According to a forest official, two additional cheetah cubs, both born in India, tragically passed away at Kuno National Park (KNP) on Thursday (25).
With these recent losses, the total number of cheetah cubs that have died at KNP in the past three days now stands at three.
One cub had already succumbed on May 23. Although the two cubs had also died on the afternoon of May 23, their deaths were officially reported only on Thursday.
The undisclosed reason for not reporting the deaths of the two cubs on the same day was not revealed by the official. It is important to note that KNP serves as a home to cheetahs that were translocated from Africa, as part of a significant initiative aimed at revitalising the cheetah population in India.
As per an official release, after the death of a cheetah cub on May 23, the monitoring team kept an eye on the movements of female cheetah Jwala and her remaining three cubs.
Jwala, earlier known as Siyaya, gave birth to four cubs in the last week of March after being translocated to the KNP from Namibia in September last year.
The monitoring team found on May 23 that the condition of the three cubs was not good and decided to rescue them for treatment. The daytime temperature then was around 46-47 degrees Celsius, the release said.
Despite treatment, the two cubs could not be saved, it said. The condition of the fourth cub was stable, but it too was under intense treatment, it said.
Cheetahs were reintroduced in India last year, 70 years after the extinction of the feline.
One of the Namibian cheetahs, Sasha, died due to a kidney-related ailment on March 27, and another cheetah, Uday, from South Africa, died on April 13. Daksha, a cheetah brought from South Africa, succumbed to the injuries following a violent interaction with a male during a mating attempt on May 9 this year.
(PTI)
During the hearing, Clifford denied all the charges except for the rape charge, which was added to the indictment at the session. (Photo: Hertfordshire Police /Handout via REUTERS)
Man pleads not guilty to murder of BBC presenter's family
A 26-year-old man has pleaded not guilty to charges of murdering the wife and two daughters of BBC sports commentator John Hunt in a crossbow and knife attack.
Kyle Clifford, who also faces charges of rape, appeared via video link at Cambridge Crown Court on Thursday.
Clifford, arrested in July after a manhunt, is charged with three counts of murder, one count each of rape and false imprisonment, and two counts of possessing offensive weapons – a 10-inch knife and a crossbow.
During the hearing, Clifford denied all the charges except for the rape charge, which was added to the indictment at the session.
He is expected to enter a plea for that charge at a later date.
The victims were Carol Hunt, 61, wife of horseracing commentator John Hunt, and their daughters Louise, 25, and Hannah, 28.
An earlier hearing revealed that Louise had been found tied up and that both she and her sister had been shot with a crossbow, while their mother had been stabbed with a knife.
The fatal attack occurred at the family’s home in Bushey, a commuter town near Watford, northwest of London.
(With inputs from AFP)