A young male leopard will enthral visitors at Amirthi Zoological Park, located on the outskirts of Vellore Corporation limits, soon as zoo authorities have sought the elusive animal from Central Zoo Authority (CZA) as part of its efforts to upgrade the 5-decades-old facility into small zoo.
Officials of the State Forest Department said that the zoo has been classified as a mini-zoo since its inception in 1967. Grading of zoos are done in terms of total area, total number of enclosures and annual revenue generation.
To upgrade the Amirthi zoo into a small zoo, it requires at least 50 hectares of total area, at least 35 enclosures and more footfalls round the year. Currently, the zoo covers around 25 hectares of space at the foothills of Jawadhu Hills and has 22 enclosures, with mostly reptiles and peacocks. “More wild species will help us to draw more visitors to the facility. It will also help us to educate visitors about conservation of wild species, both flora and fauna,” P. Prabhakaran, Forest Range Officer (FRO), Amirthi Zoo, told The Hindu.
At present, Amirthi zoo consists of two Reserve Forests (FRs) such as Thellai RF and Puthur RF in Jawadhu Hills. It also has waterfalls, birds, snakes, porcupines, crocodiles, white peacocks, and star tortoises. Among them, spotted deer formed the majority of species in the zoo as their numbers grew to 150. A spacious lawn, children’s park, and an interpretation centre are the other attractions.
Under the guidance of Guruswamy Dabbala, District Forest Officer (DFO), Vellore, zoo officials have identified a spacious area with thick green cover in the zoo for young leopards, the new arrival. As per norms, a leopard enclosure should consist of a cage, which should be 200 sq.m, an open area and a buffer zone to ensure safety of visitors and the animal. In other words, 1.5 acres is required for a leopard enclosure.Zoo officials said that land has been identified in the zoo for the new enclosure. A request has been sent to the State Forest Department for its nod and funds to build the new facility and its upkeep. Excess population of leopards in a zoo such as Salem or Vandalur will be identified by CZA to donate the animal to Amirthi zoo.Zoo officials said that reason to request for leopard is also to create awareness among local farmers about the elusive animal as the region including forest areas in Vellore, Tirupattur and Tiruvannamalai is a natural habitat of leopard. Such awareness will help local inhabitants in conversational efforts of leopards in the region.
