The presence of stealthy predator, leopard in the Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary has put the forest and wildlife authorities on tenterhooks.
Following the recent incident of killing of a calf by leopard in the sanctuary, forest and wildlife authorities have issued directions to the forest guards to keep vigil in the forest area during trekking events. The authorities concerned were left petrified on seeing a killed calf and fresh pugmarks of a leopard in the forest area recently. The UT senior forest officials had also visited the spot and confirmed that the calf was indeed killed by a leopard, which has been snooping around the forest area since long in search of food.
The incident took place prior to the commencement of Wildlife Week celebrations making the forest officials apprehensive to conduct trekking in the forest area to launch the Wildlife Week. Notably, the UT Forest and Wildlife Department had organised "nature trek" on October 2 in the Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary to mark the Wildlife Week and a large number of people, including senior UT officials, had participated in the event.
Also, the higher authorities are at their wits' end as a large number of trekkers visit the sanctuary after the commencement of winter season. As per the data available with the UT Forest and Wildlife Department, 8,900 people had visited the Sanctuary last year. In 2010, the visitors were 8,154 and in 2011, 8,219 people had visited the Sanctuary.
Santosh Kumar, UT chief wildlife warden and conservator of forests, while talking to The Pioneer, said, "There were apprehensions prior to the "nature trek" due to the presence of leopard in the forest area. However, fortunately everything had gone well during the trekking event."
He said, "Directions have been issued to the forest guards also to keep vigil in the forest area during the trekking by the visitors. The visitors are also informed about the presence of leopard in the sanctuary."
"With the beginning of winter season, a large number of trekkers visit the forest area hence we are taking necessary precautionary measures to ensure their safety," he added.
The UT Forest and Wildlife Department had already put up warning boards cautioning the trekking enthusiasts about the presence of leopard in the sanctuary. Besides, the trekkers are cautioned about the leopards in the "Dos and Don'ts in Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary" drafted by the authorities. Though the number of leopards in the forest area has not been ascertained, the forest officials believe that more than three leopards are surviving in the sanctuary due to large number of small and large herbivore in the forest area.
The ongoing survey conducted by UT Forest Department and Avian Habitat and Wetland Society (AWHS) in the Sanctuary has also ascertained the permanent presence of predators in the city's forests. The survey teams conducting year-long study on avian species in the sanctuary have found imprints of leopard pugmarks in it.
last year, UT forest guards had also sighted three-four leopards in the Sanctuary but it was believed that the predators were infrequent visitors to the sanctuary and had come from the adjoining forests areas of Haryana. It was in the year 2010, when the pugmark traces of leopards were found for the first time in the Sanctuary during a wildlife census exercise. The city's Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary spreading over an area of nearly 25 sq km is a home to large number of animals, birds and mammals species. There are around 150 small and large water bodies in the Sanctuary.
The Sanctuary has a large number of Sambars, peacocks, spotted deer (chital), pangolin (anteater), wildboar, jackal, small Indian civet, jungle cat, porcupine, Hanuman langur, rhesus monkey, Indian hare, common mongoose, Chital and three- striped palm squirrel.