 40 km to monitor the tigress’s health and protect it from getting overstressed. “It took us 14 hours to reach Thiruvananthapuram from Wayanad. The unloading and quarantining operation was intricate,” he said. 

Nikesh Kiran, the zoo’s veterinary surgeon, said the injury on the tigress’s right fore paw was concerning. “Treating the wound may delay the tigress’s release into her assigned enclosure,” he said. Closely monitored quarantine would help the tigress recuperate after her stressful journey and incrementally adapt to the new and puzzlingly alien environment, he said.